Mercatus Policy Research Guide

Scholar Briefings and Testimony – personal and small group briefings and committee hearing testimony by our scholars on timely, relevant topics

Publications – Books, Published Research, Working papers, Mercatus on Policy, Testimony & Comments, Charts, Speeches & Presentations, Book Series and Journals, Research Summaries, Toolkits

  • Policy Guide – provides easily accessible economic information useful in preparing for hearings or town hall meetings, drafting speeches or policy papers, and generally educating the public regarding spending, taxes, regulation, financial markets, and technology policy.

Capitol Hill Campus – Brings faculty and accessible academic research to policy makers. CHC allows for an exchange of ideas which also provides scholars with insight on policy makers’ most pressing needs regarding public policy challenges.

Regulatory Studies Program – works to improve the state of knowledge about regulations and their effects on society, market-based alternatives that achieve regulatory goals, and the overall performance of the regulatory process.

  • Regulation University – educational programs on the rulemaking process and how to successfully pursue regulatory oversight
    • Continuing Legal Education – offered at no cost to Congressional, Federal Agency and Library of Congress attorneys and counsels.
  • Regulatory Report Card – a tool that evaluates the RIAs of the proposed economically significant rulemakings published by federal agencies that identifies key issues and best practices in the regulatory process and highlights issues with specific regulations.
  • Open Regs – an alternative to the federal government’s Regulations.gov regulatory dockets database that makes the proposed and final regulations published in the Federal Register easy to find and discuss, so that citizens can become better informed and more involved in the regulatory process
  • RegData – industry-specific quantification of federal regulation, permitting within-industry and between-industry analyses of the causes and effects of federal regulations.

Spending and Budget Issues – provides policy makers an honest understanding of budgets, spending, deficits, and debt and how these issues relate to economic growth and progress.  This research identifies our fiscal challenges and provides recommendations for fundamental spending, entitlement, tax, and budget reform.

Technology Policy Program – works within the university setting to improve the state of knowledge and debate about the regulation of the internet and high technology with research in these areas.

  • Cybersecurity
  • Privacy and Data Collection
  • Intellectual property reform: Copyright and patent reform
  • Data Caps/Usage-based Pricing
  • Spectrum Allocation
  • Internet Sales Tax
  • Telecom: regulations, broadcasting, licensing
  • Content Regulation

The Project for the Study of American Capitalism – aims to help scholars and policymakers identify real and sustainable market-based solutions to policy challenges.

State and Local Policy Project – conducts research into the institutional drivers of state and local fiscal challenges to suggest potential solutions by focusing on the relationship between the states and the federal government, interest group dynamics, and the incentives behind budget and spending issues to put forward ideas for sustainable budget reform

  • Citizens Economic Education Seminars – Mercatus partners with state think tanks to provide seminars featuring Mercatus scholars for state officials, their staffs, and local activities on a variety of state and local policy topics.
  • State Testimony – scholars have testified in front of state legislatures on topics such as public pension reform, government streamlining and transparency, and how particular institutions affect state spending.
  • State Policy Guide – In 2013, Mercatus will release a state policy guide that brings together the research of a number of Mercatus scholars. This guide will serve as a resource for elected officials, their staffs, and liberty-minded citizens.