The Competitive Enterprise Institute believes the proper role for government is to provide consumers with accurate, unbiased guidance that informs consumer choice. But, whether it is the substances we prefer, how we entertain ourselves, what dietary habits we maintain, or how we pursue personal health, consumers ought to have the right to make decisions for themselves.
Consumer Freedom Issue Areas
Featured Posts
Blog
California’s $20 fast food worker minimum wage a regressive tax
California’s new $20 an hour minimum wage for fast food restaurants has turned into a regressive tax on the state’s low-income residents. People who wanted…
Blog
FDA makes lab test power play
The Food and Drug Administration has just released its long anticipated final rule that explicitly asserts its claim of authority to regulate laboratory-developed-tests (LDTs)—tests that are designed, manufactured,…
Blog
Department of Energy is coming after our light bulbs – again
We have already said goodbye to the incandescent light bulb, thanks to federal regulations. Will its replacement be next? Department of Energy (DOE) efficiency regulations…
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Regulation Roundup
Doormats banned in Leeds, exploding sausages in Canada, plus more.
Blog
CEI Podcast For August 30, 2012: Delayed FDA Rules Should Be Scrapped
Senior Fellow Greg Conko argues that these rules should be scrapped altogether for two reasons: they will do little to improve food safety, and they…
Blog
In Free Speech Victory, SEC Lifts Gag Rule On Hedge Funds And Venture Capital
Today's proposed Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rule lifting the outdated ban on "general solicitation" by hedge funds and venture capitalists is a victory for entrepreneurs,…
Blog
FDA Rules Won’t Work, Will Harm Small Farmers
The FDA recently decided to delay implementing about $1.4 billion of food safety regulations until after the November election. We think the FDA should scrap…
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Regulation And Government “Science” Cost Us More Than Dollars
Today, the Independent Women's Forum blog highlights a new NERA Economic Consulting study (produced for Manufacturers Alliance for Productivity and Innovation) on the costs…
Blog
West Nile Outbreak Warrants Pest Control — Pesticide Spraying Included
This year, Texas is experiencing its worst outbreak of the mosquito-transmitted West Nile virus ever. Fortunately, most people who get it won't suffer…
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Wishful Thinking About Religious Freedom And Gay Marriage
One of the reasons that social conservatives oppose gay marriage is the belief that if it is legalized in a state, private institutions, like…
Blog
Lastest Junk Science On BPA And Heart Disease
Earlier this week, we learned from the wonderful world of junk science that eating egg yolks is as dangerous as smoking. Now we learn…
Blog
CEI Podcast For August 16, 2012: Drought, Food Prices, And Ethanol
Severe drought in the Midwest has driven corn prices to record levels. Policy Analyst Brian McGraw argues that ending the federal government's ethanol mandate could…
Blog
California’s Unconstitutional Proposition 37
Writing in the Daily Caller, legal commentator Walter Olson says that California's Proposition 37 is bad policy that will only enrich opportunistic lawyers:…
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Time To Extinguish Flame Retardant Hype
Flame retardants are making headlines these days thanks to an “exposé” — more properly characterized as an unsubstantiated smear campaign — published as a…
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Alcohol Regulation Roundup: Dog Days Edition
These days in D.C., the mercury regularly rises above the 90-degree mark right along with most of the U.S. As unpleasant as it might be…
Blog
Bureaucratic Green Chemistry
California bureaucrats recently released their proposed regulations implementing the state’s 2009-passed “green chemistry” law. The law supposedly will make life safer for California residents by…
Blog
CEI Podcast For August 9, 2012: Getting TSA To Follow The Law
When the TSA installed full-body scanners in airports across the country, they did so illegally. Land-use and Transportation Policy Analyst Marc Scribner explains how a…
Blog
Obama Administration Aggravates The Minority Achievement Gap, Increases Risk Of School Violence
If you want to fix the achievement gap between black and white students, you must first fix the behaviors that contribute to it, like the…
Fox News
The dangerous demonization of our food
Apples, celery, and bell peppers may be hazardous to your health, according to some environmental activists. At least that's the impression you might get reading…
Blog
Update On TSA’s Lawlessness Over Body Scanners
As I noted previously, the Transportation Security Administration has failed to comply with a court order demanding that they initiate a notice-and-comment rulemaking regarding…
Blog
Why Stop At Assault Weapons?
