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News Release
Fed independence is the real story in Wednesday’s interest rate decision: CEI analysis
Today, the Federal Reserve announced it is cutting interest rates by 25 basis points, the first cut in nine months. CEI senior economist…
The Washington Post
The wine industry doesn’t work the way Washington thinks it does
Owning a vineyard in Napa Valley sounds fancy, but the wine business is, in reality, pretty gritty: It is a low-margin agricultural and food-processing business…
News Release
Trump’s call to end corporate quarterly reporting mandates would boost competitiveness, end onerous regulation
President Trump today used a social media post to call on the SEC to end quarterly reporting mandates for publicly traded companies and instead move…
Search Posts
Comment
CEI comments advising DOT to rescind Biden administration SAFE 1 Repeal Rule
Dear Mr. Cohen, On behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), I respectfully submit these comments responsive to the Department of Transportation’s request for information…
News Release
Trade deficit grew in March, tariff effects just beginning: CEI analysis
According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, the US trade deficit grew by 14 percent in March ahead of President Trump’s broad tariff announcement…
Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee
Chairman Lee Introduces Bill to End Biden Era Lightbulb Ban
Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee cited CEI’s expert on Bill to end Lightbulb Ban “This bill is very good news for consumers. It…
The Daily Signal
How Many Biden Appointees ‘Burrowed in’ to the Permanent Bureaucracy?
The Daily Signal cited CEI’s expert on political career placements Sean Higgins, a research fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, also highlighted the threat of…
Center Square Opinion
Why do so many countries have tariffs?
If tariffs are so bad, then why does nearly every country have them? It’s a fair question, and many Trump tariff defenders are asking it.
News Release
April adds 177,000 jobs to economy, tariff policies yet to majorly shakeup labor market: CEI analysis
The job numbers for April show 177,000 jobs were added to the economy, with the unemployment rate staying steady at 4.2 percent. While job growth…
CNN
America’s economy may actually be even weaker than it appears
CNN cited CEI’s expert on the financial state of the economy “People are stockpiling now. That’s helping the economy now — and then they’re…
Comment
Competitive Enterprise Institute Letter in Support of DOT Request to Reduce Regulatory Burden
On behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), I respectfully submit the following comments in response to the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) request for information,…
Yahoo Finance
Trump decries ‘Biden’s Stock Market’ after capping worst 100-day market performance in decades
Yahoo Finance cited CEI’s expert on the newest GDP report The Competitive Enterprise Institute, a free-market-focused think tank in Washington, D.C., was one of the…
News Release
Economy shrinks following Trump tariffs: CEI analysis
America’s GDP shrank during the first quarter of 2025 following President Trump’s spate of trade tariffs imposed on various countries in his first 100…
The Economic Standard
Rebecca Minkoff’s Success: A Testament to the Importance of Personal Credit
Nobody likes paying interest on a credit card bill. It may seem like an easy out to just have Congress forbid it. But what people…
News Release
Ondray Harris joins CEI as General Counsel
The Competitive Enterprise Institute is pleased to announce that attorney Ondray Harris is CEI’s new General Counsel. Harris joins CEI from law firm Gordon Rees,…
Fox News
Trump’s executive order surge: The unprecedented use of presidential authority
Fox News cited CEI’s expert on federal government power Trump’s approach signals that power has been diverted away from Congress and that the …
Politico
Playbook: 100 days of magnitude
Politico cited CEI’s new General Counsel FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — Ondray Harris is now general counsel at the Competitive Enterprise Institute. He previously was counsel at Gordon…
Letters
CEI joins Institute for Energy Research to address EPA errors
Dear Administrator Zeldin: We applaud your efforts to reform the Environmental Protection Agency through the Powering the Great American Comeback initiative. In his 2025 Joint…
930AM The Answer
Federal regulations cost average American household $16,000 a year, group finds
930AM The Answer cited CEI’s Ten Thousand Commandments report The nonpartisan Competitive Enterprise Institute released its annual Ten Thousand Commandments report Thursday. It shows that total…
Issues & Insights
Can Trump Kill This $2.2 Trillion Regulatory Beast?
