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Trump Moves on Trade: TPP and NAFTA
The decisions to end the failed TPP experiment and perhaps pull the plug on NAFTA may not be the disaster for free trade they seem…
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This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The final pre-inauguration Federal Register was 1,464 pages long. A normal day’s edition is roughly 300 pages. Since there is a lag time of a…
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Federal Officials Should Reopen Investigations of Union Activist ‘Worker Centers’
It is certainly time to reinvestigate the issue of “worker centers,” which operate outside of the traditional boundaries of labor law.
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Obama Highway Administration Released Troubling Vehicle Communications Guidance
Last Thursday, the outgoing Obama Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) released its long-awaited guidance document on the deployment of vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communications.
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Learn Liberty Asks: Are Millennials Actually Lazy?
Jared Meyer, discusses his book "Disinherited: How Washington Is Betraying America’s Young" with Learn Liberty’s Evan Swarztrauber.
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Struggling Fishermen Sue over Cost of Harvest Monitoring
It can be difficult to make one’s living off of the land – or the sea – these days. Federal and state regulations on natural resource…
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DeVos Hearing Generates Misleading Attacks on Civil Liberties Group FIRE
Betsy DeVos, who was recently nominated to be the next Secretary of Education, has been attacked because she and her husband reportedly made donations to a civil-liberties…
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Where Have All the Startups Gone? New Research from eBay and EIG
Recently eBay’s public policy team here in Washington, D.C. presented a fascinating program on economic growth and new business start-ups.
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Wasteful Spending, Minimum Wage Hike Fuel California Budget Deficit
California’s projected budget deficit is rising, but that could have been avoided by curtailing wasteful spending.
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Wyoming Considers Disastrous Sales Tax Proposal
The U.S. Supreme Court made clear in the case of Quill v. North Dakota (1992) that Congress, not the individual states, has the authority to regulate…
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Obama’s Labor Legacy: Overreach and Overregulation
In the past eight years, the Department of Labor has consistently pushed the boundaries of its authority. The agency’s overreach greatly restricted how people work,…
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Vox Begs the Question on Climate Change ‘Lukewarmers’
The key insight of the "lukewarmer" position on climate change is that policy has costs and that these costs can harm human beings just as…
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Overturning FDA’s Vape Ban Could Save Millions of Lives
If confirmed as Secretary of Health and Human Services, Tom Price could help save millions of American lives by stopping the Food and Drug Administration’s…
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Tom Price Should Focus on Reversing ‘Mission Creep’ at HHS
If confirmed as Secretary of Health and Human Services, Rep. Tom Price should reverse decades of mission creep and refocus federal health agencies on their…
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Transportation Inspector General: FAA Not Prepared for Major Airspace Disruptions
The Federal Aviation Administration’s airspace modernization efforts, known as NextGen, are woefully lacking.
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‘Corporate Campaign’ Deployed against Labor Secretary Nominee Puzder
Democrats, labor unions, and their allies have deployed a coordinated attack against President-elect Donald Trump’s Secretary of Labor nominee, Andrew Puzder.
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Advice for EPA, Part 3: How to Restore Cooperative Federalism
The Environmental Protection Agency can achieve bipartisan environmental improvement by restoring harmony between itself and state governments. …
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‘I, Whiskey’ Honored at Southern Shorts Film Festival
At the Southern Shorts Awards in Roswell, Georgia last weekend, I, Whiskey: The Human Spirit made its big screen debut as one of the top…
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This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
In a mere nine working days, the 2017 Federal Register has nearly reached 5,000 pages; the midnight hour approaches.
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Coalition Defends Reform of Credit Union Lending Rules
A dozen conservative and free-market groups have signed onto a coalition letter to preserve deregulation of credit union lending.
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Union Front Groups Deploy Dishonest Tactics against Nominee Puzder
Pro-union activist groups are pulling out all the stops to derail the nomination of Andrew Puzder, CEO of CKE Restaurants, to head the Department of…
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Misleading New Republic Hit on EPA Nominee Scott Pruitt Demonstrates Ignorance of Subject Matter
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Key Omission Undercuts Attempted New York Times Exposé of EPA Nominee Scott Pruitt
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Can Trump, Congress Undo EPA’s Midnight Fuel Economy Regulation?
