A Guide

To The

Federal

Trade

Commission

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC)

works to ensure that the nation’s markets are vigorous, efficient and free of

restrictions that harm consumers.

Experience demonstrates that competition among

firms yields products at the lowest prices, spurs

innovation and strengthens the economy. Markets

also work best when consumers can make informed

choices based on accurate information.

To ensure the smooth operation of our free market

system, the FTC enforces federal consumer protection laws that prevent fraud, deception and unfair

business practices. The Commission also enforces

federal antitrust laws that prohibit anticompetitive

mergers and other business practices that restrict

competition and harm consumers. Whether combating telemarketing fraud, Internet scams or price-fixing schemes, the FTC’s primary mission is to protect

consumers.

In addition, the Commission conducts economic

research and analysis to support its law enforcement

efforts and to contribute to the policy deliberations of

the Congress, the Executive Branch, other independent agencies, and state and local governments.

This booklet explains how the Commission works

to achieve these goals. I also invite you to visit our

website, www.ftc.gov, to learn more about the FTC.

Timothy J. Muris, Chairman

1
Introduction __________________________ 3

Commissioners ________________________ 4

Bureau of Consumer Protection ____________ 7

The Division of Advertising Practices ________ 7

The Division of Enforcement ______________ 8

The Division of Financial Practices ________10

The Division of Marketing Practices ________ 11

The Division of Planning and Information ____ 13

The Consumer and Business

Education Program __________________ 14

Bureau of Competition __________________ 16

The Antitrust Laws ____________________ 17

Merger Enforcement __________________ 18

Nonmerger Enforcement________________ 20

Research and Policy Studies ____________ 23

Bureau of Economics ____________________ 25

How the FTC Brings An Action ____________ 27

FTC Offices You Should Know About ________ 30

For More Information __________________ 32

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THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

TABLE OF CONTENTS
As a consumer or businessperson, you may be more

familiar with the work of the Federal Trade

Commission than you think.

Consumers who refer to care labels in their

clothes, product warranties or stickers showing the

energy costs of home appliances are using information required by the FTC. Businesses must be familiar

with the laws requiring truthful advertising or prohibiting price fixing. These laws also are administered by the FTC.

The FTC deals with issues that touch the economic

lives of most Americans. In fact, the agency has a

long tradition of maintaining a competitive marketplace for both consumers and businesses. When the

FTC was created in 1914, its purpose was to prevent

unfair methods of competition in commerce as part

of the battle to “bust the trusts.” Over the years,

Congress passed additional laws giving the agency

greater authority to police anticompetitive practices. 

In 1938, Congress passed the Wheeler-Lea

Amendment, which included a broad prohibition

against “unfair and deceptive acts or practices.” Since

then, the Commission also has been directed to administer a wide variety of other consumer protection laws,

including the Telemarketing Sales Rule, the Pay-PerCall Rule and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act.

In 1975, Congress passed the Magnuson-Moss Act,

which gave the FTC the authority to adopt trade regulation rules that define unfair or deceptive acts in

particular industries. Trade regulation rules have the

force of law. As you read through this booklet, you

will learn about other laws that enable the FTC to

help consumers.

The FTC’s work is performed by the Bureaus of

Consumer Protection, Competition and Economics.

That work is aided by the Office of General Counsel

and seven regional offices.

3

INTRODUCTION
The FTC is an independent agency that reports to

Congress on its actions. The Commission is headed by

five Commissioners, nominated by the President and

confirmed by the Senate, each serving a seven-year

term. The President chooses one Commissioner to act

as Chairman. No more than three Commissioners can

be of the same political party. The current Chairman

and Commissioners are:

Chairman Timothy J. Muris

A Republican, he began his term as Chairman on

June 4, 2001. Muris has held three previous positions at the Commission: Assistant to the Director of

the Office of Policy Planning and Evaluation (1974 to

1976), Director of the Bureau of Consumer

Protection (1981 to 1983) and Director of the

Bureau of Competition (1983 to 1985). 

After leaving the FTC in 1985, Muris served with

the Executive Office of the President, Office of

Management and Budget for three years, and afterward, as Of Counsel with the law firm of Collier,

Shannon, Rill and Scott (1992 to 2000) and Howrey,

Simon, Arnold and White (2000 to 2001). Muris

joined George Mason University School of Law as a

Foundation Professor in 1988 and was interim dean

of the law school from 1996 to 1997.

