Category Archives: regulation

Regulation Roundup

Posted on September 30, 2011 | Comments Off on Regulation Roundup

Here’s a fresh batch of regulatory bloopers:

  • In Michigan, it is legal to kill ducks during hunting season, but not to scare them.
  • In Pateros, Washington, it is illegal for dogs to be nuisances.
  • Massage parlors are illegal in well-named Horneytown, North Carolina.
  • In Salem, West Virginia, it is illegal to eat candy if you’re going to church in the next 90 minutes.
  • In Maine, it is illegal to walk on any street with untied shoelaces.
  • In New Britain, Connecticut, fire trucks on their way to a fire may not go faster than 25 mph.
  • In Brooklyn, New York, it is against the law for horses to sleep in bathtubs.
  • In South Dakota, it is illegal to fall asleep inside a cheese factory.

Comments Off on Regulation Roundup

Posted in regulation

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,

Regulation Roundup

Posted on September 23, 2011 | 1 comment

Here’s another batch of regulatory bloopers:

  • In Seattle, Washington, the maximum length allowed for concealed weapons is 6 feet.
  • The federal government has a Shell Egg Surveillance Program.
  •  In Pocatello, Idaho, “The carrying of concealed weapons is forbidden, unless same are exhibited to public view.”
  • In Memphis, Tennessee, it is against the law for frogs to croak after 11:00pm.
  • In Oregon, it is illegal to wipe your dishes with a cloth or towel to dry them. They must drip-dry.
  • In Norfolk, Virginia, it is illegal for hens to lay eggs outside the hours of 8am-4pm.
  • In Jamestown, New York, dentists can be fined $250 for hypnotizing their patients.
  • In Utah, birds always have right of way on all state highways.

1 Comment

Posted in regulation

Tagged , , ,

Federal Register Near Record Pace

Posted on September 20, 2011 | Comments Off on Federal Register Near Record Pace

This year’s Federal Register is on pace to be 80,190 pages long. That’s an average of 220 pages of fresh proposed rules, final rules, notices, and more every single day.

If this pace keeps up, this year’s Register will make for slightly easier reading than 2010, which set a new record with an 81,405 adjusted page count.

Think about that for a second. 160,000 pages in two years. Even Stephen King couldn’t write that much. Amazing that so many people claim this or that part of the economy is unregulated. With 165,000 pages already in the Code of Federal Regulations and more coming every day, it just ain’t so.

Comments Off on Federal Register Near Record Pace

Posted in regulation

Tagged , , ,

Regulation Roundup

Posted on September 16, 2011 | Comments Off on Regulation Roundup

Here’s a fresh batch of regulatory bloopers:

  • Flirting is illegal in Haddon, New Jersey. (see § 175-12)
  • It is illegal to play cards on the street in Madison, Iowa.
  • In Haverbill, Massachusetts, it is illegal for women to wrestle.
  • It is a felony for bears to wrestle in Alabama.
  • You may now sit outside year-round in Stratford, CT if you like.
  • Talk about attention to detail. Massachusetts state law requires gift certificates to be valid for at least 7 years.
  • In Florida, it is illegal to release 11 helium balloons per day. 10 is ok, though.
  • Adams County, CO requires all male massage parlor workers to wear white shirts and white pants. Transparent clothing is expressly forbidden.

Comments Off on Regulation Roundup

Posted in regulation

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , ,

On the Radio – Job Creation

Posted on September 15, 2011 | Comments Off on On the Radio – Job Creation

Just wrapped up a 20-minute interview on Jim Kearney’s Financial Spectrum show on WKXL 1450 in Concord, New Hampshire. We talked about job creation — more specifically, CEI’s 10-point job creation plan. I’ll post or link to an mp3 if I can get one.

