SCOTUS' Ruling in Gay Wedding Website Case Was a Defeat for Compelled Speech
"The opportunity to think for ourselves and to express those thoughts freely is among our most cherished liberties," Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote in the majority opinion.
Small Business
Don't Bring Back COVID Authoritarianism
People should be free to choose how cautious to be. Mask mandates, lockdowns, and closing schools won't stop the virus.
Arkansas Business Owner Sues Over Government Garbage Monopoly
X-Dumpsters owner Steven Hedrick rents roll-away dumpsters to people, but now his city forces residents to contract with the county.
The Democratic Governor Who Wants Drug Legalization and Free Markets
"Government in general does a lot of things that aren't necessary," says Jared Polis.
Progressives and Populist Republicans Are Coming for Your Credit Card Rewards
New legislation would intervene in the credit card market to help businesses like Target and Walmart, who don't like the fees they have to pay to accept credit card payments.
Did the Supreme Court Roll Back Gay Rights and Civil Rights?
Join Reason on YouTube and Facebook Thursday at 1 p.m. Eastern for a live discussion of the Court's recent rulings on affirmative action and same-sex wedding services.
Colorado Can't Force a Graphic Designer To Create Same-Sex Wedding Websites, Supreme Court Rules
The decision reverses a terrible previous decision by the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals.
Scammers Stole $200 Billion From Two Federal COVID Aid Programs
A new audit says one out of every $6 distributed by the Small Business Administration during the pandemic was stolen.
Over $400 Billion in COVID Aid Was Stolen or Wasted
A new Associated Press analysis of government data suggests 10 percent of all COVID aid was lost to fraud or theft. That figure will likely grow.
D.C. Smoke Shop Owner: 'I Know I'm Doing the Right Thing.'
Thanks to the city's Initiative 71, Lit City Smoke Shop is part of D.C.'s thriving weed-gifting industry.
Government Waste Monopoly Pits Private Dumpster Business Against Garbage Bureaucrats
Steven Hedrick rents out roll-off dumpsters to people and hauls them away after. A new city ordinance is mandating that people use county services instead.
A Home-Based Baker Shouldn't Have To Choose Between Her Dog and Her Business
Each state has different cottage food laws that don’t actually protect public health and safety.
This SEC Rule Makes It Harder To Invest—Unless You're Already Rich
Stop limiting entrepreneurs’ ability to get funding from those they know best.
Biden's Nominee for Secretary of Labor Wants 'Wage Theft' Cops
California’s experience combatting wage theft has been a headache for employers without much in the way of restitution for workers.
Progressive Politicians Are Regulating Their Own Projects Into Oblivion
Excessive government interference in the market hurts consumers and thwarts policy goals. It also gets in the way of the government itself.
A Town Without Zoning Fights To Stay Free
In Caroline, New York, officials are trying to impose the city's first zoning code. These residents won't have it.
Biden's New Budget Would Hike Taxes and Wage Class Warfare
The higher taxes on small businesses and entrepreneurs could slow growth. Less opportunity means more tribalism and division.
Inside the Weird World of Niche Conservative Businesses
"The country is that divided," said one business owner. "We kind of want to be with our own people. We want to stick together."
The End of a Weed Paradise
D.C. is destroying its thriving cannabis industry with bureaucracy and red tape.
L.A. Plans To Scrap Its Genuinely Good Outdoor Dining Program and Replace It With Rules, Fees, and Paperwork
The L.A. City Council saw a good thing happening and decided government wasn't involved enough.
DeSantis Revokes Licenses From Businesses That Fail To Use Flawed E-Verify System
Floridians will bear the cost of DeSantis currying favor with immigration restrictionists.
Richmond Wants To Limit New Convenience Stores Because There Was a Shooting at an Old One
The Richmond City Council unanimously approved a resolution to study applying tougher zoning restrictions to new shops as a way of cutting down on crime.
Congress Has a New Scapegoat for COVID Fraud: Banking Apps
Fintech platforms facilitated fraud in the Paycheck Protection Program, according to a new congressional report.