A member of the American Bar Association’s

Antitrust Section, Muris has written widely on

antitrust, consumer protection, regulatory, and budget issues. In 1981, he served as the Deputy Counsel

to the Presidential Task Force on Regulatory Relief.

4

THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

COMMISSIONERS
Commissioner Sheila F. Anthony

A Democrat, she was sworn in as a Commissioner on

September 30, 1997. She served as Assistant Attorney

General for the Office of Legislative Affairs at the

Department of Justice from 1993 to 1995. As

Assistant Attorney General, Anthony was the liaison

between the Department and Congress, and the liaison to the White House Legislative Affairs Office. In

addition, she was responsible for implementing the

strategy to carry out the Department’s legislative initiatives. Prior to government service, she practiced

law at Dow, Lohnes and Albertson in Washington,

D.C., where she specialized in intellectual property

law, including trademark, copyright, unfair competition, litigation, licensing, and technology transfer.

Commissioner Mozelle W. Thompson

A Democrat, he was sworn in as a Commissioner on

December 17, 1997. Thompson most recently held

the position of Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary at

the Department of the Treasury overseeing domestic

spending and credit policies. Prior to joining the

Treasury, he served as Senior Vice President and

General Counsel to the New York State Finance

Agency. He also was an attorney with the firm of

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher and Flom in New

York. Thompson has been president of the

International Marketing Supervision Network

(IMSN), an international consumer protection

enforcement association, and also Vice Chairman of

the OECD Consumer Policy Committee. Thompson

has taught at the Fordham Law School and Princeton

University’s Woodrow Wilson School.

5
Commissioner Orson Swindle

A Republican, he was sworn in as a Commissioner

on December 18, 1997. He has had a distinguished

military career and served in the Reagan

Administration from 1981 to 1989 directing financial assistance programs to economically distressed

rural and municipal areas of the country. As Assistant

Secretary of Commerce for Development, he managed the Department of Commerce’s national economic development efforts, directing seven offices

across the country. He was State Director of the

Farmers Home Administration for the U.S.

Department of Agriculture financing rural housing,

community infrastructure, businesses, and farming.

Commissioner Thomas B. Leary

A Republican, he was sworn in on November 17,

1999. From 1983 to 1999, he had been a partner at

Hogan and Hartson, where he practiced principally

in the areas of antitrust and trade regulation. Before

becoming a partner at Hogan and Hartson, he was

the Assistant General Counsel of General Motors, with

overall responsibility for antitrust, consumer protection and commercial law matters. He also served as

an Air Intelligence Officer on active duty in the United

States Navy from 1952 to 1955.

6

THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
The Bureau of Consumer Protection’s mandate is to

protect consumers against unfair, deceptive or fraudulent practices. The Bureau enforces a variety of 

consumer protection laws enacted by Congress, as

well as trade regulation rules issued by the

Commission. Its actions include individual company

and industry-wide investigations, administrative and

federal court litigation, rulemaking proceedings, and

consumer and business education. In addition, the

Bureau contributes to the Commission’s on-going

efforts to inform Congress and other government

entities of the impact that proposed actions could

have on consumers.

The Bureau of Consumer Protection is divided into

six divisions and programs, each with its own areas

of expertise.

■ The Division of Advertising Practices

The Division of Advertising Practices is the nation’s

enforcer of federal truth-in-advertising laws. Its law

enforcement activities focus on:

• Claims for foods, drugs, dietary supplements, and

other products promising health benefits.

• Health fraud on the Internet.

• Weight-loss advertising.

• Advertising and marketing directed to children.

• Performance claims for computers, ISPs and other

high-tech products and services.

• Tobacco and alcohol advertising, including monitoring for unfair practices or deceptive claims and

reporting to Congress on cigarette and smokeless

tobacco labeling, advertising and promotion. 

• Protecting children’s privacy online.

7

BUREAU OF CONSUMER PROTECTION
• Claims about product performance made in

national or regional newspapers and magazines; 

in radio and TV commercials, including infomercials; through direct mail to consumers; or 

on the Internet. 

