As the nation tries reboot portions of the economy from the coronavirus pandemic, policymakers in the nation’s capital will have to steel themselves against a natural tendency to overregulate and thus blunt any recovery. The potential economic ripple effect of federal regulation was certainly on the mind of Sen. Ron Johnson when he recently warned the leaders of a […]
Blog
North Carolina Drivers Deserve Transparency and Competitive Prices
Several years back, the American Consumer Institute conducted a survey and found that 80% of North Carolina drivers would oppose any plan that to make good drivers pay more so that risky drivers could pay less. That is not surprising, considering better drivers tend to have fewer accidents and violations, making them less risky and […]
Flavor Ban Hurts Smokers Looking for Harm Reduction
By Elizabeth Sheld The public was sold a false bill of goods by “grassroots” anti-vaping activists when they crusaded against e-cigarettes and e-cigarette flavors in front of city councils, state houses and the U.S. Congress throughout 2019. We were told that the seductively delicious flavors of Juuls and other e-cigarettes were luring youngsters to dangerous nicotine […]
The Necessity of Protecting End-to-End Encryption
Amid the Covid-19 pandemic, with so much of our daily and professional life being reliant on online connectivity, internet privacy and security are more crucial now than ever. A great deal of internet privacy currently relies on the implementation of unadulterated end-to-end encryption, a system that ensures only the sender and receiver have the capability […]
Real Clear Energy: Biden’s Clean Energy Plan Will Fix Everything and Nothing
The year 2020 has been one of upheaval and change, but the American love for the outdoors has remained constant. Unsurprisingly, climate change and protecting the environment are two key issues in this year’s election cycle. To pitch his vision for the future, former vice president Joe Biden has unveiled his revamped plan “to build a modern, sustainable infrastructure […]
Inside Sources: Study Meant to Promote Municipally Owned Broadband Actually Does the Opposite
With the COVID-19 pandemic highlighting the persistent “digital divide” between low-income and rural Americans and the rest of the country, Congress is poised to allocate significant funding for broadband expansion. How it does so, however, will have a big effect on consumers and taxpayers. One strategy is to encourage municipalities to build and operate their […]
Misleading E-cigarette Claims Meet Reality
Vaping is as harmful as cigarette smoking. We face a youth vaping “epidemic.” E-cigarette flavors entice adolescents but provide minimal cessation benefits to adult smokers. As many people are initiated to smoking by e-cigarettes as those who successfully quit with their help. Sound familiar? These false and misleading statements about vaping and e-cigarettes have been […]
Economic Standard: The Need to Reform the National Flood Insurance Program
For years, the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), which maintains a near-monopoly over the flood insurance market in the U.S. and covers more than 5 million properties nationwide, has been drowning in red ink. Without significant reforms, it will only get worse. The NFIP, which is overseen by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), was […]
FCC Must Keep C-Band Auctions on Schedule
Earlier this year, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) decided it would auction off a portion of spectrum to wireless internet providers. It is imperative that the FCC does not push back the planned December date so that 5G can be implemented as quickly as possible. In February 2020, the FCC announced they would auction licenses […]
Postponing Federal Digital Privacy Legislation Will Backfire
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 lockdown, Americans are turning to technology more than ever. However, federal legislation addressing digital privacy protections has stalled in Congress. Comprehensive legislation needs to be passed to ensure consumers right to digital privacy. Many functions of everyday life that have been carried out in person have recently moved online. […]