When the Dodd-Frank financial-overhaul bill was passed last summer, it was done so with much of the fanfare and self-congratulation that has come to typify Washington. Then-Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) called it the “toughest set of Wall Street reform in generations.” But the bill’s hype was not …
Do regulatory costs matter? Not quite, according to the January 14 “Fact Checker” column on WashingtonPost.com. The column, by Glenn Kessler, criticizes Heritage’s recent “Red Tape Rising” report, which documented the growing cost of federal regulation in fiscal 2010. Noting that the study has been prominently cited by Rep. Darrell …
In fiscal year 2010, the first full fiscal year under the Obama Administration, the federal government issued 43 major new regulations. According to the Administration’s own estimates, the total cost of these rules was $28 billion. Only two of the new rules reduced measured regulatory costs, and then by only …
Our new video asks, “Is the American Dream dead?” With the release of the 2011 Index of Economic Freedom, one element of the report should be inescapable to American readers: out-of-control spending is a serious threat to our country’s prosperity. The enormity of the problem should not be underestimated—last year, …
Last night’s BCS Championship game pitted the Auburn Tigers from the Southeastern Conference (SEC) against the Oregon Ducks from the Pac-10. To guard against biases that could have influenced the game’s outcome, officials were provided by the Big 10. If football-crazed fans from Auburn and Oregon can understand why referees …
Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) is keeping the promise she made last month. Today, she filed a bill to strike down the Federal Communications Commission’s recent move to enact net neutrality regulations. The Internet Freedom Act states Internet regulation is the sole prerogative of Congress, and is supported by more than …
The Wall Street Journal reports today: Banks are considering additional fees on credit cards and checking accounts. But they also are looking at new ways to make money on cash machines and especially debit cards as regulators pinch the cards’ conventional revenue streams. And what exactly is to blame for …
The year 2010 will stand as a watershed in regulation. In all likelihood, government at every level imposed more dictates on more facets of citizens’ lives than ever before, from the timing of stock trades to the proper size of showerheads. Lawmakers and regulators construct complex cost–benefit calculations to justify …
New York City’s Department of Investigation (DOI) announced Friday that it is looking into reports that some Sanitation Department supervisors told workers to slow their snow removal efforts as a protest against budget cuts. DOI spokeswoman Diane Struzzi told Businessweek: “What we are looking at is whether there was intentional …
