Project 2029 targets ‘annoyance economy’ with new policy blueprint
12 reported
A group of Democratic policy veterans is developing a governing agenda called "Project 2029" for a future Democratic president, which includes a plan to combat what they term "the annoyance economy." The effort is led by executive director Chad Maisel, a former special assistant to President Biden on the White House Domestic Policy Council. Maisel and Stanford economist Neale Mahoney estimate that the annoyance economy costs American families at least $165 billion in time and money annually. The annoyance economy refers to frustrating business practices such as hidden fees, difficult subscription cancellations, robocalls, spam texts, and lengthy insurance paperwork. The project is still in its early stages, with proposals to be released on a rolling basis over the next year. Maisel and Mahoney previously worked together on a federal rule targeting junk fees, which led to the FTC implementing a rule banning junk fees for hotels, vacation rentals, and live events in 2024. They argue that government intervention is needed due to a lack of competition in many industries, a lack of consumer information, and cognitive biases that encourage companies to pursue annoying practices.
What’s reported
Project 2029 aims to give a future Democratic president a ready-to-go governing blueprint, inspired by the Heritage Foundation's Project 2025 for the Trump administration.
Chad Maisel is the executive director of Project 2029 and previously served as a special assistant to President Biden on the White House Domestic Policy Council.
Neale Mahoney is a Stanford economist who directs the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research.
Maisel and Mahoney estimate the annoyance economy costs American families at least $165 billion per year.
The annoyance economy includes hidden fees, difficult subscription cancellations, robocalls, spam texts, insurance paperwork, and waiting on hold.
In 2024, the FTC implemented a rule banning junk fees for hotels, vacation rentals, and live events.
President Biden's "Time is Money" initiative, unveiled in late summer 2024, proposed rules to end headache-causing business practices but most proposals never took effect.
The airline industry spent millions opposing a rule for cash refunds for significant delays, which the Trump administration scrapped in November 2025.
Telecom industry groups sued to block the FTC's proposed "click-to-cancel" rule.
In April 2026, the FTC announced StubHub would refund $10 million to consumers to settle allegations of violating a rule against deceptive fees for live event tickets.
Maisel and Mahoney propose creating a standardized claims system for insurance, ending widespread use of prior authorization, cracking down on scam calls, ending a loophole for political fundraising texts, implementing click-to-cancel rules, restoring the ability to press zero to talk to a customer agent, and expanding rules against junk fees.
They cite three reasons for market failure: lack of competition, lack of information, and consumer cognitive biases like myopia.
Key figures
Chad Maisel, executive director of Project 2029, former special assistant to President Biden on the White House Domestic Policy Council
Neale Mahoney, Stanford economist, director of the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research
Sources: NPR
