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Yes. Regulation was more popular than deregulation in every one of the 40 industries tested in YouGov’s September 2024 survey of 2,267 U.S. adult citizens. Support for regulating artificial intelligence rose 15 percentage points from the previous year. That broad preference does not mean every proposed rule has majority support, or that regulation automatically helps consumers.
Marc Levinson’s history of UPS shows why the fine print matters. Rules presented as service or consumer protections helped UPS specialize in parcels, secure route flexibility and lock retailers into contracts. Later deregulation opened markets and lowered some prices, while weakened safeguards in banking contributed to the severity of the 2008 financial crisis. The practical question is not simply whether to regulate, but what a rule does to entry, prices, transparency, enforcement and durable market power.
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Is regulation becoming more popular?
Recent polling shows a broad pro-regulation preference, but it is a snapshot of opinion rather than a mandate for every policy proposal.
What the 2024 YouGov survey found
YouGov surveyed 2,267 U.S. adult citizens in two online surveys conducted September 9–12, 2024. The overall margin of error was approximately 3 percentage points.
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| Measure | Finding | Qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Industries tested | Increased regulation was more popular than decreased regulation in all 40 industries | YouGov survey fielded September 9–12, 2024 |
| Artificial intelligence | Support for increased regulation rose 15 percentage points from the 2023 survey | Year-over-year change in YouGov’s survey |
| Partisan pattern | Trump supporters favored increased regulation over decreased regulation in 24 of 40 industries | Applies to the industries tested, not every policy question |
| Highest support | Artificial intelligence, pharmaceuticals, social media, firearms and health insurance | “Especially high” support was reported; the survey summary does not provide one percentage for each sector |
| Cannabis | 38% favored more regulation and 32% favored less | The closest split among the industries highlighted by YouGov |
The results indicate that people often want government to address visible harms, safety risks or powerful companies. They do not establish that a particular 2026 bill has majority support, nor do they resolve whether a rule will improve outcomes once firms adapt to it.
Does regulation help consumers or big companies?
It can do either. A rule aimed at reliability, safety or fraud prevention may protect customers, while the same rule can raise rivals’ costs, restrict entry or give established firms advantages that persist for decades.
Why a protective rule can become a competitive moat
- Compliance costs favor scale. Large firms can spread lawyers, reporting systems and licensing expenses over more revenue than a new or small entrant.
- Exceptions reward the best-connected firms. A broad statute may look neutral, but waivers, grandfather clauses and agency interpretations can preserve an incumbent’s position.
- Confidential terms hide the real transfer of power. When prices or contracts are not public, customers and rival carriers cannot easily compare alternatives.
- Enforcement can be selective. A rule with weak staffing or ambiguous penalties may burden compliant newcomers while experienced incumbents learn how to navigate it.
That is why the International Center for Law & Economics, citing language from the Federal Trade Commission’s call for comments, says that “appropriately tailored economic regulations can play an important role in ensuring that markets function efficiently.” The qualifier—appropriately tailored—is the essential part.
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How did rules reshape competition for UPS?
UPS’s early history shows how narrow decisions about routes, parcel size, customers and contracts can matter more than a law’s public rationale.
From bicycle messengers to a parcel specialist
| Year | Regulatory or business change | Competitive effect described by Marc Levinson |
|---|---|---|
| 1907 | James E. Casey and a teenage partner started American Messenger Company in a Seattle saloon basement; deliveries were made on foot or by bicycle | Established the small-delivery operation that later became UPS |
| 1919 | The company adopted the UPS name and expanded into California | Created a wider regional base for parcel delivery |
| 1922 | UPS bought two Los Angeles truck lines regulated as common carriers by the California Railroad Commission | Placed the company inside a system of approved routes and rates |
| 1922 onward | UPS persuaded the commission to prohibit parcels above a specified size and weight | Let UPS use one-driver trucks and parcel-focused sorting while rivals also handled heavy freight |
| 1925 | The commission allowed UPS to deviate up to five miles from approved routes for parcel delivery | Provided operating flexibility that ordinary route restrictions denied |
| 1926 | UPS could carry parcels across Southern California without fixed routes and exclude retailer shipments from its San Diego common-carrier service | Retailers had to sign contracts covering all small shipments, fencing out competing carriers |
| 1935 | The Motor Carrier Act placed interstate trucking companies under Interstate Commerce Commission jurisdiction | Extended federal oversight over interstate carriers |
| 1940s | UPS shifted Philadelphia retailers to confidential five-year contracts with rates tied to costs, volume and inflation | The ICC kept contracts, rates and financial reports closed to the public |
| 1950s | The ICC allowed UPS to charge retailers more per parcel than manufacturers, wholesalers and distributors in the same locations | Multiyear contracts made switching difficult and reinforced customer lock-in |
| 1970s | Congress loosened or eliminated controls across trucking and several other sectors | The deregulatory movement opened markets after criticism that the ICC favored incumbents, blocked innovation and prevented lower prices |
Levinson quotes California’s commission describing parcel delivery as “essentially different” from transporting heavy freight. That classification supported specialization. A federal judge later observed that UPS policies “created magnetic ties” with retail customers. Neither statement requires assuming bad faith by every regulator; it shows how a service distinction and contract policy can produce durable advantages for one carrier.
