Well, the FTC filed a brief in support of their party in the Louisiana Monks case, but for once the state agrees with IJ that the Louisiana Law harms consumers.

The Louisiana Embalming and Funeral Directors Act, La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§ 37:831 et seq. (“LEFDA”), subjects persons engaged solely in the manufacture and sale of caskets within the state of Louisiana to the full panoply of licensing requirements for funeral directors and funeral establishments. In striking down the LEFDA as unconstitutional, the district court concluded that “the sole reason for these laws is the economic protection of the funeral industry. ” USCA5 at 901. Taking no position on the constitutional due process and equal protection issues, the Commission files this amicus brief to refute any suggestion that LEFDA’s licensing requirements further the purposes of the Funeral Rule. On the contrary, he [sic] restraints on competition imposed by the LEFDA are at odds with the policy goals of both the Funeral Rule and the FTC Act.

Scott Bullock is pleased:

Scott Bullock with the Arlington, Va.-based Institute for Justice, which represents the monks in the case, said the FTC position buttresses the position of the Abbey. The FTC brief says clearly that the Louisiana law “is not in the interest of consumers,” he said.