After the horrific events of the shooting in Aurora, countless pundits are calling for the reinstatement of the federal assault weapons ban. I agree with…
Blog
EPA Attack On Asthmatics Coming To An End?
CEI warned policy makers a couple decades ago that an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) phase out of over-the-counter sales of CFC containing asthma inhalers…
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Regulation Of The Day 225: Boobie Pillows
Kern County, California's government takes morality very seriously. Chapter 9.12.010 of the County Code states that “No vendor shall vend stuffed articles depicting the female…
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Unruly Lead Paint Rule
The U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform recently released an interesting report on regulatory impediments to job creation. Among the…
Blog
Chick-Fil-A And Free Speech: New York City Council Speaker Pressures University To Punish Restaurant For Speech
New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn wants to kick Chick-fil-A out of New York because its CEO said he opposed gay marriage. She…
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Harassing Newborns And Their Mothers: Mayor Bloomberg’s Latest Overreach
The New York Post reports, “Mayor Bloomberg is pushing hospitals to hide their baby formula behind locked doors so more new mothers will breast-feed.” When…
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Maryland’s Unconstitutional School Discipline Quotas
Crimes and infractions are not evenly distributed across racial groups, as the Supreme Court noted in United States v. Armstrong, 517 U.S. 456 (1996). …
Blog
Bloomberg Soda Ban Blocks Sale of Low-Calorie Drinks
As I’ve written before, Mayor Bloomberg’s big-soda ban is ill-conceived, unjust, invasive, and useless, among other things. As Seth Goldman, the CEO of Honest…
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Groups Urge Boehner To Hold Firm And Not Give In To Agricultural Special Interests
CEI joined 11 other groups in a letter today to House Speaker John Boehner urging him not to give in to special interest…
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Revised Cybersecurity Act Makes Meaningful Progress On Privacy
em>By Ryan Radia and Berin Szoka A new version of the Cybersecurity Act of 2012 was introduced last night (PDF), and a vote on…
Blog
CEI Files Amicus Brief In Support Of EPIC’s Petition To Force A TSA Rulemaking On Strip-Search Machines
Today, the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) filed a brief of amici curiae in support of the Electronic Privacy Information Center's (EPIC) petition for writ…
Blog
Flame Retardant Risks Overblown
Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) and 25 members of Congress recently sent a letter to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson urging quick action on regulations…
Blog
Do Shampoo “Technicians” Really Need To Be Licensed?
I never knew how unqualified I was to bathe myself. The states of New Hampshire, Tennessee, Alabama, Louisiana, and Texas all have laws requiring professional…
Blog
Regulation Roundup
Britain bans starting pistols from track meets, plus more.
Blog
Rent-Seeking In The Apple Industry
A small food company in Canada has grown an apple that doesn’t turn brown after being sliced. Not everyone thinks it’s a great idea.
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Alcohol Regulation Roundup: Friday The 13th Edition
Happy Friday the 13th, everyone! Remember: raise your glasses with extra care this evening. Connecticut: In a continued effort to remain competitive with alcohol…
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FDA Delay Likely Killed Thousands, Imposed Billions In Costs
The FDA didn’t approve a home test for HIV until 24 years after it first received an application. According to an FDA advisory committee,…
Blog
Sign A Petition Requiring The Transportation Security Administration To Follow The Law!
Over at the White House’s “We the People” site, a petition rapidly gathering signatures that demands that the Transportation Security Administration abide by a…
Blog
Dietitian Licensing Board Attempts To Limit Free Speech, Silence Bloggers
Have you ever given someone advice on how to lose weight through dietary changes? Have you ever recommended that certain foods could be consumed or…
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TSA Roundup
Everyone's favorite sexy-searchers are back in the news, but not for the right reasons.
