Regulation
The Mechanisms of Regulatory Capture
To mark the 50-year anniversary of George Stigler’s seminal piece, “The Theory of Economic Regulation” we are publishing a new eBook examining his theory’s...
Larry Summers Cautions Antitrust Regulators Against Broad-Brush Policy
In a wide-ranging interview with ProMarket, Summers expands on recent criticism of top antitrust enforcement officials, efforts to stymie Big Tech, monopsony, and the...
Fear of Punishment Distorts Bank Financial Reporting
When bank employees are afraid of punishment from regulators, they are likely to conceal information about their faulty decisions. This in turn distorts the...
A Posner-Stigler Smoking Gun?
A memo from George Stigler and Richard Posner to the Reagan administration was recently unearthed. To understand the meaning behind the memo, as well...
Designing Better Antitrust Remedies for the Digital World
Even when antitrust enforcers and courts get it right when finding an anticompetitive infringement, they constantly end up imposing remedies that are inadequate to...
“Comments for Sale”: Charitable Donations Can Lead Non-profits to Support Corporate Regulatory Agendas
A new paper shows how financial ties between companies and non-profits can subvert rulemaking process and lead to regulations that favor the interests of...
George Stigler’s Errors and Their Virtues
George Stigler might have been wrong in his essay on economic regulation, but his influence is undeniable. The unity of purpose in his writings...
Harold Demsetz and Israel Kirzner Understood That Competition Regulates Markets
Economists Harold Demsetz and Israel Kirzner challenged the prevailing orthodoxy in microeconomic analysis and public policy beginning with their respective work in the 1960s....
Invigorating Competition in Health Care Markets: Is Rate Regulation Needed?
It now appears that market concentration may be the leading cause of America’s health care cost crisis. If the United States is going to...
Stigler’s Interest-Group Theory of Regulation: A Skeptical Note
As a rule, regulation is not acquired by “the industry,” and it is not designed and operated primarily for its benefit. The mechanisms behind...
