Corporate Welfare
When government bestows privileges—monopoly status, subsidies, bailouts, loan guarantees, targeted tax breaks—on particular firms or industries, it does so at the expense of everyone else in the economy: taxpayers, entrepreneurs, and everyday citizens. Mercatus research demonstrates how such government favoritism misdirects resources, impedes genuine economic progress, breeds corruption, and undermines the legitimacy of both the government and the private sector.
Featured
Latest work in Corporate Welfare
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
How Your Taxes Subsidize the Super Bowl — and How That Might Change
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Radio Appearance Radio Appearance
Veronique de Rugy on The John Batchelor Show - The Export-Import Bank
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Memo to Team Biden: Rein in the Export-Import Bank
- | Government Spending Government Spending
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
A Different Fiscal Fix for State, Local Governments
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
The Equal Liberty Agenda
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
$75 Billion in Band-Aids Won't Cure Ailing Airlines
Airlines keep claiming they need a second bailout to bring back 35,000 furloughed employees. Don't buy their argument.
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Fake Jobs, Fake News: Fake Foxconn Comes Further Into Focus
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
The Always-Evolving but Still-Bogus Argument for Airline Bailouts
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
A Very Bad Bet
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Why Certain Corporations Get Bailed Out & What You Might Do About It
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
What Was Pelosi’s Taxpayer Ransom’s Goal?
You assume that the airline bailout would be stimulative. Yet bailouts benefit mostly shareholders and creditors rather than workers.
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
$75 Billion in Band-Aids Won't Cure Ailing Airlines
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Policy Briefs Policy Briefs
The Economic Case against a Second Airline Payroll Bailout
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Once Again, the Export-Import Bank Dogs Taxpayers With Pemex
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Public Interest Comments Public Interest Comments
Is the Ex-Im Bank Bailing Out Its Favorite Borrower?
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | TV Appearance TV Appearance
Veronique de Rugy on WCAX TV - Airline Bailout
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | TV Appearance TV Appearance
Veronique de Rugy on CNBC - Airline Bailout Part 2
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Radio Appearance Radio Appearance
Veronique de Rugy on Marketplace - Airline Bailout
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Canceling Spectator Sports Won’t Cancel Cash-Strapped Taxpayers’ Stadium Debt
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Radio Appearance Radio Appearance
Veronique de Rugy on The Lars Larson Show - Airline Bailout
Latest work in Corporate Welfare
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
How Your Taxes Subsidize the Super Bowl — and How That Might Change
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Radio Appearance Radio Appearance
Veronique de Rugy on The John Batchelor Show - The Export-Import Bank
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Memo to Team Biden: Rein in the Export-Import Bank
- | Government Spending Government Spending
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
A Different Fiscal Fix for State, Local Governments
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
The Equal Liberty Agenda
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
$75 Billion in Band-Aids Won't Cure Ailing Airlines
Airlines keep claiming they need a second bailout to bring back 35,000 furloughed employees. Don't buy their argument.
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Fake Jobs, Fake News: Fake Foxconn Comes Further Into Focus
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
The Always-Evolving but Still-Bogus Argument for Airline Bailouts
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
A Very Bad Bet
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Why Certain Corporations Get Bailed Out & What You Might Do About It
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
What Was Pelosi’s Taxpayer Ransom’s Goal?
You assume that the airline bailout would be stimulative. Yet bailouts benefit mostly shareholders and creditors rather than workers.
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
$75 Billion in Band-Aids Won't Cure Ailing Airlines
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Policy Briefs Policy Briefs
The Economic Case against a Second Airline Payroll Bailout
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Once Again, the Export-Import Bank Dogs Taxpayers With Pemex
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Public Interest Comments Public Interest Comments
Is the Ex-Im Bank Bailing Out Its Favorite Borrower?
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | TV Appearance TV Appearance
Veronique de Rugy on WCAX TV - Airline Bailout
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | TV Appearance TV Appearance
Veronique de Rugy on CNBC - Airline Bailout Part 2
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Radio Appearance Radio Appearance
Veronique de Rugy on Marketplace - Airline Bailout
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Canceling Spectator Sports Won’t Cancel Cash-Strapped Taxpayers’ Stadium Debt
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Radio Appearance Radio Appearance