Issues and Insights quoted CEI’s Ten Thousand Commandments report But that barely scratches the surface. Thursday, the Competitive Enterprise Institute released its annual “10,000 Commandments”…
NewsMax
Study: Biden’s ‘Hidden’ Tax on Households Hit $16K in 2024
NewsMax quoted CEI’s expert on Ten Thousand Commandments report Federal regulations imposed by the Biden administration reached costs of $2.16 trillion in 2024, generating a…
The Washington Times
Federal red ink now costs businesses more than $2.1 trillion per year, report says
The Washington Times quoted CEI’s expert on 10kc report “Congress should be held accountable for such large regulatory actions,” wrote Clyde Wayne Crews Jr., the…
Daily Caller
Cost Of Regulatory Burdens Reached Staggering Levels In 2024, Report Says
Daily Caller cited CEI’s expert on Ten Thousand Commandments report Federal regulations added an estimated total cost of a whopping $2.155 trillion for Americans in…
The National News Desk
Biden leaves behind $16,000 hidden tax for everyone
The National News Desk quoted CEI’s expert on Ten Thousand Commandments report That according to a new report released Thursday from The Competitive…
News Release
“Ten Thousand Commandments” report on federal regulatory burdens identifies problems, reforms
The Competitive Enterprise Institute today released its annual Ten Thousand Commandments report on the cost burden of federal regulations, revealing a cost exceeding $2 trillion,…
Products
Chapter 11: 2025 Unconstitutionality Index: 19 rules for every law 78
Article I of the Constitution notwithstanding, administrative agencies, not Congress, do most of America’s lawmaking. Congress enacts weighty legislation but delegates the details to agencies.
Products
Chapter 4: Regulatory dark matter
Although executive actions are typically supposed to deal with the internal operations of the federal government, they increasingly can have binding effect and influence private…
Products
Chapter 3: Numbers of rules and page counts in the Federal Register
The Federal Register is the daily repository of all proposed and final federal rules and regulations. Although its page counts are often cited as a…
Products
Chapter 2: Why we need a regulatory budget
The federal government publicly discloses its fiscal costs. It does not disclose most of its regulatory costs. Federal spending programs are funded either by taxes…
Products
Chapter 7:Unified Agenda of regulatory actions
Along with the Report to Congress, Federal Register, and Code of Federal Regulations, another vehicle for regulatory disclosure is the spring and fall editions of…
Products
Chapter 12: An agenda for rightsizing Washington
Rule counts regularly topped 4,000 in the 1990s. That is the wrong comparison for Biden-era lower rule counts. Those fewer rules have higher costs, are…
Products
Chapter 5: Well over 20,000 agency public notices annually
Presidents issue a few dozen memoranda and other proclamations each year. Departments and agencies issue thousands. These include guidance documents, notices, memoranda, letters, bulletins, action…
Products
Chapter 6: A note on rule reviews at OMB
OMB’s Biden-era shift to regulatory advocacy, particularly since the Circular A-4 rewrite, diminishes what can be gleaned from EO 12866 rule reviews. Nonetheless, like pages…
Products
Chapter 1: Biden’s whole-of-government push
Let’s be clear, Kamala and I came into office determined to transform how the economy works—change the way it literally functions. —Joe Biden, September 23,…
Products
Chapter 8: Federal regulations affecting small business
The aforementioned National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) report found that average annual per-employee regulatory costs to firms vary by firm size. The smaller the firm,…
Products
Chapter 10: GAO database on rules and major rules
The federal government’s regulatory reports and databases serve different purposes. The Federal Register presents all proposed and final rules, along with numerous presidential documents and…
Products
Chapter 9: Federal rules affecting state and local governments
State and local officials’ concerns over federal mandates’ overriding their own priorities resulted in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) of 1995. It requires Congressional…
Blog
Regulators right to approve Capital One/Discover merger
On Friday, federal financial regulators made the right decision in approving the merger of Capital One and Discover. In their joint approvals of the merger,…
Forbes
Trump Reforms Die Without An Abuse-Of-Crisis Prevention Act
Amid frustrations with interventionist elements of the Trump agenda—such as tariffs and revived antitrust zeal—many have nevertheless been encouraged by the renewed…
Citation
Happy Hour May No Longer Be So Happy
The American Spectator cited CEI’s expert tariffs Economists aren’t surprised that the alcohol industry is talking about price hikes. “Tariffs are a tax,” said…
Letters
CEI joins Coalition for Innovative Laboratory Test, FDA’s laboratory developed tests rule
Re: Court vacating FDA’s final rule on LDT regulation, Executive Order 14219, Executive Order “Reducing Anti-Competitive Regulatory Barriers”, & FDA Regulation of Laboratory Developed Tests…
News Release
Competitive Enterprise Institute documentary selected for Anthem Libertarian Film Festival, begins streaming on SalemNow May 7
Today, the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) is proud to announce the release of a special documentary project, Dear Mr. President: The Letters of Julia…
News Release
President Trump announces Executive Orders aimed at slashing overregulation within federal agencies: CEI analysis
On Wednesday, President Trump announced several Executive Orders aimed at slashing overregulation in federal agencies through sunsetting and repealing outdated or unnecessary rules. The Orders…
News Release
Trump’s tariffs on China mean more economic pain on the way for consumers: CEI analysis
President Trump announced on Monday a 50 percent retaliatory tariff against China’s 34 percent retaliatory tariff. CEI senior economist Ryan Young says enough is enough.
