“Ten Thousand Commandments” report on federal regulatory burdens identifies problems, reforms  

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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, an annual average cost of $16,000 per U.S. household. 

“Washington regulations got worse under President Biden because his administration sought to impose progressive rules against energy and consumer appliances, labor, banking, online speech, and other sectors of the economy,” said Wayne Crews, the Fred L. Smith fellow in regulatory policy and author of the report. “Accountability was stripped away from the regulatory process; and agencies were tasked with imposing DEI mandates like racial and gender equity, environmental justice, and climate change.” 

“The Trump administration and Congress together can lift regulatory burdens and achieve ambitious reforms that help entrepreneurs and small businesses compete and succeed, empower consumer choice, and help American households build financial security,” said Crews. 

Key reforms include: 

  • Terminate departments, agencies, commissions, and programs that no longer serve a legitimate purpose, instead restoring sovereignty to states, local governments, and communities. 
  • Systematically cut unneeded red tape, such as through a Regulatory Reduction Commission; 
  • Restore agency focus on core missions; 
  • Require congressional approval for major rules; 
  • Do better cost analysis for major rules;  
  • Increase regulatory transparency, such as with a regulatory “report card”; 
  • Put sunset dates on all new regulations; 
  • Limit agency guidance documents (“regulatory dark matter”). 

The Ten Thousand Commandments report serves as a snapshot of the regulatory state, examining data such as the Federal Register, guidance documents, public notices, the watchdog role of the White House Office of Management and Budget, rules impacting small businesses, and the “Unconstitutionality Index” – rules promulgated by regulators that dwarf the number of laws passed by Congress. 

View the report at cei.org/10kc