■ The Division of Enforcement

The Division of Enforcement conducts a wide variety

of law enforcement activities to protect consumers,

including: (1) ensuring compliance with administrative and federal court orders entered in consumer

protection cases; (2) conducting investigations and

prosecuting civil actions to stop fraudulent, unfair or

deceptive marketing and advertising practices; and

(3) enforcing consumer protection laws, rules and

guidelines.

• Monitoring compliance with Commission cease

and desist orders and federal court injunctive

orders involves:

• Investigating compliance of parties subject to

agency and federal court orders. 

• Initiating federal court actions for substantial

civil penalties for violation of agency orders. 

• Enforcing federal court injunctive orders

through civil and criminal contempt actions

(Project Scofflaw). 

• Investigations of violations of consumer protection

laws and litigation before the Commission’s administrative law judges or the U.S. District Courts

involve:

• E-Commerce and the Internet, including online

shopping and unfulfilled holiday delivery

promises. 

8

THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
• Employment opportunities fraud, such as false

promises about the availability of jobs with the

U.S. Postal Service, federal government or modeling agencies. 

• Scholarship scams, targeting services that falsely

guarantee scholarships or claim to have information that is unavailable elsewhere. 

• Office supply fraud, including “toner-phoner”

scams where small businesses are billed for

unordered copier and printer toner. 

• Enforcement of trade laws, rules and guides

through administrative or federal court proceedings includes: 

• The Mail or Telephone Order Merchandise Rule,

which requires “brick and mortar” and online companies to ship purchases when promised (or within

30 days if no time is specified) or to give consumers

the option to cancel their order for a refund.

9

THIS SCULPTURE IS ONE 

OF A PAIR ENTITLED

“MAN CONTROLLING

TRADE” AND WAS 

COMPLETED FOR THE 

FTC BUILDING IN 1942 BY

NEW YORK SCULPTOR 

MICHAEL LANTZ.
• Textile, Wool, Fur and Care Labeling Rules, which

require proper origin and fiber content labeling

of textile, wool and fur products, and care label

instructions attached to clothing and fabrics.

• Energy Rules, which require the disclosure of

energy costs of home appliances (the Appliance

Labeling Rule), octane ratings of gasoline (the

Fuel Rating Rule), and the efficiency rating of

home insulation (the R-Value Rule). 

• Green Guides, which govern claims that consumer

products are environmentally safe, recycled,

recyclable, ozone-friendly, or biodegradable. 

■ The Division of Financial Practices

The Division of Financial Practices is responsible for

developing policy and enforcing laws related to

financial and lending practices affecting consumers.

It also is responsible for most of the agency’s consumer privacy program. Among its specific areas of

responsibility are:

• Financial privacy, including enforcement of the

Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and the GrammLeach-Bliley Act (GLBA). 

• The FCRA ensures the accuracy and privacy of

information kept by credit bureaus and other

consumer reporting agencies, and gives consumers the right to know what information these

entities are distributing about them to creditors,

insurance companies and employers. 

• The GLBA requires financial institutions to provide notice to consumers about their information

practices, and to give consumers an opportunity

to direct that their personal information not be

shared with non-affiliated third parties. 

1 0

THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
• Subprime lending, including enforcement of laws

targeting deceptive, unfair and abusive practices 

in the subprime market, such as the Federal 

Trade Commission Act, the Home Ownership and

Equity Protection Act, and the Equal Credit

Opportunity Act. 

• Enforcement of many of the nation’s other consumer credit statutes, including: 

• The Truth in Lending Act, which requires creditors to disclose in writing certain cost information, such as the annual percentage rate (APR),

before consumers enter into credit transactions. 

• The Consumer Leasing Act, which requires

lessors to give consumers information on lease

costs and terms. 

• The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, which

prohibits debt collectors from engaging in

unfair, deceptive or abusive practices, including

over-charging, harassment and disclosing consumers’ debt to third parties.

■ The Division of Marketing Practices

The Division of Marketing Practices responds quickly

and decisively to the rapidly changing world of fraudulent marketing practices. It enforces federal consumer protection laws by filing actions in federal

district court on behalf of the Commission to stop

scams, prevent scam artists from repeating their

fraudulent schemes in the future, freeze assets, and

obtain compensation for scam victims. The Division

also files administrative cases with the Commission to

stop these scams.

