There are two main areas in which Congress can enact meaningful reform. The first is to rein in regulatory guidance documents, which we refer to as “regulatory dark matter,” whereby agencies regulate through Federal Register notices, guidance documents, and other means outside standard rulemaking procedure. The second is to enact a series of reforms to increase agency transparency and accountability of all regulation and guidance. These include annual regulatory report cards for rulemaking agencies and regulatory cost estimates from the Office of Management and Budget for more than just a small subset of rules.
In 2019, President Trump signed two executive orders aimed at stopping the practice of agencies using guidance documents to effectively implement policy without going through the legally required notice and comment process.
Featured Posts
Blog
The week in regulations, shutdown edition: Student loans and foreigners’ biometric data
President Trump announced a trade deal with China. The Federal Reserve cut interest rates. The continued federal shutdown meant another slow week in the Federal…
Blog
Darklore Depository 2025: An unofficial inventory of guidance documents and other regulatory dark matter
Halloween can remind policy wonks that some of the ghastliest regulatory chills come not from ordinary notice-and-comment regulation buried in the daily Federal Register, but…
Blog
The week in regulations, shutdown edition: Visa fees and regional haze
President Trump demanded that the Justice Department pay him $230 million. He also cut off all trade negotiations with Canada because of a tv commercial…
Search Posts
Blog
The Changing Face of Selling Liberty Online
We’ve been publishing and promoting the study for many years, and our strategies and methods have changed as the years have gone by. When we…
USA Today
Trump is Cutting Through Regulations, but Only Congress Can Make it Last
Eventually, politicians will be forced to get spending and deficits under control, but regulatory reforms are just as important to keep the economy growing and…
Blog
‘10,000 Commandments’ at 25: What Have We Learned, What’s to Come?
Wayne Crews has ably documented the regulatory state for twenty-five years and running. But what will the next twenty-five years of “10,000 Commandments” look like?…
Blog
The Cost of Washington’s ‘10,000 Commandments’
Federal regulation cost Americans $1.9 trillion in 2017, or nearly $15,000 per U.S. household—more than Americans spend on any category in their family budget except…
News Release
Trump Administration’s Success in Tackling $2 Trillion Federal Regulatory Burden Faces Risk
While President Trump has slowed the growth of new regulation, there are warning signs that federal agencies are already on track to reverse his progress.
News Release
Senate Votes Down Unfair CFPB Auto Lending Rule
CEI praised the Senate today for voting down the Obama-era Consumer Financial Protection Bureau rule that unfairly penalized auto lenders for any unintentional disparate impact…
Study
Ten Thousand Commandments 2018
View the Full Report Here Ten Thousand Commandments is the Competitive Enterprise Institute’s annual survey of the size, scope, and cost of federal regulations,…
Blog
AI in the UK: Lords’ Report Makes Startups Less Competitive
The British House of Lords recently published a report on artificial intelligence, which includes policy recommendations that would hamper the development of AI domestically and…
Products
Liberate to Stimulate
Download Chapter 10 as a PDF Policy makers frequently propose spending stimulus as a way to grow economies. It rarely goes well.
Products
Regulation and the FCC
Download Chapter 9 as a PDF The Federal Communications Commission is by no means the heavyweight among regulators as gauged by the…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The highlights from this week’s round of 36 proposed regulations and 72 final regulations range from licensing government inventions to the Department of Redundancy Department’s…
Forbes
An Inventory Of Federal Agency Guidance Documents
Is that an exciting click-bait title or what? It gets even better though. Federal regulations’ hundreds of billions in costs and…
Op-Eds
The Six Ways Trump Has Cut Red Tape (So Far)
Alongside tax reform, cutting red tape has been big news. Congress created the regulatory enterprise and enabled the now-sweeping delegation of legislative power to administrative agencies…
Marketplace Radio
AUDIO: John Berlau Discusses Accountability at the CFPB with American Public Media’s Marketplace
John Berlau, Senior Fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, joined American Public Media’s Marketplace, to discuss how the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau can be…
Forbes
Mark Zuckerberg Testimony: Will Washington Cast The First Stone At Facebook?
