JUNE 11, 2003

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has been charged with the responsibility of protecting consumers from fraud, deceit and a whole host of skulduggery. Consistent with its statutory responsibility, the current Commission has initiated many actions in the interest of consumers. Most notably, the creation of a National do-not-call registry will empower consumers to nearly eliminate intrusive and abusive telemarketing calls. The Commission worked closely with this Committee on the Do-Not-Call Implementation Act, and I look forward to working with the Commissioners on a variety of other legislative initiatives such as identity theft, online privacy, and the regulation of commercial e-mail now known commonly as SPAM.

In furtherance of its consumer protection mandate, the Commission is now requesting new authorities from Congress. In particular, despite some initial misgivings, I urge this Committee to carefully examine the FTC’s request for jurisdiction over telecommunications common carriers. The FTC has a long and established record of enforcing consumer protection laws, and the agency has made strong arguments with regards to how the present exemption hinders its ability to protect consumers against unscrupulous industry behavior.

Unfortunately, the FTC's long and proud history on consumer protection issues stands in stark contrast to the recent actions of the present Federal Communications Commission (FCC). In its rush to deregulate media monopolies, the FCC has called into question both its commitment to consumers and its ability to distinguish the public interest from the interests of those companies that it ostensibly regulates.