1 1
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THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

The Division’s enforcement priorities include:

• Shutting down high-tech Internet and telephone

scams that bilk consumers out of hundreds of millions of dollars annually;

• Halting deceptive telemarketing or direct mail

marketing schemes that use false and misleading

information to take consumers’ money; and

• Stopping pyramid schemes and other fraudulent

investment scams.

The Division also is responsible for the issuance,

revision and enforcement of many of the

Commission’s rules, including:

• The Telemarketing Sales Rule, which prohibits

deceptive sales pitches and protects consumers

from abusive, unwanted, and late-night sales calls.

• The 900 Number Rule, which requires sellers of

pay-per-call (“900 number”) services to clearly

disclose the price of their services, prohibits the

targeting of most of those services to children, and

forbids unfair billing practices.

• The Franchise and Business Opportunity Rule,

which requires sellers of franchises and business

opportunities to give prospective buyers a disclosure containing specific information about the

business and any earnings claims that are made, to

help them evaluate the value of the franchise.

• The Funeral Rule, which requires funeral directors

to disclose price and other information about their

services to consumers.

• The Magnuson-Moss Act, which requires merchants to make warranty information available to

consumers before they make a purchase.
The Division is on the cutting edge of investigating

and addressing the ever-evolving use of the Internet

and other emerging technologies to defraud consumers. The Division has taken the lead in developing new strategies and techniques to combat the

latest high-tech scams and in sharing those strategies

and techniques with federal, state, local, and international law enforcement agencies through its training

programs. Its initiatives in this area include:

• Developing and presenting Internet Investigation

Training to federal, state, local, and international

law enforcement agencies.

• Sponsoring and conducting symposia on legal

issues arising from cutting-edge technologies.

• Prosecuting civil enforcement actions to keep

fraud artists from operating on the Internet and in

other high-tech areas.

■ The Division of Planning and Information

The Division of Planning and Information helps consumers get the information they need to protect

themselves, and gives FTC attorneys and other consumer protection law enforcers the information and

support they need to take action. The Division pursues this mission in several ways:

• Consumer Response Center, which houses counselors who respond to consumer complaints and

requests for information (1-877-FTC-HELP [1-877-

382-4357] or www.ftc.gov).

• Identity Theft Data Clearinghouse, which houses

counselors who tell consumers how to protect

themselves from identity theft and what to do if

their identity has been stolen (1-877-IDTHEFT 

1 3
[1-877-438-4338]; TDD: 202-326-2502; or

www.consumer.gov/idtheft). 

• Consumer Sentinel. The FTC enters Internet, 

telemarketing, identity theft, and other fraudrelated complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a

secure, online database and cybertool available 

to hundreds of civil and criminal law enforcement

agencies in the U.S. and abroad

(www.consumer.gov/sentinel).

• International Consumer Protection. The Division

coordinates the FTC’s international consumer 

protection work, and helps facilitate international

information-sharing among consumer protection

law enforcers to combat cross-border fraud 

and deception. This work includes a joint project

with more than a dozen countries to collect and

share cross-border ecommerce complaints

(www.econsumer.gov).

• Operations. The Division also administers the core

financial, administrative and litigation support

activities of the Bureau, and manages the agency’s

consumer redress program.

■ The Consumer and Business Education

Program

The Consumer and Business Education Program

plans, develops and implements creative, practical,

plain-language mission-related campaigns aimed at

both broad and segmented consumer and industry

audiences. These efforts encourage informed consumer choice and competitive business practices in

the marketplace, and are viewed by the Commission

as a cost-effective way to help minimize consumer

injury and obtain compliance with the law. To leverage expertise and limited resources, the program

1 4

THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
partners with businesses, trade associations, consumer groups and other government agencies when

appropriate, exhibits at national conferences and conventions, and produces public service announcements

for radio, print and web. A consumer and/or business

education component is included in each major consumer protection law enforcement initiative.