Supreme Court Debates Whether Web Designers Can Be Forced To Make Gay Wedding Pages
A million hypotheticals bloom in arguments over when and where the government may compel speech.
Netflix Teams Up With the Obamas To Produce Big Government Propaganda
The G Word, a new documentary, only occasionally covers serious issues. But it opts not to do honest reporting.
Gavin Newsom Cites Dubious Evidence That His Lockdowns Saved California's Economy
The governor made these claims on Monday while also putting a February 2023 end date on the state's emergency public health order.
Millions of PPP Loans Were Flagged as Potentially Fraudulent. Many Were Never Investigated.
A new report takes an illustrative look inside the Small Business Administration, which was clearly overwhelmed by the obligation to push unprecedented piles of money out the door quickly.
The Disappearing Differences Between Republicans and Democrats on Federal Family Spending
Many conservatives no longer appear to care much for fiscal conservatism.
In Iowa, You No Longer Need a Permit To Sell Guns Across the Road from the Governor's Mansion
A new state law prohibits localities from prohibiting or licensing "no-impact" home-based businesses. That's allowing a Des Moines couple to sell guns from their house located just across the street from the governor's mansion.
Terrible Restrictions on Food Trucks Are Still a Thing
Atlanta, Sioux Center, and too many other cities and towns are still treating food trucks like second-class businesses.
New Study Finds To-Go Alcohol Did Not Increase Drunk Driving Deaths
Many states allowed restaurants to sell to-go cocktails during COVID-19. Research shows that change is not linked to an increase in drunk driving deaths.
Jerome Powell, Who Wildly Misjudged Inflation, Is Overwhelmingly Reconfirmed as Fed Chair
There is seldom any meaningful accountability for government incompetence.
Inflation Triggers Mandatory Minimum Wage Increases in California
The state’s unemployment rate is well above average, yet there’s a ballot initiative hoping to push the minimum wage to $18 an hour.
California Cities Sue Law Firm Accused of Abusing the ADA To Target Small Minority Businesses
San Francisco and Los Angeles insist in suit that likely tens of millions have been illegitimately squeezed from small businesses by ADA plaintiffs without proper legal standing.
Does Boston's Mayor Hate the City's Restaurants?
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu seems hellbent on making things difficult or impossible for city restaurants.
Man Receives 3 Years in Federal Prison for Using COVID Relief Funds on a Pokémon Card
The punishment is a bit rich considering the government's own mishandling of pandemic cash.
Pandemic Restrictions Extra Painful for Businesses Owned by Minorities, Women, and Veterans
Limited resources create enormous vulnerability.
The Tennessee Supreme Court Could Decide the Fate of Nashville's Home Recording Studios
The city's restrictions threaten one of the world's most vibrant music scenes.
A Drive-Thru Window Saved His Business, but Now He's Being Forced To Shut It Down
Zoning officials concede Robert Balitierrez's drive-thru window isn't causing any problems. But they say it's a code violation and has to close anyway.
The Pandemic's Economic Impact Includes More Americans Starting Their Own Small Businesses
Though the American economy still looks bleak, there are silver linings.
Entrepreneurship Is on the Rise, Despite COVID-19
Necessity became opportunity for many who started businesses.
San Francisco's Chain Store Restrictions Targeted Starbucks. They're Now Screwing Over a Local Burrito Joint.
Family-owned burrito chain El Farolito will have to change its branding or pick a new neighborhood to open up its 12th location if it wants to avoid being ensnared in the city's restrictions on "formula retail."
'Do I Look Like the COVID Police?'
Business owners in the Bronx respond to New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio’s vaccine passport mandate.
If Government Is Good at One Thing, It's Making a Crisis Worse
The same institution that's unable to run the Postal Service or Amtrak orchestrated our invasion and withdrawal of Afghanistan.
COVID Travel Bans Are a Death Sentence for This Remote Border Town
One of America's most isolated communities has struggled to weather the pandemic.
D.C. Gyms Want To Require Vaccination Instead of Masks. The City Said No.
Officials would rather if everybody were masked than vaccinated.