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Poisonous Advice From The Environmental Working Group
Here we go again. The Environmental Working Group (EWG) has issued its 2012 Shopping Guide to Pesticides in Produce — which is the eighth edition…
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Government “Protects” Kids By Jailing Their Mother When She Calls 911 For Help
A Tennessee mom, April Lawson, has been jailed for letting her kids play at a park, after she called 911 to report that they…
Blog
CEI Podcast for July 5, 2012: Relic of Prohibition
Prohibition ended 79 years ago, but in Washington, D.C., it is still illegal to buy liquor on Sundays. Fellow in Consumer Policy Studies Michelle Minton…
Blog
Alcohol Regulation Roundup: July 4th Liberty Edition
As you prepare to raise your glass in celebration (or memorial) of American freedom, give a cheer for the ever increasingly liberated alcohol laws around…
Blog
Regulation of the Day 223: Fred Flintstone Cars
Sebastian Trager built a replica of Fred Flintstone’s car, but regulators won't let him drive it.
Blog
Food Safety Regulations That Kill
In Reason magazine, Baylen Linnekin writes about "the sickening nature of many food-safety regulations," like the "poke and sniff" inspection method mandated by the…
Blog
D.C. To End Sunday Liquor Ban?
In D.C. politics, one month can make all the difference. At the end of April, Ward 1 Councilmember Jim Graham said that he opposed…
Blog
The Good, the Bad, and the Broccoli
Most people thought that the health care decision would hinge on the Court’s interpretation of the Commerce Clause. That’s why I wrote the first three…
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Unexceptional Ruling on Lead Paint
Homeowners seeking to do renovations on pre-1978-built homes will continue to pay extra because of the EPA's lead paint rule -- and a federal court…
Blog
Soda Pop, States’ Interests, and the General Welfare
Michael Bloomberg is as notorious as any American politician of our time. The New York Mayor’s recently proposed ban on “sugary drinks” larger than 18 ounces is the…
Blog
Obamacare Upheld, 5-to-4: A Perverse Decision That Undermines Political Accountability
Today, in a really perverse ruling, the Supreme Court upheld Obamacare's individual mandate as a tax in a 5-to-4 decision, even though Obamacare's supporters…
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Quick Thoughts on the Health Care Ruling
The Supreme Court upheld the health care bill, as you've no doubt heard by now. Over at the Daily Caller, I offer a few quick…
Blog
Alcohol Regulation Roundup: Longest Day Edition
Happy summer solstice everyone (it was yesterday, but this is the first full day of summer)! Wherever you are, I hope you're enjoying the maximum…
Blog
Support Rep. Diane Black’s MTI to Halt Misguided Federal Support for “Distracted Driving” Laws
Today, Rep. Diane Black (R-Tenn.) issued a notice of her intent to offer a motion to instruct (MTI) [PDF] highway bill conferees to oppose…
Blog
Sen. Rand Paul Introduces Bills to Dramatically Rein in TSA
Yesterday, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) introduced two bills aimed at reducing the power of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). S.3303 would end the TSA’s…
Blog
End in Sight for Pennsylvania’s State-Run Liquor Stores
Could it finally happen? After decades of hemming, hawing, and growing public anger over Pennsylvania’s outdated regulations, change may finally be in the cards for…
Blog
WSJ: Senate May Vote on Needed Sugar Reform Amendment
In today’s Wall Street Journal, an editorial sharply criticizes the U.S. sugar program and urges Congress to vote on amendments that would significantly rein…
Fox News
Should We Label Genetically-Modified Food?
Green State TV is back for 2011 with an interview on biotechnology and agriculture with Greg Conko…
Blog
Government Restrictions on Salt Consumption May Cost Lives
Some government officials would like to curb salt consumption, even though such restrictions could increase death rates. “The Department of Agriculture’s dietary guidelines still…
Blog
Twisting the Law to Punish Heretics: Elane Photography v. Willock
Judges are supposed to interpret laws narrowly if a broader interpretation would potentially encroach on religious freedom. For example, in NLRB v. Catholic Bishop…
News Release
On National Donut Day, Be a Patriot – Eat One for Yourself, One for Your Freedom
Washington, D.C., June 1, 2012 – In a week that New York City’s mayor announced a planned ban on large-size sugary sodas, consumers have…
Blog
New York City Mayor Michael “Nanny” Bloomberg Wants To Ban Super-Sized Soda
The infamous mayor, known for instituting paternalistic food policies, like banning trans fats and Four Loko, limiting salt, regulating calories, is at it again.