As Facebook is embroiled in three separate privacy crises, let he who never transacts commercially or politically cast the first stone.
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
It may not feel like Spring yet, but regulatory agencies have turned their fancies to rulemaking, with 45 proposed and 70 final regulations ranging from…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
With a full quarter of 2018 in the books, agencies have issued just one economically significant rule—an increase in State Department fees amounting to $115…
CNBC
VIDEO: Ryan Radia Discusses Regulatory Oversight of Data Collection on CNBC
Ryan Radia, Research Fellow and Regulatory Counsel at CEI, joined CNBC’s Power Lunch to discuss regulatory oversight of data collection.
Reason Magazine
Trump Is ‘Destroying’ Regulations
Reason Magazine talks to Wayne Crews about the Trump administration’s commitment to regulatory reform: The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), a D.C.-based free-market think…
Blog
More Evidence of Growth in February Job Figures
Today’s jobs numbers shattered expectations—313,000 new jobs in February against an expectation of 200,000. The numbers provide yet more support to the…
Yahoo Finance!
New House Bill Would Kill Consumer Watchdog Payday Loan Rule
Yahoo! Finance cited Daniel Press on the necessity of access for consumers to receive a payday loan. A congressional resolution introduced in the House…
Watchdog
More Briefs Filed with SCOTUS in Forced Union Dues Case
Watchdog cited Trey Kovacs on the longstanding circumstance of union workers being forced to pay for controversial political activities for unions by the government. …
The Daily Caller News Foundation
EPA Responded to The DCNF’s FOIA Request Two-And-A-Half Years Late
TheDCNF quoted Chris Horner on the difficulty which conservatives face when submitting FOIA requests to the EPA compared to environmentalists. The Environmental Protection…
PGRI
Supreme Court Decision Could Open Door for Sports Betting in Pennsylvania
PGRI cited Michelle Minton on the liklihood that judges will overturn the federal sports betting ban on behalf of the state of New Jersey. …
PRWeb
Take Off the Veneer of Certainty On Climate Change Science Says Friends of Science Society
PRWeb cited Rupert Darwall on the need for reanalyzing climate ideology based on scientific uncertainty and the politicization of scientific evidence surrounding the climate debate.
Newsmax
Mulvaney Must End CFPB’s Big Brother Role
Just after Thanksgiving, when the drama of the dueling directors began at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), I told The Washington Examiner that the new…
FEE
Blockchain Technology Requires Permissionless Innovation to Flourish
Blockchain has been hitting the headlines recently. Once regarded as a niche interest for technologically experienced libertarians and other computer nerds, cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are…
Forbes
Trump Administration Releases Updated Regulatory Cost-Benefit Report
Benefits of federal regulation are supposed to exceed costs. How much review of federal regulation happens to assure that’s the case? The annual (sort of) Report…
Investor's Business Daily
Trump’s Deregulation Binge Is Lightening The Economy’s Load
Investor’s Business Daily cited Clyde Wayne Crews on the extent of the impact which the Trump adminstration’s deregulatory stance is having on the nation’s economy. …
The Hill
Conservatives Packed 2017 With Victories — Push 2018 Even Further
The Hill cited Wayne Crews on the financial impact of overregulation by the Obama administration upon the United States economy. With a wild…
CNBC
Trump Disappoints Fossil Fuel Proponents and Corn Belt Base as EPA Leaves Biofuels Program Mostly Unchanged
Marlo Lewis was cited by CNBC for the negative impact which not scaling back on the renewable fuel program will have on taxpayers and those…
Bloomberg Law
House Bid to Ax Payday Rule Kicks Off With Bipartisan Support
Bloomberg Law cited Daniel Press on the leadership expressed by House lawmakers for blocking a law that would impede upon the loan-granting process that would…
Newsmax
Year Two: 10 Things Trump Must Do to Finish Draining the Swamp
President Trump has not drained the swamp yet – but at least it is getting smaller.
