WASHINGTON, DC - The Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade, chaired by Rep. Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (R-TX), has announced a legislative hearing on Tuesday, May 24, 2016, at 10:10 AM in 2123 of the Rayburn House Office Building. The hearing is entitled, “Legislative Hearing on 17 FTC Bills."
As part of its ongoing effort to create jobs and unleash innovation, the subcommittee recently unveiled a number of bills focused on bringing needed reform to the FTC and addressing emerging issues within the marketplace and industry. Many of the bills were a product of The Disrupter Series, which examined the marketplace of tomorrow and supported the subcommittee’s work in developing targeted reforms.
“With a keen eye toward jobs and innovation, our members have been busy legislating. FTC in many respects has the right tools for the job, but some targeted changes would go a long way to paving the way for innovation. We’ll closely examine how the bills help the FTC protect consumers, businesses, and jobs and whether they provide some clarity to companies who need it," said Burgess. “We look forward to a thoughtful dialogue on how consumers are being impacted both positively and negatively under current law and explore how we can better protect Americans while allowing businesses to grow."
“Next week, we’ll continue our efforts to protect consumers, create jobs, and unleash innovation. Opportunity will be lost in Michigan and around the country if the FTC is not fully prepared to address emerging 21st century technologies. The U.S. leads in innovation and many of these thoughtful reforms will help ensure that we continue to do so," said full committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI).
The bills that will be considered are:
* H.R. 4460, the Youth Sports Concussion Act - sponsored by Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-NJ)
* H.R. 4526, the Stop Online Booking Scams Act - sponsored by Rep. Lois Frankel (D-FL)
* H.R. 5092, the Reinforcing American-Made Products Act of 2016 - sponsored by Rep. Gregg Harper (R-MS)
* H.R. 5093, the Technological Innovation through Modernizing Enforcement (TIME) Act - sponsored by Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (R-TX)
* H.R. 5097, the Start Taking Action on Lingering Liabilities (STALL) Act - sponsored by Rep. Susan Brooks (R-IN)
* H.R. 5098, the FTC Robust Elderly Protections and Organizational Requirements to Track Scams Act - sponsored by Rep. Gus Bilirakis (R-FL)
* H.R. 5104, Better On-line Ticket Sales (BOTS) Act of 2016 - sponsored by full committee Vice Chairman Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN)
* H.R. 5109, the Clarifying Legality and Enforcement Action Reasoning (CLEAR) Act - sponsored by Rep. Brett Guthrie (R-KY)
* H.R. 5111, the Consumer Review Fairness Act (CRFA) - sponsored by subcommittee Vice Chairman Rep. Leonard Lance (R-NJ)
* H.R. 5115, the Statement on Unfairness Reinforcement and Emphasis (SURE) Act - sponsored by Rep. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK)
* H.R. 5116, the Freeing Responsible and Effective Exchanges (FREE) Act - sponsored by Rep. Pete Olson (R-TX)
* H.R. 5118, the Solidifying Habitual and Institutional Explanations of Liability and Defenses (SHIELD) Act - sponsored by Rep. Mike Pompeo (R-KS)
* H.R. 5136, the Revealing Economic Conclusions for Suggestions (RECS) Act - sponsored by Rep. Mike Pompeo (R-KS)
* H.R. 5212, the Bereaved Customer’s Bill of Rights Act - sponsored by Rep. Bobby Rush (D-IL)
* H.R. 5239, the Protecting Consumers in Commerce Act of 2016 - sponsored by Rep. Jerry McNerney (D-CA)
* H.R. 5245, the BOSS Act - sponsored by Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-NJ)
* H.R. ____, To Amend the Federal Trade Commission Act to Permit the Federal Trade Commission to Enforce Such Act Against Certain Tax Exempt Organizations
The Majority Memorandum, a witness list, and witness testimony will be available here as they are posted.