In addition to producing award-winning publications and websites, the program maintains 

www.consumer.gov. The Program launched this

“one stop” site for federal consumer information with

four partner agencies (Food and Drug Administration,

Consumer Product Safety Commission, National

Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the

Securities and Exchange Commission) in December

1997. Today, the site links to consumer information,

arranged in 10 broad topic areas, from more than 170

federal agencies. It also has become the consumer

information portal for FirstGov.gov, a public-private

partnership, led by a cross-agency board and administered by the Office of FirstGov in the General Services

Administration’s Office of Governmentwide Policy.

1 5
The FTC’s antitrust arm, the Bureau of Competition

seeks to prevent anticompetitive mergers and other

anticompetitive business practices in the marketplace. By protecting competition, the Bureau promotes consumers’ freedom to choose goods and

services in an open marketplace at a price and quality that fit their needs – and fosters opportunity for

businesses by ensuring a level playing field among

competitors.

The Bureau fulfills this role by reviewing proposed

mergers and other business practices for possible

anticompetive effects, and, when appropriate, recommending that the Commission take formal law

enforcement action to protect consumers. The

Bureau also serves as a research and policy resource

on competition topics and provides guidance to business on complying with the antitrust laws. 

1 6

THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

BUREAU OF COMPETITION

REPRESENTING

“INDUSTRY,” CHAIM 

GROSS’ PANEL ON THE

FTC’S WEST ENTRANCE ON

PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE

DEPICTS TWO RIVETERS

WORKING ON A STEEL

SKELETAL STRUCTURE.
1 7

The FTC is careful to attend to segments of the economy that will have the greatest impact on behalf of

consumers, such as:

• Energy for homes, manufacturing or transportation

– electricity, oil and gas;

• Prescription drugs and health care;

• Food – consumer products and grocery retailing;

and

• High-tech industries such as computers, broadband Internet access, and cable TV distribution

and programming.

■ The Antitrust Laws

The Bureau protects competition through enforcement of the antitrust laws. These laws include: 

• Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act,

which prohibits “unfair methods of competition.” 

• Section 1 of the Sherman Act, which outlaws “every

contract, combination . . . , or conspiracy, in

restraint of trade.”
• Section 2 of the Sherman Act, which makes it

unlawful for a company to “monopolize, or

attempt to monopolize,” trade or commerce.

• Section 7 of the Clayton Act, which prohibits mergers and acquisitions the effect of which “may be

substantially to lessen competition, or to tend to

create a monopoly.” 

• Section 7A of the Clayton Act (added in 1976 by

the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements

Act), which requires companies to notify antitrust

agencies before certain planned mergers.

• Other provisions of the Clayton Act, including the

Robinson-Patman Act, which prohibits certain

forms of price discrimination that are found to be

anticompetitive; Section 3 of the Clayton Act, which

proscribes certain types of tying and exclusive

dealing arrangements; and Section 8 of the Clayton

Act, which proscribes interlocking directorates

and officers.

■ Merger Enforcement

Most mergers actually benefit competition and 

consumers by allowing firms to operate more efficiently.

In a competitive market, firms pass on these lower costs

to consumers. But some mergers, by reducing competition, can cost consumers many millions of dollars

every year in the form of higher prices and reduced

product quality, consumer choice and innovation.

The Bureau of Competition reviews mergers to

determine which ones have the potential to harm

consumers; thoroughly investigates those that may be

troublesome; and recommends enforcement action

to the Commission when necessary to protect competition and consumers. While the FTC challenges only

1 8

THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
a small percentage of mergers, its merger enforcement actions typically save consumers hundreds of

millions of dollars each year.

The Commission’s merger enforcement activity

focuses primarily on mergers between direct competitors (“horizontal” mergers), because these may

be most likely to harm consumers. The Commission

also examines mergers involving firms at different

levels of the same industry (“vertical” mergers) and

those involving firms that exert a procompetitive

influence because of the possibility of their entering a

market (“potential competition” mergers).

• In a horizontal merger, a direct competitor may

be eliminated, allowing the acquiring firm latitude

to raise prices without losing sales.

• A vertical merger, such as a manufacturer acquiring a supplier of component products, or a manufacturer merging with a distributor of its products,

is less likely to be anticompetitive, because the

parties do not compete with each other. A vertical

merger may harm competition, however, by making it difficult for competitors to gain access to an

important component product or to an important

channel of distribution, such as cable TV networks

for providers of television programming.

