The commission requests feedback on issues related to promoting joint law enforcement and consumer protection initiatives between the FTC and state attorneys general.
06/08/2023 2:00 P.M.
2.5 minute read
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) seeking comment from the general public on how it can better coordinate with state attorneys general across the country to inform consumers about potential fraud and shield them from it, according to a press release published Wednesday.
The Collaboration Act of 2021, which President Joe Biden signed into law last October, mandates that the FTC “conduct a study on facilitating and refining existing efforts with State Attorneys General to prevent, publicize, and penalize frauds and scams being perpetrated on individuals in the United States.”
Additionally, it mandates that the commission organize direct meetings with interested parties and give the general public the chance to offer feedback and suggestions that could be useful for the study.
The FTC is seeking input on three subjects the study will cover:
- “The roles and responsibilities of the [c]ommission and state attorneys general that best advance collaboration and consumer protection;
- How resources should be allocated to best advance such collaboration and consumer protection; and
- The accountability mechanisms that should be put in place to promote collaboration and consumer protection between the FTC at state levels.”
Additionally, the commission is requesting feedback on a variety of issues affecting the cooperation between federal and state consumer protection agencies, including:
- “Consumers’ views of the respective roles and responsibilities of the [c]ommission and state attorneys general as they relate to consumer protection and preventing, publicizing, and penalizing frauds and scams;
- How, in practice, do the FTC and state attorneys general effectively collaborate and support each other’s consumer protection missions in several contexts;
- How the work of state and local consumer protection law enforcement agencies outside of state attorneys general facilitate and refine efforts between the [c]ommission and state attorneys general;
- The extent to which federal law preempting state jurisdiction has affected the ability of state attorneys general to protect consumers from unlawful business practices;
- How the FTC can maximize use of, and contributions to, the Consumer Sentinel Network, through which law enforcers nationwide submit and receive consumer complaints;
- How resources should be dedicated to best advance collaboration and consumer protection missions between the FTC and state attorneys general in a variety of contexts;
- The effectiveness of the current exchange of technical or subject matter expertise between the FTC and state attorneys general when collaborating on consumer protection matters;
- Resources or new authorities and information-sharing practices that may be needed or improved to enhance law enforcement collaboration; and
- Additional performance indicators or metrics that the [c]ommission should consider reporting, or other mechanism that should be implemented to measure the effectiveness of the FTC’s consumer protection collaboration with state attorneys general.”
The deadline for submitting comments is 60 days after publication in the Federal Register, and the public can submit comments at Regulations.gov.
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