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January 18, 2021
Keystone XL Opposition Not Based on Facts
Everything old is new again: The Biden administration reportedly will revoke the permit for the Keystone XL pipeline, opposed during the Obama years, favored during the Trump term, and now disfavored yet again. But one reality is eternal: The arguments against Keystone XL are as weak today as ever. The all-purpose climate argument is the…
January 7, 2021
End Discrimination in Bank Lending
The opposition to “discrimination” by political activists has not prevented them from applauding constrained access to capital by such politically unpopular businesses as producers of fossil fuels and firearms or operators of for-profit colleges and private prisons. The list of disfavored economic sectors will only grow over time as government engages in ever-more economic favoritism. This…
December 29, 2020
Comment Letter to OCC on Rule for Fair Access to Financial Services
My name is Benjamin Zycher. I am a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington, D.C. This letter responds to a request from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency for comments on its proposed “Fair Access to Bank Services, Capital and Credit” rule (hereinafter referenced as the “Fair Capital Access” rule),…
December 15, 2020
Biden’s Incoherent Proposal to Ban Fossil Fuel Leasing on Federal Lands
During the election campaign, President-elect Joe Biden pledged to end new oil and gas leasing and permitting on federal lands (including federal waters); that is, to ban on those lands the discovery and development of fossil energy resources by private companies, and to end approvals of specific drilling proposals that result from leasing rights. Biden further pledged to…
November 19, 2020
The Perversities of Biden Rejoining the Paris Climate Agreement
Joe Biden has pledged to rejoin the Paris climate agreement on the first day of his administration, a promise unambiguous and therefore certain to be fulfilled, notwithstanding the essential absurdity of the Paris agreement narrowly and of climate policies more generally. Applying the EPA climate model under highly favorable assumptions, the Paris agreement if implemented immediately and enforced strictly would reduce global temperatures in 2100 by about 0.17…
October 28, 2020
The Biden/Trump Divide on Climate and Energy Policies
I betray no secret when I note that Donald Trump is not a man of policy sophistication. It is obvious that he is uninterested even in details that are crucial; instead, he goes with his “gut,” that is, his instincts, which often are sound but sometimes are dreadful. And despite, or perhaps due to, almost five decades in…
October 20, 2020
Toward Protection of Retiree Financial Interests
In an age characterized by the politicization of virtually everything, it is unsurprising to see political pressures exerted upon the managers of investment funds established for the financial benefit of current and future retirees. These funds are large repositories of financial resources, and for many the temptation is strong to find ways to divert those dollars…
October 15, 2020
The Green New Deal Is Awful but Unlikely
During the September 29 presidential debate, Democratic candidate Joe Biden asserted that he does not “support the Green New Deal.” It “is not my plan.” Instead, he supports “the Biden Plan, which is different.” Put aside Biden’s silly claim that the Green New Deal “will pay for itself,” and ignore the fact that the Biden Plan…
October 5, 2020
Comment Letter to DOL on ‘fiduciary Duties Regarding Proxy Voting and Shareholder Rights’
This comment letter responds to a request from the Employee Benefits Security Administration, U.S. Department of Labor, for comments on its proposed rule “Fiduciary Duties Regarding Proxy Voting and Shareholder Rights” (hereinafter referenced here as the “Fiduciary Duties/Proxy Voting” rule), focusing on “the prudence and exclusive purpose duties under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act…
September 16, 2020
An Alaska Energy Tax Proposal Meant to Shoot Alaska in the Foot
When proponents of a tax increase resort to the age-old argument that it is justified because those prospectively subject to it are paying less than their “fair share,” observers safely can make two assumptions. First: The proposed tax increase cannot be justified on the basis of standard public finance principles. Second: Those being threatened are…