Various remedies may be suitable for transactions

that pose antitrust concerns. These include settlement, litigation or abandonment of the transaction by

the parties:

• It often is possible to correct the antitrust problems

raised by a merger through the divestiture of assets

used in the affected markets. Divestiture is the most

common but not the only remedy employed.

1 9
Mergers of large companies usually involve many

different markets, and a divestiture of a part of the

company to another firm may protect competition

while allowing the beneficial aspects of the merger

to go forward.

• In some cases, however, a divestiture remedy is

insufficient, or the parties cannot agree on the scope

of needed divestitures. Then, the Commission may

seek to prevent the entire transaction by asking a

federal court to block the merger from proceeding.

■ Nonmerger Enforcement

The Bureau receives numerous inquiries and complaints from customers and competitors throughout the

country about possible antitrust law violations that do

not involve mergers. The staff carefully evaluates each

inquiry or complaint, and where appropriate, opens a

formal investigation. In addition, the Bureau’s staff

monitors industry activities through trade publications,

industrial reports and company press releases.

The Commission’s nonmerger enforcement efforts

focus on business activities that significantly threaten

competition and harm consumers. These involve

direct competitors (“horizontal” arrangements),

suppliers and customers (“vertical” arrangements),

or single firms.

The Bureau focuses significant attention on horizontal restraints, or agreements between or among

direct competitors, because these pose the greatest

risk of harm to competition. Under the antitrust laws,

companies may not agree to limit competition in

ways that hurt consumers. 

2 0
Horizontal restraints may take many different forms:

• An explicit agreement among competitors on price

– price fixing – is illegal per se. Competitors must

establish prices and terms independently.

• The legality of many other types of agreements is not

as clear cut. These cases often are complex and

require a detailed and painstaking examination of

the facts to determine whether the agreement violates antitrust laws. For example, an agreement

among manufacturers to adopt specifications requiring fire-resistant materials for certain products may

have a beneficial effect on public safety that far outweighs any impact on competition.

• A group boycott – an agreement among competitors not to deal with another person or business – may hurt consumers by preventing the

establishment of a new competitor. For example,

the FTC has challenged boycotts by groups of

physicians to prevent the establishment of competing health care facilities.

• Agreements among competitors to divide sales

territories or allocate customers are generally

illegal because they are essentially agreements

not to compete. For example, an agreement

between cable TV companies not to enter each

other’s territory would prevent the head-to-head

competition that helps consumers.

• Restrictions on advertising can be illegal if they

deprive consumers of important information. For

example, if a group of auto dealers agrees to restrict

comparative and discount advertising, consumers

would have less information to comparison shop.

2 1
• A professional code of ethics may be unlawful if

it unreasonably restricts the ways professionals

may compete. For example, a code of ethics

provision that restricts a group of professionals

from engaging in alternative forms of delivery of

services could deny consumers the benefits

(including lower costs) of these methods.

Restrictions agreed to by firms at different levels

within an industry, known as vertical restraints, also

can be harmful to consumers, although these

restraints tend to be more beneficial than not.

• The sale of one product on condition that a customer purchase a second product, which the customer may not want or can buy elsewhere at a

lower price, is a “tie-in.” Requirements like these

are illegal if they harm competition. 

• Manufacturers and dealers often enter into agreements related to resale price or on matters not

related to price, such as limitations on dealers’

territories or customer service obligations.

Restrictions such as these generally are not illegal. 

Practices of single firms may violate the antitrust laws’

prohibition on monopolization or attempted

monopolization. Although it is not illegal to have a

monopoly, a single company cannot monopolize or try

to monopolize an industry through unfair practices –

tactics that either unreasonably exclude firms from the

market or significantly impair their ability to compete.

For example, it would likely be illegal for a company

with a monopoly in one market to attempt to use its

power in that market to interfere with competition in

another market. 

2 2
■ Research and Policy Studies

Congress created the FTC as a source of expertise

and information on the economy. Consistent with this

role, the Bureau regularly analyzes important competition-related topics: 

• It organizes public workshops to examine emerging issues, such as the advent of software systems

that allow multiple buyers and sellers to carry out

sales and procurement activities over the Internet,

known as business-to-business (B2B) electronic

marketplaces.

