“Facts by fiat power” isn’t a new concept, but I’d like to think its popularity has waned in the digital age. But maybe not. Some Argentine economists have concluded that the country’s inflation rate is not 10% as reported in government statistics, but over 20%. But it is an election year, so Argentinian leadership has […]
deregulation
Government Unproductivity: Doing Less with More
In 1996, the Telecommunications Act made clear the roadmap for how government would interact with the Telecommunications market space moving forward: simply put, it wouldn’t. The bundle of policies called for drastic deregulation and dialed the executive oversight of Telecommunications way back. Somehow the FCC never got the message. A look at the FCC’s Gross […]
Corporate Subsidies Are Not in Tennesseans’ Best Interest: The Case of Telephone Access Charges
In the realm of public policy, the most egregious form of tax comes from the imposition of hidden fees. For telecommunications services, the prime example of this are what are referred to as access charges. Access charges were once designed for telephone companies to recoup network costs by placing extra fees on long distance calls. […]
Economists Highlight Danger to Consumers in Latest Government Regulation and Deregulation Efforts
The American Consumer Institute hosted a panel discussion yesterday on Capitol Hill to discuss the economic impact of recent federal initiates to regulate some private industries and deregulate others. “The markets can fail, but so can public policies. The trick is to fully evaluate the costs versus the benefits. Without that evaluation, regulations in the name […]
The regulatory Death Spiral: Why Price Regulation of Homeowners Insurance Means Consumers Pay More
ACI has just released an extensive study on the consequences of price regulation of insurance. It finds that regulated insurance prices eventually become higher than they would have been, had no price regulation been in effect. In other words, price regulations fail miserably for consumers, lead to higher industry costs and eventually higher consumer prices. Furthermore, inadequate premiums lead to […]
ACI Holds Capitol Hill Briefing: Regulation v. Deregulation
The briefing was held on February 8, 2011. Click below for more information. the-economics-of-regulation-and-deregulation
ACI Presents at the Florida Insurance Summit — Coverage
ACI is cited In the Heritage Foundation’s Out of the Storm News: “Steve Pociask, President of the American Consumer Institute Center for Citizen Research, echoed Atwater’s remarks, noting that while markets can fail, so too can government policies – and in Florida, they have. He encouraged state policymakers to enable greater free market competition in […]
Randy May on Alfred Kahn’s Passing
Randy May has written an excellent blog on famed economist Alfred Kahn, who passed away last week. Kahn, a democrat, was instrumental in deregulation policy that has lead to tens of billions of dollars of annual economic benefits to consumers. Here is Randy’s blog.
ACI Statement on FCC’s Open Internet Public Notice
WASHINGTON – The following is a statement by Steve Pociask, president of the American Consumer Institute, on the FCC’s announcement to clarify broadband issues: “The FCC’s decision to gather more information before enacting new Internet regulation is an encouraging indication that it remains committed to a fact-based process. The focus on specialized services and wireless […]
Father Knows Best? FCC Decides To Give Itself The Authority That Congress Never Did
A recent decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit found that the FCC did not have full legal authority to regulate the Internet market. So what did the FCC do about it? Today, the FCC announced its would use the “best legal framework” for broadband access. What this really means is that the FCC will change its rules and reclassify broadband […]