Veronique de Rugy on The Lars Larson Show - Airline Bailout
Latest work in Corporate Welfare
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Working Papers Working Papers
Do Business Subsidies Lead to Increased Economic Activity?
Evidence from Arkansas’s Quick Action Closing Fund
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Working Papers Working Papers
Economic Development Incentives, Reported Job Creation, and Local Employment
- | Academic & Student Programs Academic & Student Programs
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Working Papers Working Papers
Is There a Tradeoff between Economic Development Incentives and Economic Freedom?
Evidence from the US States
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Working Papers Working Papers
Do Spatially Targeted Redevelopment Incentives Work?
The Answer Depends on How You Ask the Question
- | Academic & Student Programs Academic & Student Programs
- | Housing Housing
- | Working Papers Working Papers
Untangling Hair Braider Deregulation in Virginia
A Case Study Approach
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Policy Briefs Policy Briefs
The State of Occupational Licensure in Missouri
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Policy Briefs Policy Briefs
POLICY SPOTLIGHT: Occupational Licensing and the Poor and Disadvantaged
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Policy Briefs Policy Briefs
The State of Occupational Licensure: Arkansas
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Working Papers Working Papers
The US Federal Crop Insurance Program
A Case Study in Rent-Seeking
- | Certificate-Of-Need Laws 2017: How CON Laws Affect Spending, Access, and Quality across the States Certificate-Of-Need Laws 2017: How CON Laws Affect Spending, Access, and Quality across the States
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Policy Briefs Policy Briefs
Certificate-of-Need Laws: Frequently Asked Questions
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Policy Briefs Policy Briefs
Certificate-Of-Need Laws 2017: How CON Laws Affect Spending, Access, and Quality across the States
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Working Papers Working Papers
The Effect of Interest Group Pressure on Favorable Regulatory Decisions
The Case of Certificate-of-Need Laws
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Working Papers Working Papers
Barriers to Entry in the Healthcare Markets
Winners and Losers from Certificate-of-Need Laws
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Policy Briefs Policy Briefs
The State of Occupational Licensure in Wisconsin
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Data Visualizations Data Visualizations
Instead of Giving One Firm a $3 Billion Corporate Subsidy, Wisconsin Could Have Cut its Corporate Income Tax Rate by 21 Percent
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Working Papers Working Papers
Beyond Physicians
The Effect of Licensing and Liability Laws on the Supply of Nurse Practitioners and Physician Assistants
- | Academic & Student Programs Academic & Student Programs
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Policy Briefs Policy Briefs
Illinois’s Certificate-of-Need Laws: Effects on Quality, Spending, and Access to Care
- | Academic & Student Programs Academic & Student Programs
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Policy Briefs Policy Briefs
The State of Occupational Licensure in Illinois
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Policy Briefs Policy Briefs
Ridesharing vs. Taxis: Rethinking Regulations to Allow for Innovation
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Policy Briefs Policy Briefs
Certificate-of-Need Laws: Are They Achieving Their Goals?
Latest work in Corporate Welfare
Latest work in Corporate Welfare
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | State Testimonies State Testimonies
Alaska: Ridesharing’s Last Frontier
Testimony before the Alaska House Labor and Commerce Committee
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Federal Testimonies Federal Testimonies
Risky Business: The DOE Loan Guarantee Program
Letter for the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology; Subcommittee on Energy and Subcommittee on Oversight
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | State Testimonies State Testimonies
Reforming Craft Brewing Laws in Nebraska
Testimony before the Nebraska General Affairs Committee
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | State Testimonies State Testimonies
Do Certificate-of-Need Laws Reduce Spending?
Testimony before the Florida Health Innovation Subcommittee
- | Regulation Regulation
- | State Testimonies State Testimonies
Rethinking TNC Regulations: Enshrining the Past Forestalls the Future
Presentation before the Virginia Joint House and Senate Transportation Committees
- | Academic & Student Programs Academic & Student Programs
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Public Interest Comments Public Interest Comments
The Regulation of Taxi and Limousine Industries in Pennsylvania
Creating a Regime that Encourages Competition, Enables Innovation, and Protects Consumers
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | State Testimonies State Testimonies
Comments regarding Occupational Licensing in North Carolina
Testimony before the Joint Legislative Administrative Procedure Oversight Committee, Subcommittee on Occupational Licensing Board Oversight
- | Regulation Regulation
- | Public Interest Comments Public Interest Comments
Auto Distribution: Current Issues and Future Trends Federal Trade Commission Workshop
Before the Federal Trade Commission
- | Regulation Regulation
- | Public Interest Comments Public Interest Comments
