Should Congress Extend the Moratorium on Regulating Human Spaceflight?
Should Congress should let the moratorium expire? No, original spaceflight projections were too ambitious.
Research
CGO Tech Poll
In this poll, we continue to unpack how Americans view today’s major tech platforms, free speech, teens and social media, and more.
Moderating (Mis)information
Combating misinformation in social media is a topic of debate. Policies for moderation can be effective and socially beneficial.
What Should Policymakers Do about Social Media and Minors?
Calls for stricter regulations on social media and minors are coming at policymakers from all angles. The safety of our children is a topic of society-wide importance. However, getting these policies right is at least as important as getting them passed in the here and now.
Public Interest Comment on the FTC Trade Regulation Rule on Commercial Surveillance and Data Security
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) through this ANPRM is pursuing a topic of immense importance to the American public and economy.
Disrupting the Narrative: Diving Deeper into Section 230 Political Discourse
We examine how Section 230 allows platforms to moderate content concerning health misinformation, hate speech, and child abuse materials.
Assuming Good Faith Online
At the core of debates around content moderation online is a tension between assuming users’ good faith while also combating users’ bad faith contributions.
Section 230: A Retrospective
Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act governs the liability for online crimes among content creators, platforms, and services.
Is Common Carriage a Good Framework for Social Media Platforms?
Many proposals classify and regulate social media companies as “common carriers”. These laws may not be good for the media marketplace.
Estimating the Impact of Critical-Habitat Designation on the Values of Developed and Undeveloped Parcels
When private land is designated as critical habitat for an endangered species, does that change the value of the land?
Crowdsourcing Conservation: How to use community science to advance public and private conservation
This policy paper examines conservation projects using crowdsourcing to determine if it is a useful tool for advancing conservation efforts.
How does targeted cash assistance affect incentives to work?
What are targeted cash assistance programs and what are their effects? CGO Visiting Scholar Max Ghenis discusses in this research in focus.
Smoke or Vapor? Regulation of Tobacco and Vaping
In this chapter, economist James Prieger examines the risks and relative benefits of vaping compared to smoke tobacco.
“Blue Laws” and Other Cases of Bootlegger/Baptist Influence in Beer Regulation
Adam C. Smith and Stephan F. Gohmann provide avenues for states to improve beer regulations to encourage the growth of the industry.
Unintended Consequences of Regulating Private School Choice Programs: A Review of the Evidence
Doctors DeAngelis and Burke review the effects of school choice programs that give families wider options to move between schools.
Net Neutrality: Internet Regulation and the Plans to Bring It Back
Net neutrality, like other policies, sounds uncontroversial yet refers to a specific and highly contentious policy.
Governance for Networks: Regulation by Networks in Electric Power Markets in Texas
Michael Giberson and Lynne Kiesling compare how Texas’s electricity market provides much more diversity of choice than other states.
Retail Electric Competition and Natural Monopoly: The Shocking Truth
In this chapter, Jerry Ellig shows how improvements in technology have made monopolies for electric service obsolete.
Cooperation or Conflict: Two Approaches to Conservation
Environmental policy scholars challenge the choice between protection through strict regulation or a free-for-all causing degradation.
The Tradeoffs between Energy Efficiency, Consumer Preferences, and Economic Growth
Regulation is often justified by the existence of market failures in which market systems fail to maximize overall welfare.
Building Energy Codes: A Case Study in Regulation and Cost-Benefit Analysis
Cities and states adopt energy standards into building codes to reduce energy consumption and prevent environmental damages.
Land Use Regulation and Housing Affordability
Every city in the US has implemented regulations limiting the amount of housing that can be built and raising the cost of construction.
How Can Certificate-of-Need Laws Be Reformed to Improve Access to Healthcare?
Research on Certificate of Need laws shows that they have largely failed to improve access to healthcare services.
Gender, Race, and Earnings: The Divergent Effect of Occupational Licensing on the Distribution of Earnings and on Access to the Economy
Licensing may increase the wage gap by making it more difficult for workers to move between locations or to join licensed fields.
Occupational Licensing: A Barrier to Opportunity and Prosperity
Occupational licensing laws establish mandatory minimum entry requirements that must be met for aspiring professionals to begin working.
An Introduction to the Effect of Regulation on Employment and Wages
Debates about regulation often claim that regulation takes away jobs and reduces wages. Yet, regulation can create jobs and increase wages.
Regulation and the Shadow Economy
Individuals often respond to regulation by hiding economic activity to avoid the rules or paying taxes, known as “shadow economies”.
Social Trust and Regulation: A Time-Series Analysis of the United States
Regulation often sets up rules governing interactions between individuals and businesses and may become a substitute for social trust.
Regulation and the Perpetuation of Poverty in the US and Senegal
In this chapter, economist Steven Horwitz and entrepreneur Magatte Wade discuss that great enrichment and policies that slow it down.
Regulation and Entrepreneurship: Theory, Impacts, and Implications
Regulations shape incentives for entrepreneurs. Growth-oriented policies help to promote entrepreneurship, rather than putting up barriers.