The American Consumer Institute Center for Citizen Research was founded on the belief that consumers’ interests are not satisfactorily represented in a wide variety of public policy proceedings, nor in government decisions in which their welfare is substantially at stake. The American Consumer Institute Center for Citizen Research is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit educational and research institute.

Representations made on behalf of consumer interests too often reflect the absence of clear expressions of what constitutes the best interests of consumers. This leads to advocacy by consumer organizations that reflect the interests of small subsets of consumers or dimensions of their overall welfare; ignore distant, collateral and unintended consequences of importance to consumers; and, too often mirror advocates’ political views rather than analysis of consumers’ economic welfare.

We recognize that consumers’ interest in the aggregate are complex and driven by their identity as family members, employees and managers, shareholders and public spirited citizens, as well as their individual idiosyncrasies. That said, we also believe they share common ground based on their roles as buyers of goods and services in the marketplace. Our goal is to separate so far as possible their interests as consumers of public and private goods and services from their interests as workers, shareholders and suppliers.

We are committed to use of generally accepted quantitative, cost-benefit analyses of policy alternatives and to their transparent application to assure that our methods can fully and fairly evaluated on their own terms by those who may disagree with our conclusions.

Our analyses reflect the fact that there is no single, well-defined, objective that may universally be regarded as representing the consumer’s interest and that policy decisions often harm some consumers while benefiting others.

Our goal is to provide better data, methods and analyses of consumer welfare impacts and through that to improve on the information available to government decision makers and the general public.

Donations to the American Consumer Institute Center for Citizen Research are fully tax deductible.