Testimony on South Carolina's Certificate-of-Need Laws
Testimony before the South Carolina Health Planning Committee, Department of Health & Environmental Control
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Federal Testimonies Federal Testimonies
The Export-Import Bank: Winners and Losers of Government-Granted Privilege
Testimony before the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the US Senate
- | Technology and Innovation Technology and Innovation
- | Public Interest Comments Public Interest Comments
The Sharing Economy: Issues Facing Platforms, Participants, and Regulators
- | Government Spending Government Spending
- | Federal Testimonies Federal Testimonies
Subsidies Are the Problem, Not the Solution, for Innovation in Energy
Testimony before the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, Subcommittee on Energy
- | Healthcare Healthcare
- | State Testimonies State Testimonies
Certificate-of-Need Laws: Implications for New Hampshire
Testimony before the New Hampshire House Health, Human Services and Elderly Affairs Committee
- | Academic & Student Programs Academic & Student Programs
- | Regulation Regulation
- | Public Interest Comments Public Interest Comments
Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability by Public Accommodations-Movie Theaters; Movie Captioning and Audio Description
- | Government Spending Government Spending
- | Federal Testimonies Federal Testimonies
Testimony on the US Export-Import Bank
Testimony Before the House Committee on Financial Services
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Public Interest Comments Public Interest Comments
Cronyism: History, Costs, Case Studies and Solutions
- | Government Spending Government Spending
- | Federal Testimonies Federal Testimonies
A Guarantee for Failure: Government Lending Under Sec. 1705
Testimony Before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Subcommittee on Regulatory Affairs
- | Financial Markets Financial Markets
- | Federal Testimonies Federal Testimonies
The Administration's Auto Bailouts and the Delphi Pension Decisions: Who Picked the Winners and Losers?
Testimony Before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
- | Government Spending Government Spending
- | Federal Testimonies Federal Testimonies
Assessing the Department of Energy Loan Guarantee Program
Testimony Before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
Latest work in Corporate Welfare
- | Academic & Student Programs Academic & Student Programs
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Hit film 'Joker' cost New Yorkers $9.9 million. Looks like the joke's on taxpayers.
American citizens are left footing the bill for megarich Hollywood filmmakers. 'Joker' is only the tip of the iceberg.
- | Healthcare Healthcare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
'Certificate of need' laws hinder Michigan health care providers
- | Healthcare Healthcare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
'Certificate of need' laws hinder Michigan health care providers
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Study Says Foxconn Deal Cost Wisconsin $20 Billion in Lost Economic Growth
Once again, government-subsidized projects fail to deliver
- | International Freedom and Trade International Freedom and Trade
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Export-Import Bank Makes an Unwelcome Return
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Tariff Protection and Big Steel’s Struggle
- | Regulation Regulation
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Nanny state regulators are banning dollar stores to protect big business
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Two years later, highly-touted Foxconn subsidies look more dubious than ever
- | Academic & Student Programs Academic & Student Programs
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
On the Anniversary of the Amazon HQ2 and Foxconn Deals, the End of Subsidies May Be in Sight
Interstate compacts can end the insanity of this mutually destructive arms race

- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
What Does the Public Think About Markets, About Government, and About Corporate Favoritism?
- | Academic & Student Programs Academic & Student Programs
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
When Wrigley Got Lights

- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
NFL Kickoff Game Showcases Right Way to Play Football
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
The Right Industrial Policy for America
The best way for the government to help the economy is to ensure that its existing programs work.
- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Fifty Years of "Rent Seeking": A Q&A with Matthew Mitchell

- | Housing Housing
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Quotable Quotes: Targeted Economic Development Subsidies Don't Create Economic Growth

- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Want to Help Military Families? Allow Occupation License Portability

- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Quotable Quotes: Targeted Economic Development Doesn't Work

- | Housing Housing
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Tight Lending Regulations are a Wealth Subsidy
Part Eight of Kevin Erdmann's Housing Affordability Series

- | Housing Housing
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Quotable Quotes: The Prisoner’s Dilemma of Targeted Economic Development Subsidies
The only winning move is not to play

- | Corporate Welfare Corporate Welfare
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Socialists Are Scary, but Capitalists Are Their Own Worst Enemies
New research shows that business leaders who benefit from government favoritism are more comfortable with government intervention into markets.