Comments Off on On the Radio – Job Creation

Posted in Economics, Media, regulation

Regulatory Roundup

Posted on September 9, 2011 | Comments Off on Regulatory Roundup

Here’s another batch of regulatory bloopers:

  • In Little Rock, Arkansas, it is illegal to honk your horn at a restaurant after 9:00 pm.
  • It has been illegal for men to walk dogs in public in Saudi Arabia since 2008.
  • Until 1975, wearing a swimsuit on a Kentucky city street without a police escort meant a fine of up to $25.
  • In New Jersey, you need a license to break eggs at work.
  • In Walnut City, California, cross-dressing is only allowed if you get a permit from the sheriff.
  • §10-1.2 of Honolulu’s city code makes it “unlawful to annoy any bird” in a public park.
  • In Naples, Italy, the law requires pizzas to be round.
  • It is illegal to play bingo while drunk in Kern County, California. Only sober people may play.

Comments Off on Regulatory Roundup

Posted in regulation

Tagged , , ,

Regulation Roundup

Posted on September 2, 2011 | Comments Off on Regulation Roundup

Here are some regulatory bloopers I’ve uncovered recently:

  • Burping in church is illegal in Nevada unless it’s accidental.
  • In Arkansas, it is illegal to spend more than 5 minutes voting.
  • Los Angeles city regulations place a limit of one rooster per household.
  • If you buy a burger on a Sunday in Oklahoma, you are legally required to eat it in the restaurant. No takeout or drive-through allowed.
  • In Texas, “No person may possess, manufacture, transport, or sell an illicit beverage.” Licit beverages are allowed.
  • Reptile sellers in Illinois are required by law to advise customers to not “muzzle or kiss your pet reptile.”
  • The Texas House of Representatives once unanimously passed a resolution honoring the Boston Strangler. The resolution’s sponsor wanted to point out to his colleagues that they should read bills before voting on them.
  • In 2008, the city of Brighton, Michigan made it illegal to be annoying.

Comments Off on Regulation Roundup

Posted in regulation

Tagged , , , , , , , ,

Regulation Roundup

Posted on August 26, 2011 | Comments Off on Regulation Roundup

Some of the stranger rules I’ve dug recently:

  • In New Hampshire, ventriloquism is a licensed occupation.
  • A 1482 English law states that only royalty may own or touch swans. It was never repealed, and causes difficulties to this day.
  • In Turin, Italy, failing to walk your dog at least thrice daily is punishable with a €500 fine.
  • In Juneau, Alaska, regulations prohibit animals from entering barbershops. Unlike Florida’s recent bestiality law, Alaska does provide a definition of “animal” that excludes humans.
  • It is illegal to counterfeit cat and dog tags in Grand Forks, North Dakota.
  • In New Hampshire, it is illegal to have a ferret in your possession while on your way to a hunting trip.
  • According to § 7-1-1(Q) of Minooka, IL’s village code, it is illegal “To suffer any bitch or slut.”

Comments Off on Regulation Roundup

Posted in regulation

One Step Taken, Many More Needed

Posted on August 24, 2011 | Comments Off on One Step Taken, Many More Needed

CEI just put out a press release quoting my colleagues Iain Murray and Wayne Crews, and me. President Obama’s recent executive order will result in as many as 500 regulations coming off the books. We think that’s a good start. But there is much more to do. You can read the press release here; my remarks are below.

Ryan Young, Fellow in Regulatory Studies: “For every thousand dollars that businesses and consumers spend to comply with regulations, this executive order will save them about one. Better than nothing, yes. But let’s not call this real reform. An independent commission should be going through the books, not the agencies themselves. And they should do it every year. Agencies have no incentive to rein in their own size and scope, hence the token cuts and tiny savings. An independent commission does not share that incentive problem. At over 165,000 pages, there is much to trim from the Code of Federal Regulations. Let’s get to it.”

Comments Off on One Step Taken, Many More Needed

Posted in regulation

On the Radio: Lemonade Freedom, and Regulatory Hijinks

Posted on August 23, 2011 | Comments Off on On the Radio: Lemonade Freedom, and Regulatory Hijinks

Tomorrow morning at 9:35 am EST, I will appear on Mark Carbonaro’s show on KION 1460 AM (Salinas, California). We’ll talk about Lemonade Freedom Day, and general regulatory silliness. You can listen live by clicking on the link at the top of the station’s home page.

Comments Off on On the Radio: Lemonade Freedom, and Regulatory Hijinks

Posted in Media Appearances, regulation