The Daily Economy
A Civil Service for the Twenty-First Century
In 1881, a president was assassinated over the future of the civil service. James Garfield, who believed in civil service reform, was shot by a…
News Release
March adds 228,000 jobs ahead of a rocky economic road: CEI analysis
The job numbers report for March show 228,000 jobs were added to the economy, with the unemployment rate staying steady at 4.2 percent. While…
News Release
Congress passes resolution repealing Biden energy rule against freezers, walk-in coolers: CEI statement
Congress successfully passed a resolution repealing a Biden Energy Department rule that would have imposed needless restrictions on walk-in coolers and freezers. CEI energy policy…
Marketplace
Our post-tariff takeaways
MarketPlace cited CEI’s expert on tariffs Listen to more on MarketPlace…
Fox Business
What is the time frame for Trump’s tariffs leading to price increases?
Fox Business cited CEI’s expert on a timeline for price increases post-tariffs Ryan Young, senior economist at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, told FOX Business that…
News Release
New tariffs could spell major trouble for global economy: CEI analysis
President Trump has dubbed today “Liberation Day” by announcing a new round of tariffs on various goods entering the US. CEI senior economist Ryan…
WSJ Opinion
The Kid Rock-Kamala Coalition
WSJ Opinion cited CEI’s expert on the U.S. economy Now the White House is attacking secondary markets? Perhaps soon someone will have to explain…
Forbes
Trump’s Deregulation Gains Muscle—But Is He Skipping Leg Day?
The Trump 2.0 era has been marked by some extraordinary executive orders aimed at deregulation. These include E.O.14,192’s one-in, ten-out initiative; E.O. 14219’s installation of DOGE…
Letters
CEI joins Market Institute on Nippon Steel investment.
Dear Secretary Yellen: We represent a broad coalition of free-market, conservative, and individual liberty organizations united in our support of a market free of government…
Letters
CEI joins Center of Freedom and Prosperity against trade tariffs
Dear President Donald J. Trump, On behalf of the undersigned conservative, free market, and taxpayer advocacy organizations, we write to commend you on your pro-growth…
Letters
CEI joins Institute for the American Worker in coalition letter about Senator Josh Hawley’s proposal framework for the PRO Act.
Dear Members of the United States Senate, We write to express our deep concern about Senator Josh Hawley’s proposed labor framework. The framework has no…
Blog
SEC restores corporate control over ESG proposals
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has wasted no time in reforming controversial regulations under the Trump administration. Beyond targeting formal rules, GOP commissioners have…
City Journal
Home Appliance Regulations Are Out of Control
President Trump hates federal home appliance regulations as much as President Biden loved them. And now Secretary of Energy Chris Wright has taken the first…
National Review
Trump Transition at FTC Is No Reagan Revolution
Don’t call it a “comeback.” Those hoping for a Reagan-era-like return to economic sanity or regulatory humility in antitrust at the Federal Trade Commission…
Blog
Shutdowns are fake, but government growth is very real
With a government funding deadline looming on March 14, the House passed a continuing resolution (CR) to freeze non-defense spending at Fiscal Year 2024…
News Release
February inflation numbers not yet reflective of Trump’s tariffs: CEI analysis
Inflation rose 0.2 percent across all sectors in February, down from 0.5 percent in January. CEI senior economist Ryan Young says Trump’s tariffs did…
The New York Times
Trump Doubles Metal Tariffs as He Presses Canada to Become Part of U.S.
The New York Times cited CEI’s experts on tariffs “Ryan Young, a senior economist at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, said that putting tariffs on foreign…
Op-Eds
Will Congress Ever Take The Libertarian Win And Embrace Automatic Shutdown?