The Washington Times
Judge Rules in Favor of Trump in Battle Over CFPB Leadership
The Washington Times quoted Sam Kazman on the blocking of Leandra English in taking control of the CFPB as acting director. A federal…
The Washington Times
Trump Signs Legislation to Repeal Obama-Era Arbitration Rule
The Washington Times quoted Iain Murray on the need for Congress to disapprove of the CFPB’s egregious rule against small dollar loans. President Trump signed…
The Washington Times
Protecting Consumers from Fraud and Abuse
Following Richard Cordray’s resignation as director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the smart money is betting that President Trump will appoint Mick Mulvaney, head…
The Washington Post
This group thinks Trump hasn’t done enough to unravel environmental rules. Here’s its wish list.
The Washington Post quoted Myron Ebell on the failings of the personnel process within the EPA as being a major cause of dysfunction for the…
Washington Examiner
Payday-loan borrowers need protection from the poorly-named Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
In an epic, down to the wire vote last week Congressional Republicans narrowly overturned a regulation that would have enriched lawyers at the expense of…
Townhall
Beware the Dangers of Online Gambling Says Wildly Rich, Totally Uninterested Casino Owner
Townhall cited Michelle Minton on the fact how at least one-percent of gamblers, no matter the restrictions or type of gambling, they will develop a…
Reason
Self-Driving Cars Will Make Most Auto Safety Regulations Unnecessary
Reason quoted Marc Scribner on the necessity of pragmatism which should be utilized to expedite the implementation of self-driving cars before federal auto regulators idealistic…
Reason
Trump’s ‘Deregulatory’ Juggernaut’?
Reason quoted a report by the Competitive Enterprise Institute on the success of the Trump administration in enacting deregulatory reforms. “While the Republican…
RealClearMarkets
Undoing President Obama’s Damage Will Take Time
RealClearMarkets quoted Daniel Press on banking regulations impact on the banking system. Ronald Reagan once said, “No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in…
PGRI
Pennsylvania becomes the Fourth State to Legalize Online Gambling
PGRI re-posted an article released by the Competitive Enterprise Institute on its blog detailing the successful legalization of online gambling in Pennsylvania. …
Politico
FCC’s next step on net neutrality: Blocking the states
Politico quoted Jessica Melugin on the difficulties awaiting states or cities who would try to impose their own individualized versions of net neutrality highlighted by…
Politico
Cordray out
Politico cited the video released by the Competitive Enterprise Institute criticizing the CFPB. Sheila Bair wants a commission: Sheila Bair on CNBC: “I…
Blog
CEI Reacts to Trump’s FY19 Budget Proposals for CFPB, EPA, and Regulatory Reform
CEI experts react to provisions in President Trump’s fiscal year 2019 budget proposal released on February 12, 2018.
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Under the radar, Trump, Republicans are in frontal assault of Obama-era regulations
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch cited Wayne Crews as well as the Competitive Enterprise Institute on the effects of President Trump’s reforms and how mcuh overregulation…
Newsmax
Dear President Trump, Please Fire CFPB’s Cordray — Now
On Oct. 30, 2017 Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Richard Cordray released a letter to President Donald Trump in which Cordray urged the…
The New York Times
Net Neutrality Hits a Nerve, Eliciting Intense Reactions
The New York Times cited the Competitive Enterprise Institute in its support of internet regulation reforms that seek to create a more regulation-free environment. …
New York Post
Banks Remain Quiet On Mulvaney CFPB Appointment
The New York post quoted Iain Murray about the conditions of a legal standoff surrounding the CFPB. While Washington was buzzing on Monday…
The Hill
EPA blocks scientists who get grants from its advisory boards
The Hill quoted Myron Ebell on the actions of EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt and his recent reforms. The Trump administration rolled out a…
The Hill
Why are we still regulating Main Street like Wall Street?