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Reaction to Reported EPA Fuel Efficiency Rule, Part 1: The Politics of the Matter
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“I, Whiskey” on the Festival Circuit
This weekend the producers of the CEI film "I, Whiskey: The Human Spirit" will be in Roswell, Georgia for the Southern Shorts Film Festival and Awards Presentation…
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New York Times Highlights Minimum Wage Tradeoffs
Minimum wage increases have obvious winners, which is why they are so popular. Their tradeoffs are less obvious.
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Free Market Coalition Supports Scott Pruitt for EPA Administrator
Today more than 20 organizations, in a public letter to members of the Senate, urged confirmation of Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt as the next…
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Iain Murray Addresses Political Fragmentation in the EU
This afternoon our friends at the Heritage Foundation hosted a fascinating discussion of European politics with CEI Vice President for Strategy Iain Murray.
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Crash Course in Gambling Law for Would-be Attorney General Sessions
Federal law does not ban all online gambling, despite what U.S. Attorney General-designate Jeff Sessions has suggested.
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Chamber of Commerce CEO Lays Out 2017 Agenda
U.S. Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Thomas Donohue gave his annual “State of American Business Address” to a packed hall at the Chamber’s H…
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Endangered Species Bee Listing Could Harm Bees, Butterflies, other Pollinators
In the interest of both pollinators and landowners, the incoming Trump Administration needs to advocate and pass serious reforms to the Endangered Species Act.
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Scrutinizing Sen. Carper’s Questions for EPA Nominee Pruitt
Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) is unwilling to hold a confirmation hearing on President-elect Trump’s choice for Environmental Protection Agency administrator until the nominee, Oklahoma Attorney…
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A Federal Gift Clause Could Help ‘Drain the Swamp’
If President-elect Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress are serious about coming through on the campaign promise to “drain the swamp,” it would serve them…
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Questions Senators Should Ask Rex Tillerson
Tillerson is probably the only influential person President-elect Trump would ever nominate as Secretary of State who supports both a carbon tax and the Paris…
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Activist Criticism Again Misses Mark on EPA Nominee Pruitt
It’s implausible to argue that Pruitt’s past acceptance of PAC donations are “unprecedented” for someone overseeing the…
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Regulatory Accountability Act Poised to Bring Dramatic Improvement to Government Rulemaking
If signed into law by the next president, the Regulatory Accountability Act will have a dramatically positive effect on jobs, productivity, innovation, and overall economic…
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13,953 Human Lifetimes Spent Annually on Federal Paperwork (2017 Edition)
The burden of federal government paperwork now takes up 9.778 billion hours a year.
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Environmental Litigation Strategies and Defenses for Trump Era
Environmental litigation groups like the Sierra Club, Natural Resources Defense Council, and the Center for Biological Diversity will pursue three types of lawsuits over the…
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New York Times Misleads on U.S.-China Renewable Energy Trade
The source of demand for Chinese renewable energy exports are countries, like the U.S. and Europe, that have mandated and subsidized green energy.
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This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The midnight regulatory rush continues, with more than 2,100 Federal Register pages, despite a four-day work week, along with 51 proposed regulations and 52 final…
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Energy & Environmental Policy News: Multimedia Roundup
Observations and analysis on recent energy and environment news by senior fellow William Yeatman.
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Join the ‘I, Whiskey’ International Watch Party
After a successful Virtual Watch Party campaign focused on fans in the United States, we’ve now launched an International Watch Party for our friends around…
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Regulatory Reform in 2017: How Much Do Existing Regulations Cost?
The Regulatory Responsibility for our Economy Act (RREA), sponsored by Sen. Pat Roberts (R-KS), would help fix basic transparency problems with federal regulations.
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Second Round of Advice for EPA: People Are Policy
The incoming Administration should fill lower ranking political appointees at the EPA with officials across a broad spectrum of state environmental programs and legal officers.
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Utah Keeping Amazon Sales Tax Deal Secret
The Utah State Tax Commission refuses to make public the details of the deal reached with Amazon due to what’s been reported as a “confidentiality…
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Learn Liberty’s Lessons from Star Wars
Learn what Star Wars can teach us about limited government and moral responsibility.