Congress is at it again. With the March 14, 2025, funding deadline looming, the House is debating a continuing resolution (CR) that would…
News Release
Trump’s plan to increase steel, aluminum tariffs on Canada not a winning move: CEI analysis
President Trump declared today he will increase planned steel and aluminum tariffs against Canada in a tit for tat response to Canada’s recent imposition…
Master Resource
Modernize EPA! (CEI guidebook is out)
Master Resource cited CEI’s experts on new study in modernizing the EPA “Kudos to CEI for its unwavering dedication to principled scholarship in its long,…
The Economic Standard
The CFPB drops its misguided case against Zelle
Seemingly as part of the general order to stop work by acting director Russ Vought, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has …
News Release
TSA to end collective bargaining due for its workers, citing abuse of union “official time”: CEI comment
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) today announced it is ending collective bargaining for the Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) Transportation Security Officers, explaining that…
News Release
Economy adds fewer jobs than expected in February 2025, with trade tariff uncertainty looming large
Experts expected the U.S. economy to add 160,000 jobs in the month of February, but it fell a bit short at 151,000. As President Trump’s…
Forbes
Like DOGE, Virginia Is Leading The Way On Government Efficiency
The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is one of the most high-profile experiments in Trump’s second administration. With billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk at the helm,…
The Daily Economy
DOGE Gets Serious in Its War on the Administrative State
I have argued for over a decade that America has a fourth, largely unaccountable branch of government in the administrative state. My 2012 book, Stealing…
Blog
My State of the Union message: Restore separation of powers
President Trump is giving a speech on March 4 to a joint session of Congress. In a syndicated column for Inside Sources, I argue…
Blog
Don’t let a government shutdown stop mergers
With a March 14 deadline looming, the US is heading towards another government shutdown. Congressional Democrats seem willing to let funding lapse unless they…
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: Alabama does DOGE with Stephanie Smith
In this week’s episode we discuss poverty in Illinois, J.D. Vance on AI in Paris, the future of the Jones Act and…
DC Journal
Point: Pare Back Presidential Power
President Trump is poised to address a joint session of Congress on March 4, the first-year equivalent of the annual State of the Union address.
Forbes
Signs Of A Renewed Regulatory Reform Push From DOGE
Over the last half year, the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has undergone an unexpected journey. What began as an idea envisioned by Elon Musk—and…
Letters
CEI joins the Black Rock Group to support Make America Competitive Again.
Dear Speaker Johnson and Majority Leader Thune, On behalf of the Competitiveness Coalition, we write today to urge you and your colleagues to support President…
News Release
House poised to debate rescinding Biden EPA methane tax rule
Today, the House is expected to debate a resolution of disapproval that would rescind the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) methane tax rule,…
Letters
CEI Leads Coalition Letter to Congress on Tankless Water Heaters
Dear 119th Congress: The Biden administration gave us many bad appliance regulations, but worst of all may have been its last-minute crackdown on gas-fired instantaneous…
The Daily Economy
Bud Light Returns to Merit, Profit After ESG Backlash Cost Billions
Most Americans have heard about Bud Light’s controversial marketing collaboration with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney in April 2023 from the ensuing boycott against the brand, which tanked…
News Release
Trump administration appoints free market champion Mark Calabria to OMB post: CEI statement
The Trump administration has appointed free market advocate Mark Calabria as Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Associate Director for Treasury, Housing, and Commerce. CEI’s…
News Release
Constitutional challenge over spending power should be limited to executive powers – CEI analysis
Following his inauguration, President Donald Trump has made it known he intends to reduce federal spending. But a 1974 law called the Impoundment Control Act…
The Daily Signal
5 Big Controversies Facing the Fed’s ‘Consumer Watchdog’ Agency as DOGE Eyes Its End
The Daily Signal cited CEI’s expert on the governments legal authority It will likely take an act of Congress to completely shut it down,…
The Daily Signal
The Sneaky Way Government Unions Rake in Taxpayer Money, and How Congress Can Fight It in Reconciliation
The Daily Signal quoted CEI’s expert on budget reconciliation To drive the point home, Stern noted, “Your tax dollars quite literally go to pay for…
Blog
This week in ridiculous regulations: pillar coral and mailing cremains
President Trump blamed Ukraine for its invasion by Russia and called Volodymyr Zelenskyy a dictator. He also issued an executive order with potential to…
The Washington Free Beacon
Biden Environmental Justice Adviser Received Millions in Taxpayer Funds After Personally Applying For EPA Grant
The Washington Free Beacon cited CEI’s expert on Biden administration’s environmental justice initiatives. Daren Bakst, the director of the Competitive Enterprise Institute’s Center for Energy…
News Release
CEI applauds Sen. Ernst’s (R-IA) SCRUB Act
On Friday, U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) introduced the Searching for and Cutting Regulations that are Unnecessarily Burdensome (SCRUB) Act, which would task President…
Blog
CEI to Supreme Court: Please don’t let executive branch set tax rates
Yesterday, the Competitive Enterprise Institute filed an amicus brief urging the Supreme Court to recognize that only Congress has the authority to write the…
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: Pivot or Die with Gary Shapiro
In this week’s episode we discuss corporate DEI mandates, financial surveillance at the Securities and Exchange Commission, medical fraud among Alzheimer’s…
Blog
Sovereign wealth funds: Should governments invest in private businesses?
