Strengthening State Anti-Monopoly Laws with the Institute for Local Self-Reliance
Reining in corporate monopoly power is an essential role of state governments, and a priority initiative at State Innovation Exchange (SIX). In April, our Senior Director of Legislative Affairs, Ida V. Eskamani, sat down with Ron Knox, Senior Researcher and Writer for the Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) Independent Business Initiative to discuss ILSR’s latest resource hub for legislators, legislative staff, state agencies and advocates: Strengthening State Antimonopoly Laws.
This resource hub includes essential antimonopoly tools, including:
- A database of antitrust statutes of all 50 states and the District of Columbia
- An issue brief on how states can strengthen monopoly laws and enforcement
- How state attorneys can reverse the rise of concentrated corporate power
States have always led the way on reigning in corporate monopoly power. Check out our briefing from January with the Institute for Local Self-Reliance on How States Can Take the Lead Challenging Corporate Monopolies.
Corporate monopolies impact every facet of our lives; connected directly to expanding wealth disparities and the rising cost of living, the existential climate crisis, and rampant expansion of authoritarianism. The concentration of corporate power does not happen by accident; it’s not the result of inevitable forces. It is a product of deliberate policy choices over decades and centuries. But historically, state legislators, in collaboration with the communities most impacted by these policy choices, have led the fight challenging corporate power– organizing our communities and taking on the corporate lobby to build economies that empower people.
For all those reasons and more, anti-monopoly reform is a critical pillar of SIX’s work. We know states are the frontlines for safeguarding our freedoms and advancing justice. SIX is here to work in collaboration with state legislators and partners like the Institute for Local Self-Reliance Independent Business Initiative towards this goal.