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Trump, Congress overturn California’s gas-car ban
President Trump today signed three Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolutions of disapproval to overturn Biden administration Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) waivers greenlighting California’s plans…
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UN report says tree planting can result in more greenhouse gas emissions
It is common knowledge that trees act as carbon sinks. Through the process of photosynthesis, trees take in carbon dioxide and release oxygen that we…
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New nuclear executive orders come at a time when power demand is rising
On Friday, May 23, President Trump signed four executive orders related to nuclear power. These lay the groundwork for reforming nuclear regulation and enabling nuclear power…
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AI boom power surge: Plants revived, fossil fuels reconsidered
Rising power demand is causing retired power plants to be reopened and repurposed. Power demand in the United States was relatively stagnant for many years,…
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Free the Economy podcast: Drug costs and benefits with Sally Pipes
In this week’s episode we cover reforms to the Endangered Species Act, attacks on US tech firms, nuclear power innovation,…
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The MAHA Report is a missed opportunity
Less than six months into the new administration, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has produced its Make Our Children Healthy Again…
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Your family’s share of federal red tape last year was…
Most people can see taxes on their pay stubs, but there’s another sort of tax that’s much less visible: the cost of government regulations. These…
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Matt Ridley’s wisdom on trust and trade
In 1834, Charles Darwin encountered a group of natives in Tierra del Fuego, at the southern tip of South America. Although both parties were unable…
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Africa (and America) need free trade and deregulation, not generosity
Here is a letter I recently wrote to the Wall Street Journal. Africa (and America) need Free Trade and Deregulation, not…
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Good things happen when spectrum is allocated to the marketplace
There has been recent legislative activity on spectrum allocation, so it is a good time to remind ourselves why moving as much spectrum as…
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Trump’s newborn nest egg accounts
In the face of recurring economic shocks—we’ve suffered 9/11, the 2008 financial crisis, and COVID-19 in the 21st century alone—the reflex to throw hundreds of…
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The broken window fallacy: America doesn’t know what it pays for
If a kid breaks a shopkeeper’s window and a glazier fixes it, is the economy better off? It has created work for the glazier, so…
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The week in regulations: Paper packaging promotion and bridge conditions
President Trump ordered National Guard troops to deploy against American citizens. Agencies issued new regulations ranging from hot air balloons to authorizing ski areas. On…
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Congress should codify the National Listing Workplan
In the 15 years after the Endangered Species Act (ESA) was passed in 1973, it was repeatedly amended. Congress passed major amendments that updated…
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Chapter and verse: The case against mandatory ESG standards
This week De Gruyter Brill published the book ESG Investing: Current Theory and Practice, edited by John Hill of Fairfield University’s Dolan School…
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CBO likely overestimates effects of Medicaid reforms
Yesterday, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released its estimates of the costs, both financial and in coverage, of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act…
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Free the Economy podcast: Tariffs and corruption with Justin Callais
In this week’s episode we cover Autumn Billings on donor privacy, Wayne Crews on the DOGE legacy, and Joey Politano on the…
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The total cost of federal red tape last year was…
$2.15 trillion is CEI’s latest estimate of the costs of all federal regulations. It is an intentionally conservative estimate. Think of it as a floor,…
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Two courts, one message: Tariffs need congressional backing
Within the last few days, two courts have enjoined President Trump’s tariffs under International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) finding them unlawful. First, the US…
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Don’t socialize health care through private insurance
Four senators have introduced the “Supporting Healthy Moms and Babies Act,” which would mandate full coverage, no copays, no out-of-pocket costs for beneficiaries…
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Clearing the tracks: CEI’s three-point blueprint to DOT deregulation
Background The Trump administration has made good on some of its promises of deregulation – namely with two executive orders from the beginning of this…
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Senate should reject lobbyist sales pitches for alternative energy subsidies
Lobbyists for the companies hoping to cash in on the many alternative energy subsidies in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) are crying foul now…
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CEI’s The Surge: Expert testimony, Spanish blackout, and more
If you are interested in analysis and perspective on current energy and environmental issues, then we encourage you to subscribe to this new publication and…
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DOGE after Musk: From meme to momentum
Elon Musk’s short but headline-grabbing stint with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has concluded, but the broader deregulatory agenda remains robust and far from…
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The week in regulations: Low-moisture human foods and grass promotion
Lots of transportation-related regulatory cleanup this week. Friday alone had 47 proposed rules, most of them to repeal obsolete regulations. Two courts struck down Trump’s…
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Medicaid cost explosion
Over the past five years, Medicaid has defied all expectations and projections. It is the third largest program that the government administers, and it has…
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Life is made of trade
If I hadn’t become an economist, I might have found happiness as an evolutionary biologist. The two ways of thinking have a lot in common.
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How IAIS advances DEI policies
As explained in an earlier blog post, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) has drifted away from its mission and is actively working…
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Big Beautiful Bill threatens the Costco of health care
You’ve probably never wondered why you buy peanut butter from the grocery store instead of directly from the J.M. Smucker Company or your TV from…
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Eight energy policies that reduce competition and increase energy prices
The US Department of Justice’s Anticompetitive Regulations Task Force was accepting comments from the public in part “seeking information about laws and regulations that…