Blog
Lawyer Arrested for Constitutionally Protected Blogging Against Convicted Bomber, After Hearing Before Judge C.J. Vaughey
Earlier, I wrote about how a judge in Montgomery County, Maryland (a liberal bastion), had silenced a critic of convicted "Speedway Bomber" Brett…
Blog
CPSC Commissioner Challenges Precautionary Principle
Most of the time regulators focus on issuing rules, pushing paper, and often making business more difficult than necessary. But every once and a while,…
Blog
Long Commutes Will Kill You? A Brief Response to Matt Yglesias’s Post
Slate blogger Matthew Yglesias, a center-left economics writer whose work I generally enjoy reading, has a new post up with the title, "Long Commutes…
Blog
Injunction Imposed Over Blog Posts That Criticized Convicted Terrorist-Turned-Left-Wing Activist
In 2005, a New Mexico judge appalled people across America by issuing a restraining order against David Letterman after a wacky woman accused Letterman…
Blog
When Schools Are Like Jails — Or Worse
A 17-year-old Texas honor student has been jailed for missing too much school. Diane Tran works both full-time and part-time jobs, in addition to taking…
Blog
Senate Vote Today on FDA, Supplements, and Energy Drinks
Today, the Senate will vote to reauthorize and modify the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) prescription drug and medical device user-fee program (…
Mackinac Center
Improve Michigan’s Economy with Alcohol Sales at Farmers Markets
Michigan farmers are on the cutting edge of the buy local trend, a movement that could provide a great boon for businesses and the state’s…
Blog
EEOC Restricts Speech in Viewpoint-Discriminatory Manner in Dawson v. Donahoe: De Facto Ban on Confederate Flags
The First Amendment generally protects even offensive speech, so if you wish to wear a t-shirt celebrating a bloodthirsty thug like Mao, Stalin, or Che…
Blog
Techno-Phobic California Politicians “NHTSA” Google’s Driverless Car
Last week, I wrote about Google’s amazing new self-driving car, which CEI General Counsel Sam Kazman and I had the opportunity to test-ride in…
Blog
EPA’s Design to Strong-Arm the Chemical Industry
If you believe the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, its Design for the Environment (DfE) program is an example of a voluntary effort to protect…
Blog
Land of the Free? Part 2: The Real War on Women
"How could it be illegal to sell something that it's perfectly legal to give away?" -- George Carlin The recent extra-curricular exploits of American Secret Service…
Blog
Facebook, Overregulation, and the “Cheers IPOs”: Unshackling the Next Facebook and Its Investors
Whether or not a retail investor buys shares of Facebook when it finally goes public tomorrow -- and OpenMarket provides public policy, rather than investment,…
Blog
Cyberbullying and Bullying Used As Pretexts for Censorship
In the name of fighting “cyberbullying,” many New York legislators would like to force blogs to remove blog comments that offend readers, unless they…
Blog
CEI Podcast for May 10, 2012: Freeing Our Farms
Current immigration policy keeps many immigrants in dangerous black markets, raises food prices for consumers, makes it difficult for farmers to hire workers and create…
Blog
Legacy Risks
European and American political and private institutions have made many non-sustainable retirement promises over the last 50 years. These promises cannot be kept and that…
Blog
Farm Bill Needs Real Reform, Not New Entitlements, Say Free-Market Groups
CEI joined with 10 other free-market groups in a letter today urging Congress to take on real reform of agricultural subsidies in the next…
Blog
Endocrine Disrupters: Should We Fear Mother Nature?
