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.
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News Release
CEI challenges Wisconsin’s treatment of election prediction-market contracts
The Competitive Enterprise Institute has filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of Wisconsin voter and Green Bay radio host Joseph Giganti, Sr., challenging the…
Blog
The week in regulations: Salt substitutes and spiny lobster management
The new White House Press Secretary lasted five days before resigning. Sen. Elizabeth Warren is upset that one company makes two brands of hot…
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: The future of Fusionism with Stephanie Slade
In this week’s episode we cover federal vs. state rules for prediction markets, the difference between Detroit and Pittsburgh, and a…
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Op-Eds
Tort Law ‘to Make Law’
A recent little-noticed New York Times story says a great deal about <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = “urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags” />America's current legal climate:…
Op-Eds
RFID Tags and Privacy
Radio frequency identification (RFID) technology promises many consumer benefits. With RFID, goods on trucks, in trains, and in warehouses can be inventoried without unloading…
Op-Eds
Wave of Regulations Will Follow Tsunami of Federal Spending
On top of the $2 trillion in tax revenues the government now collects, agencies issue more than 4,000 yearly regulations. Costing some $800 billion annually, regulations…
Study
Send Me No Files: Senate INDUCEs a Threat to the Future of Information Technology
Please copy and share this article, download some music files, and photocopy your favorite chapters from Bill Clinton’s new book. It’s fun: Just do it!…
Op-Eds
Reformers are too Willing to Turn a Blind Eye to Liberal Fixes for our Economic Problems
Sirs, Your edition of July 6 features two distinct columns that demonstrate a persistent neglect of economic liberalisation as a way of resolving societal…
Study
Spitzer Strains out Grasso While Swallowing Camels
Full Document Available in PDF Recently, New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer…
Staff & Scholars
Clyde Wayne Crews
Fred L. Smith Fellow in Regulatory Studies
- Business and Government
- Consumer Freedom
- Deregulation
Ryan Young
Senior Economist and Director of Publications
- 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