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
This week in ridiculous regulations: airline fees and greenhouse gas reporting
The Federal Register grew at nearly triple its usual pace last week. It is on pace for its first-ever 100,000-page year. GDP growth slowed to…
The Center Square
Study: Mixed record on permitting reform offers some hope
CEI’s James Broughel provided comments to The Center Square about a study he authored: “Pennsylvania’s a state where energy is very important to its…
Forbes
Libertarian Victory: You Mean We Can Shut Down Government Without Even Passing A Law?
It is happening again. Congress will enact another bloated, pork-laden and largely unread omnibus spending bill to complete formal appropriations for the 2024 fiscal year…
Search Posts
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
It was a relatively slow week, with 44 proposed regulations and 62 final regulations, though the Supreme Court did rule the federal ban on…
Blog
Fraser Institute Confronts Changing Demographics of Entrepreneurship
As my colleague Christine Hall reported earlier this week, our Canadian think tank friends at the Fraser Institute have a new book out…
Blog
Did You Hear the One about the Entrepreneur?
When putting together a chapter on entrepreneurship and regulation for the Fraser Institute’s new book “Demographics and Entrepreneurship: Mitigating the Effects of an Aging…
The Hill
How Trump Can Build on Regulatory Reform: Borrow From Reagan’s Playbook
The Hill cited the Competitive Enterprise Institute on the cost which federal regulations pass onto consumers. One of the most successful policy achievements…
Blog
Red Tape Discourages Entrepreneurs, CEI Expert Explains in Fraser Institute Book
Today, the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank, released a new book on worldwide barriers to entrepreneurship, Demographics and Entrepreneurship: Mitigating the…
The Daily Mail
The Race Is On for Slice of Lucrative US Gambling Pie
The Daily Mail cited Michelle Minton on the conditions which observers ought expect will rise across different states concerning the management and taxation of online…
Op-Eds
Next-Level Prosperity: Explaining And Reversing Declining Entrepreneurship Rates
One of the consequences of aging populations in the West that may sometimes not be fully incorporated into public policy is that the pool of folks inclined…
Watchdog
U.S. Supreme Court Opens Door For States To Allow Sports Betting
Watchdog cited Michelle Minton on the financial benefits to states on the deregulation of online sports betting, and on the stained-glass landscape which people should…
The Hill
The Flip Side of Tax Reform: Federal Spending Reform
The Hill cited Clyde Wayne Crews on the annual cost which federal regulations impose on Americans, the cost of which amounts to ten percent of our…
SFGate
Trump, Top Car Executives Meet Amid Struggle Over Climate Rules for Automobiles
SFGate cited Myron Ebell on the need for diversification in motor vechicle standards in order to suit the diverse needs of Americans living across the…
Natural Product Insider
‘Made in the USA’ Claims: Handle With Care
Natural Product Insider cited the Competitive Enterprise Institute on the financial benefits to businesses caused by deregulation during the Trump Administration so far. …
Blog
Friendly Mentions for ‘10,000 Commandments’ Study
Here at the Competitive Enterprise Institute we’re happy to see the attention being received by the 25th anniversary edition of Wayne Crews’ popular study of…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The big news from the last week was the release of the spring edition of the twice-yearly Unified Agenda, which lists all planned agency regulations…
The Washington Examiner
Trump’s Transition Chiefs Urge Him to Stay the Course On Auto Rollback
The Washington Examiner cited Myron Ebell in his signing a joint letter to the president urging him to stay on course in reforming auto emissions…
Investor's Business Daily
Spending Reform: The Flip Side of Federal Tax Reform
IBD cited Wayne Crews on just how much of a tremendous burden is being imposed upon the national economy by federal regulations. We…
InsideSources
Fed Labor Board Looks to Undo Obama-Era Rule
InsideSources cited Trey Kovacs on the importance how the National Labor Relations Board new joint employer rulemaking will benefit businesses and workers by aiding to…
News Release
Net Neutrality Regulations Are Not Neutral, Harm Innovators and Consumers
A group of Senators are pushing for a vote on a Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution to overturn the Federal Communications Commissions’ (FCC) Restoring Internet…
Blog