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Regulatory Reform in 2017: REINS and the Regulatory Accountability Act
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House Moves on Regulatory Reform, More Votes Coming
Yesterday afternoon the House of Representatives passed the Midnight Rule Relief Act, which would allow Congress to repeal multiple executive branch rules with a single…
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New Congress Needs to Modernize Tech Policy
With respect to tech and telecom, lawmakers should avoid imposing new mandates and prohibitions in response to new technologies that might seem threatening, absent exceptional…
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Clayton Must Work for Both Small and Large Investors at SEC
Jay Clayton, and anyone who goes on to serve on the Commission, must advance the interests of both Main Street investors and entrepreneurs trying to…
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EPA Region 6 Throws Bombs to the Bitter End
Among the Environmental Protection Agency's 10 offices, by far the most aggressive during the Obama administration has been Region 6, which operates out of Dallas…
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Environmental Defense Fund Attack Ad Full of Lies about EPA Nominee Scott Pruitt
The Environmental Defense Fund’s mendacious attack ad on Scott Pruitt demonstrates much that is wrong with the green movement.
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Is It ‘Mission Accomplished’ for the EPA?
Does it make any sense to spend ever greater sums of money for ever fewer environmental benefits? That’s the very fair question that’s been asked…
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This Week in Ridiculous Regulations: 2016 Wrap-Up
The 2016 Federal Register’s record-setting page count ends at 97,110 pages—more than 15,000 pages above the previous record, set in 2010. The difference is more…
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What Paul Ehrlich’s “Eco-Catastrophe!” Tells Us about Climate Change Alarmism
In “Eco-Catastrophe,” the bad guys are “obtuse agriculturists and economists” whose false bill of goods (the green revolution) plunges the globe into anarchy. In real…
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RealClear Radio Hour: The War on Science and the Economy
Check out RealClear Radio Hour’s last episode with free market stalwarts John Tierney and Peter Wallison.
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Trump Administration Will Have Legal Authority to Halt Clean Power Plan
It would not be illegal for President Trump to order the Environmental Protection Agency not to enforce the Clean Power Plan.
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Best of the Blog 2016
Certain topics were especially popular with readers in 2016.
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NRDC Is Wrong: Trump Can Issue Day 1 Executive Order Declaring Clean Power Plan Illegal
The Clean Power Plan in its current form is illegal, and there is no problem with the President issuing an executive order to this effect…
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New Opportunities for a Free Market Veteran
After 23 years Greg Conko, who most recently served as CEI’s Executive Director, has decamped for the other side of the Potomac.
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Libertarianism.org Video Contest Winners
2016 Libertarianism.org Video Contest Winners…
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The 2017 Unconstitutionality Index: 18 Federal Rules for Every Law Congress Passes
Federal agencies in 2016 issued 18 rules and regulations for every law Congress passed.
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Two Recommendations for EPA: 1) Revise, Don’t Repeal; 2) Do Your Job
There is a climate policy that’s even worse than EPA regulations written by Natural Resources Defense Council lobbyists: state torts for injunctive or monetary relief…
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A New Year’s Toast to Whiskey
New Year’s Eve is a world-wide celebration. Across the globe, people will welcome the coming year with their own unique traditions, and the people of…
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Preparing for the Challenges and Opportunities of 2017
At this time of year, it is easy to focus on endings. The end of the general election campaign in November, however, also marked a…
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Obama’s National Monument Designation: Second-Term Environmental Policymaking at Its Worst
It is outrageous that President Obama, on the way out the door, would try to irrevocably federalize 1.3 million acres in the state, in spite…
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Worker Freedom Coming in the New Year
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115th Congress Should Halt Government Assault on Freight Rail
Forced reciprocal switching has been a goal for coal, petrochemical, and agriculture shippers for decades, but regulators have generally made it extremely difficult.
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This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
As the Obama administration heads into its home stretch, agencies passed new rules ranging from gloves to canned vegetables.
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Can Any Branch of Government Oversee the EPA?
Federal regulatory agencies have escaped effective oversight from the Congress and the courts.
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The ‘Fake News’ Problem: Health and Safety Edition
The moniker “fake news” may have entered the mainstream lexicon in 2016, but phony and misleading news stories have always been a problem—and it’s a…
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Obama Couldn’t Win a Third Term, Because He Would Have To Own His Global Warming Policy
I strongly doubt that President Obama would win a third term, as he claimed yesterday.
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EPA’s Clean Power Plan Lies Undermine Congressional Oversight
Congress’s primary means of investigation are hearings and follow up questions, but these mechanisms are rendered meaningless when the agency lies.