President Trump recently signed an executive order to study creating a sovereign wealth fund for the US government. If the proposal comes to pass,…
Blog
Trio of agencies scrap their climate disclosure mandate, SEC should take note
Prior to Inauguration Day 2025, the Department of Defense (DoD), General Service Administration (GSA), and National Aeronautics Space Administration (NASA) collectively withdrew a…
WSJ Opinion
Tariffs Matter More Than Don Luskin Thinks
Donald Luskin argues that tariffs are “inherently small tax hikes because tariffs only apply to, at most, a base of $3.257 trillion—the total value of goods…
Letters
CEI Joins Coalition Urging Reconsideration of Nippon Purchase of US Steel
Dear Mr. President: We respectfully ask you to reconsider the corrupt and flawed decision of your predecessor, President Joe Biden, to reject the purchase of…
Letters
CEI scholars join economist letter urging Congress, Trump to reject trade tariffs
Today, we write this letter in a similar spirit of unity. While the professional economists who have signed today’s letter differ on many issues, we…
News Release
Fed maintains rates in first interest rate decision of the new year: CEI analysis
The Federal Reserve has announced that in the interest of fighting inflation, it will not cut rates at this time. CEI senior economist…
The Independent Institute
Wind and Solar Tax Credits are Destroying the Grid
Rising power demand is revealing the fatal flaw in the increasing penetration of wind and solar on the grid. It’s time to admit that enough…
Forbes
A Banger Trump Executive Order Abolishing Regulatory Dark Matter
“[A] loathsome night-spawned flood of organic corruption more devastatingly hideous than the blackest conjurations of mortal madness and morbidity. Seething, stewing, surging, bubbling like serpents’…
Las Vegas Review-Journal
EDITORIAL: Trump sets ambitious regulatory agenda
Las Vegas Review-Journal cites CEI’s expert on rules and regulations Indeed, the Competitive Enterprise Institute reports that the number of pages in the Federal…
E&E News
Trump’s regs freeze trips up Biden’s green rules
E&E News cited CEI’s expert on regulation Wayne Crews, a fellow in regulatory studies at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, a free market think tank, said…
News Release
Acting FDIC chairman to re-focus regulators on core mission, away from political causes
The acting chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Travis Hill, today declared his list of priorities and reforms aimed at promoting a safe,…
Washington Examiner
Biden leaves Trump with 263 new regulations in final month
Washington examiner cited CEI’s expert on regulations at the end of Biden’s term Clyde Wayne Crews, the regulations watchdog for the Competitive Enterprise Institute, declared…
Marginal Revolution
Travis Fisher on electricity privatization
Marginal Revolution Cited CEI’s expert on electric utilities We aren’t necessarily trying to revolutionize the existing grid or change the way a typical residential…
Op-Eds
Affordable Housing – How Donald Trump Could Accomplish More Than Jimmy Carter
The passing of Jimmy Carter sparked much praise for his post-presidency good deeds, particularly his decades of volunteer work with Habitat for Humanity building homes…
Broadband Breakfast
Think Tank Analysts Outline Pro-Growth Broadband Reforms
Broadband Breakfast WASHINGTON, Jan. 20, 2025 — Analysts at the Competitive Enterprise Institute are urging Congress to enact broad telecommunications reforms as outlined in…
Forbes
Biden’s Regulatory Big Bang: A Parting Gift Trump Is Set To Return
Just as the incoming Trump administration promised to repeal “foolish” and “radical” Biden executive actions—and issue so many executive orders on day one…
