Rent Control's Revenge
While San Francisco's mayor calls for more rent control, Providence's mayor loses his primary for opposing the policy.
Policy
AI Slowdown
Plus: Commercial surrogacy regulation, Russian weapons, a new drug in San Francisco, and more...
In Rhode Island's Dem Primary, DSA Challenger Unseats Providence Mayor Who'd Vetoed Rent Control
Voters in Providence, Rhode Island, signaled that they want binding price controls.
There's No Market Failure in Choosing to Stay Home. So Why Subsidize It?
J.D. Vance would like to give money to people for choices they're already making—without a workable plan to actually pay for it.
The Silver Lining to Empty Subsidized Apartments
Plus: A nightmare squatting situation in Washington, D.C.
Help Workers by Breaking Down Barriers to Labor Mobility
Labor Day is a great time to remember that we can make workers vastly better off by empowering more of them to vote with their feet, both within countries and through international migration.
OpenAI Agents Gone Rogue
Plus: Mail-in ballots, mortgage rates reach new high, arcade.gov is a new low, and more...
How St. Paul's Rent Control Experiment Backfired Spectacularly
Construction of new housing collapsed in the Minnesota city as builders took their business elsewhere.
USDA Approves Bioengineered American Chestnut Tree That Could Bring Them Back From Near-Extinction
It sets a precedent for releasing other bioengineered organisms into the wild to repair ecological damage.
Study: Even Well-Intentioned Regulators Do More Harm Than Good
Bureaucrats who intend to do good still restrict competition and suppress liberty.
Federalism Will Save the Data Centers
State preemption worked for housing. It's unlikely to come to the rescue of incredibly unpopular data centers.
How Much Will Andy Burnham's 'No. 10 North' Cost British Taxpayers?
Taxpayers have already paid $14,300 for branding the new office—and more than $1,300 for moving a replica Downing Street door to Manchester, according to a Freedom of Information request.
California Bill Would Cap Rents During U.S.-Involved War
The war in Iran is causing California lawmakers to consider wider price controls.
1 in 5 Americans Still Need Government Permission To Work
Occupational licensing raises costs and limits mobility without improving safety.
Utah Needs More Housing. The Army Corps Shut Down 265 New Homes Because of a Small Ditch.
Despite the Supreme Court's best efforts to rein them in, federal regulators continue to abuse their authority under the Clean Water Act.
Colonizing the Moon
Plus: Postpartum psychosis, captain deportation, lady lawyers, and more...
San Francisco's 'Historic Laundromat' Project Finally Begins Construction
Activists were able to block an apartment project in the city's Mission District by raising an increasingly ridiculous set of objections.
Open-Weight
Plus: "Blasphemous" talk in Texas, botox everywhere, ink on Mace, and more...
Donald Trump's Unsustainable Presidential Administration
The second Trump Administration insists on acting unilaterally, and that will make many of its policy changes unsustainable over time.
The Trump Administration's Secret YIMBY Grant Proposal
Plus: a win for "housing first" funding in court, zoning reform passes in North Carolina, and Harry Potter NIMBYism.
Klein and Thompson's Abundance Shows Abundant Lack of Introspection
The authors recognize the need to reconsider policies that make it hard to innovate and build, but do not ask why they and their allies were blind to such concerns for so long.
America Invented Elevators. Now We Suck at Building Them.
America’s elevator shortage is making housing more expensive, buildings less accessible, and cities less dynamic—all because of bad regulations and union protectionism.
The White House's Push To Pause the Hemp Ban Smells Like Cronyism
The ban would gut a growing industry, but the Trump administration’s position isn’t a principled stand against prohibition.
Trump Administration Will Pay $1.2 Billion To Cancel More Offshore Wind Projects, Calling It 'Common Sense'
German energy company RWE decided "there is no path forward to permit these projects in the U.S. for the foreseeable future."
A Burrito Costs How Much?
Plus: The economy lost 23,000 jobs in July, inflation is outpacing wage growth, Trump is still mad about birthright citizenship, and more...
