Government Is Behind the Cost of Living Spike in the U.S.

I found that nine types of intervention alone in housing, food, child-care, transport, clothing and sectors governed by occupational licensing combine to raise the cost of typical poor households directly by anywhere between $830 and $3,500 per year.

Source: The Sectors Driving America's Cost of Living Spike All Have One Thing in Common: They're Heavily Regulated by Government

Regulation. It is almost always increasing. There are always special interest groups that fight for it because it helps them vs. their competition or provides other economic benefits to them. The problem is, it also drastically increases costs for the average person. The most heavily regulated industries (think healthcare) are the most expensive. This is not a coincidence and their costs are in very large part a direct result of overregulation.

I tend to be libertarian in my views so therefore think that government regulation in general is overrated. However, I think it would be hard for even those who believe some government regulation is necessary to make a case that regulation anywhere near the current levels is needed. As the article above goes on to point out, government could go a long way towards solving the high costs of health, education, housing and other things by simply getting out of the way.

The article linked above is a few years old now but is more true now than ever before.