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Ease occupational licensing, free people to work

July 27, 2017 | By ANASTASIA BODEN

Today we filed this comment letter with the FTC describing how easing occupational licensing would give Americans a pathway to prosperity.  The FTC has assembled an Economic Liberty Taskforce dedicated to addressing occupational licensing abuses, and is holding a roundtable today about how licensing affects people’s ability to move across ...

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New Federal Trade Commission economic liberty website

March 17, 2017 | By CALEB TROTTER

This week, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) launched an exciting new website for its recently formed Economic Liberty Task Force. Aside from signaling how serious the FTC’s Acting Chairman, Maureen Ohlhausen, is in using the commission’s resources to advocate for occupational licensing reform, the website will also serve as a valuabl ...

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D.C. Circuit blows whistle on Amtrak

May 04, 2016 | By CALEB TROTTER

Late last week, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals struck down the federal Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008 (PRIIA). Among other things, PRIIA authorizes Amtrak to regulate its competitors. Now, you may be wondering how Amtrak can regulate its competitors when it essentially has a monopoly on all passenger rail traffic in ̷ ...

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Government monopolies : the Court should not allow immunity unless anticompetitive laws are subsantively justified

August 12, 2014 | By TIMOTHY SANDEFUR

(Part 4 of a series. Here are Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3) In N.C. Dental Examiners v. FTC, the Supreme Court will decide whether to extend Parker antitrust immunity to state regulatory agencies that are dominated by private parties who have a private stake in preventing economic competition against them. In our brief, … ...

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Government monopolies : the Court should enforce the "active supervision" requirement

August 11, 2014 | By TIMOTHY SANDEFUR

(Part 3 of a series. Here’s Part 1, Part 2, and Part 4.) In the N.C. Dental Examiners case, the Supreme Court will decide whether Parker antitrust immunity should apply to state regulatory agencies that are run entirely by private parties who have a private stake in preventing economic competition against them. Our brief, joined by … ...

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Government monopolies : the Supreme Court should overrule the Southern Motor Carriers case

August 07, 2014 | By TIMOTHY SANDEFUR

(Part 2 of a series. Here are Part 1, Part 3, and Part 4) In the N.C. Dental Examiners case, the Supreme Court will decide whether to extend Parker antitrust immunity to state regulatory agencies that are run entirely by private parties who have a private interest in excluding their own competitors from the marketplace. … ...

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Cartels shouldn’t be exempt from anti-monopoly laws just because they’re run by states

August 06, 2014 | By TIMOTHY SANDEFUR

(Part 1 of a series. Here are Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4) There’s a lot not to like about antitrust law, but the basic idea that monopolies are bad, and that everyone should have the right to compete honestly in the free market, is a cornerstone of our society. Sadly, antitrust is so … ...