A recent article published in the The New York Times touts a new report that claims to have finally proven that trace…
Blog
Alcohol Regulatory Roundup: Honor Mexico Edition
In honor of Cinco de Mayo I'll start today's alcohol regulatory roundup with some international news from Mexico: People are up in arms over…
Blog
Education Department Pushes Racial Quotas in School Discipline
At Point of Law, Ted Frank of the Manhattan Institute criticizes the Obama Administration's demand for de facto racial quotas in school discipline:…
American's for Tax Reform
DC City Council Pushes for Higher Taxes on Consumers
From ATR.org: Don’t just take ATR’s word for it. In today’s Washington Times, Michelle Minton of the Competitive Enterprise Institute highlighted the…
Washington Times
Letter to the Editor: D.C. Alcohol Tax Increase Will Hurt Servers
Council member Jim Graham’s proposal to increase the District’s liquor excise tax by 6 cents a drink is not as innocuous as he claims…
Blog
Liquor Tax Hike Would Hurt the Little Guys
D.C. Councilmember Jim Graham’s proposal to increase the alcohol excise tax by “6 cents a drink” is not as innocent as he makes it…
Blog
Court Rules State Biotech Food Labeling Mandates Preempted By Federal Law
It’s been a few years since biotech foods have been regular front page news. The anti-technology activists cried wolf a few too many times, and…
Blog
Alcohol Regulation Roundup: April 27, 2012
It's time once again for a review of the ever-changing, increasingly complex, regulation of alcohol around these United States. This should give you something to…
Blog
My Weekend with Hitchens at NASCAR
Last weekend, there was a public memorial service at Cooper Union in New York to commemorate the voice of the late Christopher Hitchens. I…
Blog
TSA in the News
Pat-down reduces a woman to tears in Madison, WI, a supermodel is searched with surprising thoroughness, and a frustrated flyer strips naked in Portland, Oregon.
Blog
Land of the Free? Our Insane and Unjust Drug War
Americans have long beat their chests and bragged about their liberties. But more and more these are empty boasts -- the land of the free…
Blog
Congressional Hearings Question National Toxicology Program’s Science
Today, the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee and House Small Business Committee held a joint hearing on the National Toxicology Program's (NTP)…
Washington Times
Technological Challenges Aside, Is Asteroid Mining Legal?
From Rebecca Boyle’s article in Popular Science: Some space colonization advocates argue that guaranteeing ownership of celestial real estate is a necessary precursor…
Washington Times
Dick Durbin’s Backward Approach to FDA Reform
It is a tragedy when a patient suffers or dies because the drugs that could help him are simply not available. In recent years, the…
Washington Times
Sugar Program Isn’t Sweet for Consumers or the Economy
Don’t look now, but here comes the farm bill, one of those catch-all legislative behemoths littered with wasteful programs and supported by entrenched special interests.
Washington Times
Profit Shouldn’t Be an Alien Concept
From The Gulf Coast Business Review: Although Star Trek fans are not alone in thinking it would be fun to take a cruise…
Blog
Another Dubious TSA Trifecta
Stolen iPads, harassing drag queens, and a former TSA chief calls for reform -- three years after his departure.
Washington Times
Direct Alcohol Shipping To Minors Is Not a Public Safety Problem
(Also published by the Franklin Center for Government & Public Integrity) If you’ve ever had a remarkable local beer while traveling, you may…
Blog
Regulation of the Day 218: Bagpipes
Street musicians were recently banned from playing bagpipes in Vancouver, British Columbia. Just in time for the city’s Scotland Week celebration, Mayor Gregor Robertson happily…
Blog
San Francisco Judge Dismisses Lawsuit against McDonald’s over Happy Meals
"In San Francisco, Judge Richard Kramer has dismissed the Center for Science in the Public Interest’s lawsuit on behalf of parent Monet Parham seeking to…
Blog
Regulation of the Day 217: Being Rude
The mayor of La Torba, Spain recently issued a 65-point Courtesy Charter making it illegal to burp in public or slurp your soup, among other…
Washington Times
Could Legal ‘Loophole’ Lead to Land Claims on Other Worlds?”
From Alan Boyle’s post on MSNBC.com: The concept was unveiled last week by Rand Simberg, an adjunct scholar at the Washington-based Competitive Enterprise…
Washington Times
Stalking a Claim on the Moon
From Jeff Foust’s article in The Space Review: The current round in the debate over property rights in space started with the publication…
Washington Times
Legal Loophole May Pave Way For Private Ownership Of Outer Space
From Andres Jaregui’s article in The Huffington Post: A shift in policy could open up the moon and other celestial bodies to ownership…
Washington Times
Loophole Could Allow Private Land Claims on Other Worlds
From Adam Mann’s article in Wired: Full blown colonization and settlement of other planets, moons and even asteroids might actually happen, says space…