Ten Senate Republicans urged the FTC in a letter made public...
Ten Senate Republicans urged the FTC in a letter made public on Thursday to limit the scope of its regulatory activities. They asked the commission to “act with humility and restrain itself to activities for which it has clear legal…
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authority,” under the FTC Act. The letter was signed by Republican Sens. Jim DeMint of South Carolina, Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas, Orrin Hatch of Utah, John Thune of South Dakota, John Cornyn of Texas, Johnny Isakson of Georgia, Roy Blunt of Missouri, John Boozman of Arkansas, Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania, and Marco Rubio of Florida. The senators also sought clarity on how much the commission uses its Section 5 authority to regulate businesses. “We are concerned about the apparent eagerness of the Commission under your leadership to expand Section 5 actions without a clear indication of authority or a limiting principle,” the letter said. “When a federal regulatory agency uses creative theories to expand its activities, entrepreneurs may be deterred from innovating and growing lest they be targeted by government action.” The FTC had no comment.