It’s no secret that banks across America aren’t doing well under the Dodd-Frank Act, Congress’s response to the 2008 financial crisis. Since Dodd-Frank’s enactment in…
The Hill
Credit Trump for boosting business and fueling our economic growth
The Hill cited the Competitive Enterprise Institute for the success of President Trump’s deregulatory policies and the postive impact said changes are materializing for business…
Compliance Week
Coalition Urges Congress to Halt CFPB Rule on ‘Payday’ Loans
Compliance Week covers CEI’s coalition letter urging Congress to stop the CFPB’s payday-loan rule. On Feb. 6, 23 free market groups led by the…
Fox
Trump’s Assault On The Administrative State Will Benefit America
Fox News cited Competitive Enterprise Institute’s “Ten Thousand Commandments – An Annual Snapshot of the Federal Regulatory State” as proof of gross overspending by the…
WIRED
Outdated Auto Safety Regulations Threaten the Self-Driving Revolution
Self-driving cars should be welcomed for their substantial safety and mobility gains for the traveling public, especially the elderly and disabled. But the federal government’s failure…
Fox Business
Trump’s CFPB won’t be Obama’s: Key ways it could be different
Fox Business cited Iain Murray on the need for focus by the CFPB on upholding existing laws rather than imposing new ones. As the battle…
Forbes
Most Federal Agency Regulatory Guidance May Be Invalid, So Now What?
Forbes published an article by Clyde Wayne Crews, Jr. about the lack of firm rules beign established by federal agencies in stead copius “interpretive guidance”…
Reflections On The Evolution Of Trade Policy
Reflections On The Evolution Of Trade Policy
Forbes has published an article by Fred Smith detailing the effects of renegotiation and its effects on the North American economy as well as the…
The Denver Post
This Group Thinks Trump Hasn’t Done Enough to Unravel Environmental Rules
The Denver Post referenced Myron Ebell on the underlying weakness within the EPA owing to a personnel process. The activists gathered behind closed doors…
CNS News
Carbon Tax Is Political Poison for Conservative Movement
A carbon tax is political poison for conservatives and free marketers. The struggle for hearts and minds in this country is to no small degree…
The Washington Examiner
What CEOs Still Want from Trump: A Deregulation Wishlist
The Washington Examiner discusses deregulation with Myron Ebell. America’s CEOs have a long wish list for the regulatory rollback President Trump has promised to…
CNBC
Climate Skeptics and Coal Boosters Gather to Cheer Trump’s Energy Agenda — and Hold His Feet to the Fire
CNBC cited Myron Ebell on the developing successes by the Trump administration with its energy agenda as well as covered him biographically HOUSTON —…
Bloomberg
Trump Deserves Some Credit for the Rally in Stocks
Bloomberg cited statistical data from the Competitive Enterprise Institute about the breadth and cost of Obama-era regulations and the effects of Trumpian deregulation fueling market…
Blog
Job and GDP Growth Numbers Signal Improving Economy
Today’s jobs numbers, which were modestly above expectations, are yet another sign that the economy is starting to pick up steam as a result of…
Investor's Business Daily
Lots of Presidents Talked About Getting Rid of Bad Regulations – Trump Is Actually Doing It
Investor’s Business Daily cited the Competitive Enterprise Institute on the major role in which the Trump administration is playing in deregulating the federal government. …
Government Executive
Trump’s Deregulatory Efforts Are Ensuring Agencies ‘Stay Within the Laws,’ Officials Say
Government Executive cited the Competitive Enterprise Institute on the efficiency of the Trump administration on introducing federal deregulation policies. The Trump administration boasted…
Reason
Trump at 9 Months: ‘The Least Regulatory President of All’
Reason cited Wayne Crews about the deregulatory success that has defined the Trump administration thus far. The most underreported story (except here at…
Reason
Conservative groups urge Congress to rein in NLRB
The Washington Examiner mentioned the role of CEI in advocating for legislation to be backed in Congress to reel in the National Labor Relations Board.