Trump Administration Regulatory Agenda Released
Today the Trump administration released the Spring 2018 edition of the twice-yearly Regulatory Plan and Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions, accompanied…
Blog
‘10,000 Commandments’ in the News
The 25th anniversary edition of the Competitive Enterprise Institute’s regulatory reform study “10,000 Commandments” has received a warm welcome since it was released…
4-traders
More than 50 Members, Stakeholders Call on Admin to Scrap Obama Mineral Withdrawals
4-traders cited the work of the Competitive Enterprise Institute in pressing reviews of Obama-era mineral withdrawals which were implemented without due consideration for the local…
The State Journal-Register
Point: In The Name Of Safety, They Should Allow Testing Of Driverless Cars On Their Roads
The State Journal-Register cited Marc Scribner about how local jurisdictions are not qualified to determine the legality of driverless cars and that their lack of…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
It is now May, and still only one economically significant regulation (costing $100 million or more per year) has been issued this year. With the…
Blog
Sen. Lankford Headlines Mercatus Event on Regulation and Opportunity
Recently the Mercatus Center hosted an excellent panel discussion on the effects of regulation on entrepreneurs and the poor. I was excited to see…
Politico
House SNAP Overhaul Could Take a Decade to Implement
Politico cited the Competitive Enterprise Institute on its role in urging upon changing the House farm bill to tackle runaway rates of federally promoted farm…
Blog
Dueling Calculations for the Cost of Federal Regulation
Recently here at CEI, we’ve been celebrating the release of the 25th anniversary edition of our major report on the costs of government regulation,…
E&E News
Key Obama Climate Orders Still On the Books
E&E News cited Myron Ebell on the inefficiencies of the Trump administration in rescinding executive orders dating from the Obama administration which hold strong implications…
The American Spectator
From The Heartland — Celebrate Small Business Week the Right Way
The American Spectator cited the Competitive Enterprise Institute about federal overregulation in not only the immense financial burden however also includes the plethora of rules…
Blog
Regulatory Reform in Congress
While the president’s initial flurry of executive orders enacting some regulatory reforms was a pleasant surprise, the next president can undo them with the stroke…
Blog
Long History for ‘10,000 Commandments’ on Capitol Hill
The 25th anniversary of CEI’s flagship study on federal regulation, “10,000 Commandments”, has been getting a lot of attention recently. We’re always happy when…
Blog
How to Encourage Tech Competition: Deregulate Finance
It’s May Day, and in the pages of the New York Times appears a paean to the halcyon days of the 1930s, urging a…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The number of new final regulations passed the 1,000 mark last week, with new rules ranging from sending mail to human reliability programs.
Blog
Visualizing the Burden of Federal Regulation
The Competitive Enterprise Institute recently released the 25th anniversary edition of Wayne Crews’ widely-cited study “10,000 Commandments: An Annual Snapshot of the Federal Regulatory State.”…
Blog
Some Context for the Astronomical Cost of Government Regulation
Since any number with that many zeroes and commas in it is difficult for the human mind to process, let’s put it in a more…
Reason Magazine
Trump’s Regulatory Slowdown Is Real
Reason Magazine discusses the deregulatory actions of the Trump administration and Ten Thousand Commandments, CEI’s assessment of the size of the regulatory state.
Washington Examiner
Here’s a Reason for Libertarians to Love Trump
The Washington Examiner profiles Ten Thousand Commandments: CEI’s vice president for policy, Clyde Wayne Crews, cheered the current administration for cutting back…
The Hill
When a Bureaucrat Asks for Less Power, Give it to Him
Former Congressman Mick Mulvaney is now a bureaucrat — so he proclaimed at a Congressional hearing on April 18. The acting director of…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The big news this week was the release of the 2018 edition of Ten Thousand Commandments. Agencies continued to provide fodder for next years edition…
Blog
Lessons for Congress from ‘10,000 Commandments’: Regulatory Budgets
One of the lessons learned from this year’s “10,000 Commandments” study is that Congress needs to be more involved in the regulatory process. It needs…
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…
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