FCC Rule Change Would Allow More Broadcast Mergers, but It's Not Clear the FCC Has That Power.
It's not clear if the agency even has the legal authority to make the change. But if it goes through, there's little to worry about.
The YIMBY-Libertarian Convergence
An eminent domain case out of Rhode Island shows how YIMBY regulatory reforms and libertarian constitutional law activism work in tandem.
Did Elon Musk Sentence Millions to Death by Dismantling USAID?
The study cited by Rep. Ro Khanna as the basis for that claim is statistical nonsense.
Trump Said Tariffs on Aluminum Would Boost Domestic Production. The White House Now Admits That Didn't Happen.
It's been more than eight years since Trump's first aluminum tariffs were imposed. How long do we have to wait before calling this a failure?
Federal Court Rules Against Rhode Island Town's Use of Eminent Domain for NIMBY Purposes
The local government sought to use eminent domain to block a housing project local NIMBYs objected to.
Rand Paul's Biosimilar Drug Bill Could Cut Costs, Speed Patient Access
The Expedited Access to Biosimilars Act enables FDA approval of pharmaceutically equivalent biologic medications.
The Trump Administration Just Named a Front-Runner in the Robotaxi Race
Zoox got the first commercial exemption for a driverless car. It came with a promise that safety regulations would evolve “as Zoox's technology advances.”
New NYU Brennan Center Article on "Using State Constitutions to Combat Exclusionary Zoning"
It explains how to better use both existing state constitutional provisions, and constitutional amendments. Based on a longer academic article, coauthored with Joshua Braver.
Economic Development Subsidies Create a Lot of Jobs—Mostly for Lobbyists
According to a newly published study, states that issued "extraordinarily large" economic development subsidies saw more lobbyists located in the state capital.
Federal Court Slaps Down Rhode Island Town's Surprise Seizure of Family's Land
A district court ruled that Johnston, Rhode Island, can't use its own bespoke eminent domain process to block an affordable housing development.
New Article on "The State Constitutional Case Against Exclusionary Zoning"
It is the first comprehensive analysis of how to use state constitutional law to combat exclusionary zoning. Coauthored with Josh Braver.
A Year After the Wildfires, L.A. Homelessness Spikes
Plus: A new lawsuit challenges New York's rent freeze, a study affirms new supply helps everyone, and the battle between data centers and clouded leopards.
The Democrats Have a Socialism Problem
Plus: the DSA's policy agenda, Trump hits pause on Iran, and deregulating peptides
The Peptide Gray Market Is Already Here. The FDA Is Just Catching Up.
A key FDA advisory committee vote could bring clarity to the biohacking and alternative medicine world.
The Best and Worst States To Be a Smoker
Tobacco is the most taxed consumer product in the U.S., and those taxes largely dictate cigarette prices.
Bureaucracy, Labor, & Tariffs: How Government Is Making BLTs More Expensive
The BLT—a delicious celebration of the power of markets—exemplifies political attacks on the free movement of goods and people.
For Thousands of New York City Apartment Buildings, the Math Doesn't Math
This year’s rent freeze is just the latest regulation pushing New York City’s rent-stabilized housing stock toward financial and physical collapse.
Nashville Considers Using Eminent Domain To Stop a Planned Data Center From Irritating Zoo Animals
The Nashville Zoo says the vibrations from next door's planned data center might negatively affect hearing-sensitive animals.
Trump's FAA Moves To End the 50-Year Ban on Domestic Supersonic Flight
Supersonic flight is legally limited to the ocean. But the federal bureaucracy is (slowly) changing, and at least one company wants to take advantage.
Tariff Man
Plus: House votes on war powers as Trump enters Iran war "revenge mode," Ted Cruz worries about AI, Marvel movies are planned through 2042, and more...
The DSA, MAGA, and the New Policy Nihilism
From rent control and Medicare for All to tariffs, politicians left and right are embracing policy ideas that have been repeatedly shown to not work.