Washington Examiner
Trump ahead of Reagan’s record in cutting regulations
The Washington Examiner cited the Competitive Enterprise Institute and Clyde Wayne Crews on the increasing amount of reulation cutting being succesfully implemented by President Trump’s administration. …
E&E News
Who’s Who in Trump’s Infrastructure Initiative
E&E News discusses Trump’s infrastructure plan with Myron Ebell. President Trump’s ballyhooed infrastructure push — envisioned as a $1.5 trillion construction push paired with…
Inside Sources
Free-Market Coalition Urges Action on Franchise Rule
Inside Sources cites the leadership role which CEI is playing in defining joint-employment as head of a coaltion of free-market advocacy groups. A coalition…
Real Clear Markets
What’s the Difference between “Major,” “Significant,” and All Those Other Federal Rule Categories?
RealClear Markets posted an article written by Clyde Wayne Crews about emergence and ensuing pervasiveness which the nomenclature of department rule-creation holds within the U.S. federal government, as…
Breitbart
Exclusive–Trump’s EPA Transition Chair Myron Ebell: ‘Scrapping’ Clean Power Plan ‘Key Part of Deregulatory Agenda’
Breitbart has interviewed Myron Ebell on the negative effects which the Obama-era ‘Clean Power’ Plan brought forth including destablization of the American electrical grid, heightened…
The World Post
Trump Administration To Propose Scrapping Major Obama-Era Climate Change Policy
The World Post quoted Myron Ebell on the negative impacts of the ‘Clean Power’ Plan on domestic manufacturing industries as well as job growth.
The Hill
Overnight Energy: EPA to propose Clean Power Plan repeal | Pruitt takes on wind, solar tax credits | Committee to mark up antiquities reform
The Hill quoted Myron Ebell on the effects which the ‘Clean Power’ Plan raised consumer rates for electricity and threatened stability of America’s electrical grid. …
Inc.
After 12 Months of Trump, Here’s What 100 CEOs Are Saying About His Effect on Business
Inc. covers deregulation under the Trump administration. Donald Trump doesn’t talk much about entrepreneurship. Conventional wisdom says he favors incumbents over disruptors. Still, one…
Blog
Trump State of the Union Response: Double Down on Cutting Red Tape
Cutting red tape, so talented individuals can thrive, will help put the long-term roar back into the economy.
Blog
Top Issues for Trump’s State of the Union 2018
For the State of the Union 2018, CEI presents a round-up of what Trump might say, what he should say, and how members of both…
Forbes
State of the Union Address in Five Words, Trump vs Obama
The occasion of President Donald Trump’s State of the Union Address marks a time of considerable optimism flowing from the prospects of more jobs, smaller government,…
InsideSources
Franchise Businesses Expect Faster Growth Under Trump
InsideSources covers deregulation under the Trump administration. President Donald Trump was credited by a major franchise association Monday with the sector expecting to outperform…
Blog
Rumors of Nationalized 5G Point to Need for Reform of Existing Networks
Consumers will suffer from government efforts to create a nationalized 5G telecommunications network, and the rumoured plan to move in that direction needs to be …
Blog
State of the Less Regulated Union: 6 Ways Trump Has Cut Red Tape
Rollbacks of federal regulation are a main element of the Trump administration’s economic recipe and deserve credit. It’s highly likely that the loosening of red…
Bloomberg Politics
Trump Plays Down Health Hazard in Justifying Climate Rule Repeal
Bloomberg Politics quotes Myron Ebell on the importance of curbing Carbon Dioxide and how that should pose a greater priority to the Trump administration.