Why did deregulation change trucking and other sectors?
Deregulation removed or relaxed controls that limited routes, prices and entry. In trucking, the 1970s shift followed concern that the ICC protected existing carriers and discouraged innovation. Congress also changed rules for air cargo, airlines, railroads, energy, banking, buses and telephones.
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What consumers could gain
- More firms could enter markets or serve routes that had been restricted.
- Price competition became possible where regulated rates had prevented discounting.
- Companies had greater freedom to experiment with networks, products and delivery models.
Those gains are not automatic. Removing a rule can lower prices in a competitive market while removing a safety or financial safeguard can increase risks that are difficult to see until a crisis. The history connects weakened bank regulation with the severity of the 2008 financial crisis, illustrating why “less regulation” is not a complete policy goal.
How can regulation create a monopoly or oligopoly?
Regulation creates concentrated power when the cost of compliance, access to customers or permission to operate is easier for incumbents than entrants to obtain.
Warning signs in a proposed rule
- A license, route, spectrum allocation or certification is limited without a clear, reviewable reason.
- Existing firms receive grandfather rights while newcomers face the full cost of new requirements.
- Rules define the market around incumbent technology or business models instead of the underlying safety or consumer problem.
- Contracts are confidential, switching is penalized or customers must buy a bundle of services.
- The agency lacks staff, data or authority to audit compliance and punish violations.
- Industry representatives have a formal role in drafting standards but consumers, small businesses and independent experts do not.
These signs do not prove capture. They identify where a rule deserves economic and distributional analysis before it is treated as consumer protection.
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What details should I look for in a new rule?
Evaluate the rule against the failure it claims to fix, then test who bears its costs and who receives durable protection.
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- Define the problem. Identify the specific market failure or safety risk: fraud, pollution, unreliable service, systemic risk or something else. Ask what evidence shows the problem is large enough to justify intervention.
- Map entry and compliance costs. Compare one-time and recurring obligations for a start-up, a regional firm and the largest incumbent. Include reporting, licensing, audits, insurance and technology requirements.
- Check pricing and contract transparency. Determine whether customers can compare rates, fees, service levels and cancellation terms. Confidential or bundled contracts can conceal the rule’s practical effects.
- Look for exemptions and influence. Read grandfather clauses, waivers, safe harbors and agency discretion. Ask which firms helped write the rule and whether affected consumers or small competitors had comparable access.
- Specify measurable outcomes. Set indicators for prices, access, reliability, safety, innovation and service quality, with a timetable for public review.
- Test enforcement and unintended effects. Confirm that the responsible agency has staff, data and penalties. Consider whether the rule could push activity into less regulated channels, reduce supply or increase systemic risk elsewhere.
This framework also helps compare alternatives. A performance standard, disclosure requirement, targeted subsidy or competition remedy may address the same failure with fewer barriers to entry than a prescriptive operating rule.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What is the practical lesson from the UPS history?
Regulation should be judged by outcomes and institutional design, not by whether it is labeled pro-consumer or pro-business. Rules can improve markets when they are targeted, transparent, enforceable and periodically revisited. They can also become an incumbent’s moat when exceptions, secrecy and switching barriers outlast the problem they were meant to solve.
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For the full UPS case study, Marc Levinson’s The UPS Man: James E. Casey and the Creation of Modern Logistics is listed by NYU Press as an October 2026 eBook (ISBN 9781479848379, $21.00) and hardcover (ISBN 9781479848386, $30.00). Prices and availability can vary by format and region.
Frequently Asked Questions
How current is the evidence that Americans want more regulation?
The clearest figures come from YouGov’s September 9–12, 2024 surveys, not a 2026 vote or referendum. Because the sample was online and the overall margin of error was about three percentage points, small differences should not be treated as decisive; the results are best read as a broad directional signal.
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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsDoes a five-year business contract always indicate regulatory capture?
No. Long contracts can reduce uncertainty and help a carrier plan capacity. They become a competition concern when rules or exclusive arrangements make switching difficult, keep terms secret and prevent customers from testing rival providers.
Can deregulation reduce prices and still make people worse off?
Yes. Increased competition can lower prices for ordinary services, while removing safety, solvency or network protections can expose the public to larger losses during a crisis. The outcome depends on which safeguard was removed and whether another institution can manage the risk.
What can a small business do when a new regulation raises compliance costs?
Break the requirement into fixed and recurring costs, compare them with the incumbent’s likely costs and submit that comparison during the agency’s public-comment period. Ask for phased implementation, interoperable standards or exemptions based on risk rather than a blanket waiver for existing firms.
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