Four Ways the FTC Forgets the Consumer

Recent actions by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) illustrate that the agency is drifting further away from its core mission of protecting American consumers. Instead, its actions seem to indicate its acronym stands for“Forget The Consumer.” 

The latest example of this shift was earlier this month when the FTC, along with their counterparts in the Antitrust Division of the Justice Department, signed an interagency Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Department of Labor (DOL) and National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Their understanding: instead of evaluating mergers based on benefits to everyday Americans, such as lower prices, the MOU charts a course to evaluate mergers based on labor issues.

While the Chamber supports policies that result in more jobs, higher wages, and increased opportunities, this latest bureaucratic ‘merger’ is a solution in search of a problem. By attempting to insert the politics of labor issues into what should be antitrust enforcement based on evidence and economic analysis, the FTC is again attempting a baseless power grab and wasting taxpayer resources. That’s why members of a House Subcommittee on Innovation, Data, and Commerce will be holding a hearing this week on what they call “the FTC’s departure from its traditional standards” and “long, bipartisan history of protecting consumers.”

Indeed, the FTC has already attempted similar actions outside of its purview in three other ways:

• The agency is testing its labor theory in a misguided attempt to stop the merger of Kroger and Albertsons.  
• The FTC’s rule to ban non-compete agreements which are critical to ensuring businesses stay competitive was recently overturned by a federal court, citing the agency’s lack of In fact, the FTC has recently lost several lawsuits against mergers and acquisitions, with judges admonishing them for relying on speculation instead of evidence.

Instead of championing policies that genuinely foster competition and keep prices low for consumers, the FTC actions prioritizepolitical agendas over consumer protection issues.​  Such an approach will affect our daily lives and have long-term implications for economic growth.

About the authors

Sean Heather

Sean Heather is Senior Vice President for International Regulatory Affairs and Antitrust.

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