Free Beacon
Clean Power Plan Repeal Will Save $33 Billion in Compliance Costs
The Washington Free Beacon quotes Myron Ebell on her opinion of how cutting the Clean Power Plan will afford…
Time
Energy Companies Don’t Like the Clean Power Plan — or President Trump’s Plan to Kill It
Time quotes Myron Ebell about the ability of the Trump Administration to deregulate Power Plants. Donald Trump boasted last month that the Obama…
Washington Examiner
Repealing The Clean Power Plan Will Benefit All Americans
Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt's proposal to repeal the so-called Clean Power Plan is the most notable step President Trump and his team have…
City Journal
Well-Heeled Fliers Against Air-Traffic Reform
The City Journal quotes Marc Scribner on the influence the NBAA has in preventing federal reform and modernization of air traffic control. Members…
Blog
7 Congressional Efforts the President Should Urge Members to Support
President Trump should use his State of the Union address to encourage members of Congress to pass these 7 bills immediately.
City Journal
EPA Chief Set to Bar Government-Funded Experts From Agency’s Science Panels
The Daily Signal cites William Yeatman on several points about the laxness in EPA scientific standards and financial regulation. Try asking the nation’s…
Time
Inside Scott Pruitt’s Mission to Remake the EPA
Time Magazine quotes Myron Ebell on Scott Pruitt’s opportunity to battle overregulation within the EPA. Bonnie Wirtz was tending to her Minnesota farm one…
RealClear Politics
It’s Time for Trump to Kill the Regulatory Swamp Monsters
RealClear Politics discusses the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s impact on financial regulation referencing CEI.
Forbes
A CES Takeaway: Don’t Fear Robots and Artificial Intelligence, Fear Politicians
Maroon 5 keeps popping up on my Pandora stations, so artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning still have a ways to go. Even if AI…
JD Supra
Overturning the CFPB’s Final Payday Loan Rule by Reopening Rulemaking or CRA Resolution
JD Supra covers developments of the CFPB’s payday loan rule and Daniel Press’ “7 Reasons to Oppose the Federal Payday Loan Rule.” On December 1, 2018,…
Marketplace
Counting Pages of Regulations Is a Waste of Time (and Paper)
Marketplace covers our work on regulations. President Donald Trump stood in front of two piles of paper last month. One was the current Code…
Blog
Debunking the ‘Race to the Bottom’ Theory of Regulatory Competition
Its success in policymaking notwithstanding, the "race to the bottom" theory has fared poorly with the passage of time.
Reason
Trump Turns One
Reason covers President Trump’s first year in office. The 45th president does not tend to elicit measured evaluations. Since even before his formal entry…
The Washington Times
White House Urged to Kill Obama-era Payday Lending Rule
The Washington Times covers CEI’s letter sent to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) regarding the payday-lending rule. A free-market group is urging…
The National Law Review
Overturning the CFPB’s Final Payday Loan Rule by Reopening Rulemaking or CRA Resolution
The National Law Review discusses the various vehicles that could be used to repeal the CFPB’s small-dollar loan rule. On December 1, 2018, three…
Forbes
Net Neutrality and Senate Democrats’ Renewed Love for the Congressional Review Act
The Congressional Review Act (CRA) is the law by which the Republican Congress and the Trump Administration eliminated 14 of…
Staff & Scholars
Clyde Wayne Crews
Fred L. Smith Fellow in Regulatory Studies
- Business and Government
- Consumer Freedom
- Deregulation
Ryan Young
Senior Economist
- Antitrust
- Business and Government
- Regulatory Reform
Fred L. Smith, Jr.
Founder; Chairman Emeritus
- Automobiles and Roads
- Aviation
- Business and Government
Sam Kazman
Counsel Emeritus
- Antitrust
- Automobiles and Roads
- Banking and Finance
Marlo Lewis, Jr.
Senior Fellow
- Climate
- Energy
- Energy and Environment