Free-market

Yesterday our Executive Director sent a letter to Governor Justice pleading with him to immediately and indefinitely suspend Certificate of Need laws in response to the COVID-19 crisis facing West Virginia. Maybe you’ve never heard of Certificate of Need (CON) laws, but, in a nutshell, these laws re… Read More

Lately, it seems like everyone has a story, or a picture posted on their social media account of the cobwebs and a “LIMIT: 2” sign inhabiting the store shelves where hand sanitizer, disinfectant spray or wipes, or toilet paper used to live. After leaving the store empty-handed, maybe you thought… Read More

Does West Virginia have time to wait? No, it does not. Will it wait? Yes, I’m afraid it must. As most West Virginians know, the state’s economy, education system, and demographics are not healthy. Are they better than a few years ago? Certainly. However, West Virginia is not in a… Read More

If you’re like most people, you make resolutions at the beginning of every year – lose weight, read more books, travel someplace new, finish a degree, etc. A new year is a chance at a fresh start – it’s an easy marker on the calendar that allows you to push… Read More

Friends, Christmas is less than a week away! Hopefully, you’ve finished all your shopping. If not… I wish you luck this weekend out with fellow procrastinators.   With the spirit of gift-giving in the air, there are two key ways to think about the gifts you pick out for friends… Read More

Is it time to relocate Washington, D.C.? Well, not in a literal geographical sense – that would be a feat that would make even Marvel supervillain, Ultron, blush. (Look up the plot for Marvel’s Avengers: Age of Ultron.) More realistically, what about relocating the litany of federal agencies that cu… Read More

Government regulation of most industries is taken for granted. However, there are many fields where the free market could do a better job regulating quality and protecting consumers than the existing government apparatus. Government-imposed occupational licensing is often a burdensome requirement on… Read More

We interact with prices every day.   But, what is a price? What do these prices mean? What information do prices convey?   Take a moment to think about it.   If you’re like me – most of the time, those interactions take the form of their sum ballooning… Read More

Along with its partner, the Knee Center for the Study of Occupational Regulation at Saint Francis University, the Cardinal Institute for West Virginia Policy released the final results from its study on the occupational licensing regime in West Virginia this week. In the study, we looked at West Vir… Read More

More money, subsidies, and government – oh my! Earlier this month, Democratic Presidential hopeful Pete Buttigieg released his plan for rural economic development. And, as readers of this blog might expect, his plan is nothing new under the sun. Buttigieg calls for paid family leave, additional farm… Read More