Hi, everyone! Jeff here, filling in for Ben. I’ve worked with Tyler Cowen on his podcast for over a decade now, so in the spirit of one of his favorite intellectual parlor games, I thought I'd borrow his approach and rate some of the biggest ideas floating around Mercatus this summer.
State Action on Housing Affordability Verdict: Cannot be rated highly enough
Statehouses are flush with measures aimed to increase housing affordability: So far hundreds of pieces of legislation have been introduced, and 70 are already enacted into law. In Texas, a suite of seven bills brought about one of the most sweeping changes in housing policy in the country. Among them, SB 15 draws directly on early Mercatus research on lot size regulations
and frees up developers to build more housing on a given piece of land. California’s AB 130, championed by California YIMBY’s Nolan Gray (a Mercatus alum), was described by Gov. Newsom as “the most consequential housing reform we’ve seen in modern history in California.”
For a broader look at this bipartisan surge, Governing spotlights the “ambitious housing proposals” sweeping the country (with comment from our own Salim Furth).
Trust-Busting Ticket Sellers Verdict: Overrated
The FTC and DOJ have invited comments on unfair practices in live ticketing, and the Mercatus antitrust team delivered. Alden Abbott, Satya Marar, and John Trotter urge the agencies to zero in on proven misconduct rather than seek to bust apart large players like Live Nation–Ticketmaster. They argue that practices such as venue exclusivity, bundling, and the 2010 merger deliver scale efficiencies that flow to fans and artists, and that today’s steep prices mainly reflect artist-imposed scarcity and the post-streaming shift toward touring income. When abuses do arise (say, retaliation against venues using rival ticketers), targeted actions like consent decrees beat a structural breakup. Read their
full submission for more ideas on improving the ticket sales market with a consumer-focused, evidence-based approach. And a quick shout-out: This filing marks John Trotter’s first published byline. Nicely done!
Reforming the Fed’s Operating System Verdict: Properly rated, thanks to recent attention from Senator Cruz
Senator Ted Cruz has yanked the Fed’s obscure “floor” operating framework into the spotlight, urging Congress to scrap interest on reserve balances (IORB) and promising a $1 trillion taxpayer payoff. David Beckworth cheers the new attention, but argues that eliminating IORB would not have the effects Sen. Cruz intends: Banks would shift from holding reserve balances to holding Treasury bills, replacing one source of revenue from the government with another. The net result may even be less money in the Treasury, not more. Nonetheless, reform is sorely needed. The current system has evolved into an expansive framework that crowds out private funding markets, entrenches the Fed as the central counterparty, and requires a
permanently large balance sheet to function. Instead of abolishing the floor system, however, David recommends replacing it with a demand-driven “ceiling” setup, which would result in a leaner, more resilient, and more accountable Fed. Read the full case in his latest Macroeconomic Policy Nexus post.
Long-Term Talent Investment Verdict: Still underrated, but we’re working on it!
Having just highlighted David Beckworth’s latest piece, it’s fitting to note that one of his earliest mentees is branching out, too. Pat Horan joined Mercatus a decade ago as a program associate working with David on the monetary policy team. Pat rose through the ranks of the Mercatus research team while earning his master's and then PhD in economics via night classes at George Mason University, becoming a full-fledged scholar in 2022. He’s now teaming up with former Mercatus colleague William Beach to launch the
Fiscal Lab on Capitol Hill. We wish him all the best in this next chapter.
Watch Pat reflect on his time at Mercatus in this video.
With 100 countries under his belt, Tyler Cowen shares unconventional travel advice that will inspire you to rethink your next vacation—from overlooked museums to history in the making.
Former CBO Director Keith Hall joins David Beckworth to explain why SNAP overpayments have soared to $10 billion annually (despite massive spending on fraud prevention) and how to bring greater accountability to the program.
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