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Five New Year’s Resolutions for a New Administration
Now is the perfect time for members of the incoming Trump administration to reflect on where America is and set policy goals for the coming…
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RealClear Radio Hour: Executive Actions and Blockchain Technology
In this episode, Andrew Grossman proposes executive actions Trump can take to undo problematic portions of Obama’s pen and phone legacy and Donatien Adou discusses…
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The Libertarian Holiday Gift Guide
Cheers to the brilliant production team at Reason TV, who have provided some welcome comedy this holiday season with their new video, “The Libertarian Holiday…
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Property Rights Are the Key to Protecting Land
We often hear that only government can protect the environment through outright land ownership or heavy regulatory control of private land.
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The Future of Free Trade under a Trump Administration
My colleague Iain Murray has an excellent analysis today in Brexit Central of how a future international trade deal between the United States and a…
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Congress Must Combat Threats to Affordable Energy
Policy makers should reject policies to tax and regulate away mankind’s access to affordable energy.
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Can Trump (or Congress) Rescind Obama’s Arctic Drilling Ban?
President Obama yesterday designated “the vast majority of U.S. waters in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas as indefinitely off limits to offshore oil and gas…
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A Revolutionary Way to Influence and Persuade
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5 Great Books on Politics and Public Policy from 2016
A lot of interesting books on politics, economics, and public policy were published over the last twelve months. It can be difficult, though, finding the gems…
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Some Advice for Trump Appointees
Your role in the new administration is to propose ways of restoring limited government – by privatization, deregulation, extending property rights, and taking on the…
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Congress Should Target Unaccountable EPA Programs
The newly elected congressional majority should be ready and willing to help implement President elect-Donald Trump’s promise to tackle onerous regulations. But what about so…
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TSA Deserves a Lump of Coal
The TSA’s widely unpopular body scanners lead many would-be air travelers to take to the much more dangerous highways instead, where some number of them…
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Must-Have Gifts for America’s Wish List
It isn’t Christmas Day yet, much to the chagrin of impatient youngsters, but it’s already time for America to put together a wish list for…
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Congress Needs to Fix America’s Broken Financial System
Whole forests have been cut down to print the books written about the financial crisis of 2007/8 and America’s response to it.
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RealClear Radio Hour: City Extortion and Cities’ Heroine
In this episode of RealClear Radio Hour, Brian Hodges discusses West Hollywood’s extortion of local developers and Robert Kanigel shares stories of Great American Cities…
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This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
On Tuesday the 2016 Federal Register topped 90,000 pages for the first time ever, and continues to extend its page-count record every day.
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Federal Register Breaks Record by 10,000 Pages
Today standing at 91,642 pages, the Federal Register is 10,000 pages higher than the prior all-time record.
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Three Regulatory Reforms Congress Can Pass in the First Hundred Days
Here are three they should pursue in the new administration’s first hundred days.
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Can Congress Veto EPA’s Fuel Economy Rush Job?
The Environmental Protection Agency’s recent proposal to keep in place the agency’s model year greenhouse gas emission standards for new motor vehicles is the epitome…
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Death Rate Rose and Life Expectancy Recently Fell in America
The death rate increased 1.2% last year, and life expectancy fell in 2015, the most recent year for which data is available.
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A Free Market Policy Agenda for the Trump Administration
CEI’s free market policy agenda for the incoming Trump administration is aimed at strengthening the economy and removing barriers to economic freedom in five key…
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How Ridesharing Platforms Help the Economy
We have been saying for a while that ridesharing platforms like Lyft are different from traditional transportation firms, not just in the technology they use,…
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Appeal Heard on ‘Hot Fuel’ Class Action Settlements
Last month, the Tenth Circuit heard argument in CEI’s appeal of the “Hot Fuel” settlements. This is the case where the plaintiffs sued most major…
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Labor and Employment Reforms for the Next Congress
In the arena of labor and employment policy, the next Congress has its hands full in reversing eight years of red-tape that unduly burdens the…
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Court Strikes Down Another Unlawful Labor Rule
On December 12, 2016, the federal Northern District Court of Texas put the final nail in the coffin of the Department of Labor’s misguided persuader…
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Five Ways CFPB Regulations Harm the Middle Class
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) was set up in 2010 to “make consumer financial markets work for consumers, responsible providers, and the economy as…