• It reports to Congress and the public on topics of

significant public interest, such as pricing of gasoline and other refined petroleum products.

• It contributes to FTC analysis of the competitive

implications of important policy proposals, such

as those relating to the deregulation of electricity. 

• Bureau managers often testify before Congress on

subjects of current public interest.

The Bureau also works to inform the business community about antitrust enforcement policies to facilitate compliance with the law.

• Often in conjunction with the Department of

Justice, the Bureau develops enforcement guidelines on such topics as mergers or collaborations

among competitors. These guidelines help companies and their legal advisors understand how the

agencies analyze possible violations.

• Bureau managers regularly give speeches on current enforcement policies and priorities before

legal and business groups.

2 3
• The Bureau prepares advisory opinions to help

businesses evaluate the legality of proposed ventures or course of action.

• Information on the Bureau’s activities and policies

is widely available to the public through the dissemination of frequent press releases and publication of materials on the FTC website.

2 4

THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

LOCATED ON THE FTC’S

EAST ENTRANCE ON 

PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE,

THIS SCULPTURE,

DESIGNED BY ROBERT 

LAURENT, REPRESENTS 

THE ROLE OF SHIPPING IN

WORLD TRADE.
The Bureau of Economics helps the FTC evaluate the

economic impact of its actions. To do so, the Bureau

provides economic analysis and support to antitrust

and consumer protection investigations and rulemakings. It also analyzes the impact of government regulation on competition and consumers and provides

Congress, the Executive Branch and the public with

economic analysis of market processes as they relate

to antitrust, consumer protection, and regulation.

Provides Economic Advice for Enforcement

The Bureau provides guidance and support to the

agency’s antitrust and consumer protection enforcement activities. In the antitrust area, the Bureau participates in the investigation of alleged anticompetitive

acts or practices and provides advice on the economic merits of alternative antitrust actions. If an

enforcement action is initiated, the Bureau integrates

economic analysis into the proceeding (sometimes

providing the expert witness at trial) and works with

the Bureau of Competition to devise appropriate

remedies.

2 5

BUREAU OF ECONOMICS
In the consumer protection area, the Bureau 

provides economic support and analysis of potential

Commission actions in both cases and rulemakings

handled by the Bureau of Consumer Protection.

Bureau economists also provide analysis of appropriate penalty levels to deter activity that harms 

consumers.

Studies Effects of Legislative Options 

and Regulations

The Bureau participates in the FTC’s advocacy activities. The Commission’s three bureaus present comments, upon request, to other agencies and entities

concerning the effects of regulation on competition

and consumers. At the request of lawmakers or

agency officials, comments or testimony often are

provided to assist legislatures’ consideration of pending bills or to assist agency rulemaking proceedings.

Similarly, amicus curiae briefs may be presented to

federal or state courts. These submissions advocate

policies that will enhance both competition and consumer choice.

Analyzes Market Processes

The Bureau also conducts economic analysis of various markets and industries. This work focuses on the

economic effects of regulation and on issues important to antitrust and consumer protection policy.

Many of these analysis are published as staff reports.

2 6

THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
Letters from consumers or businesses, premerger

notification filings, Congressional inquiries or articles on consumer or economic subjects may trigger

FTC action. Generally, FTC investigations are nonpublic to protect both the investigation and the companies involved.

If the FTC believes that a person or company has

violated the law or that a proposed merger may violate

the law, the agency may attempt to obtain voluntary

compliance by entering into a consent order with the

company. A company that signs a consent order need

not admit that it violated the law, but it must agree to

stop the disputed practices outlined in an accompanying complaint or undertake certain obligations to

resolve the anticompetitive aspects of its proposed

merger.

If a consent agreement cannot be reached, the FTC

may issue an administrative complaint or seek

injunctive relief in the federal courts. The FTC’s

administrative complaints initiate a formal proceeding that is much like a federal court trial but before

an administrative law judge: Evidence is submitted,

testimony is heard, and witnesses are examined and

cross-examined. If a law violation is found, a cease

and desist order may be issued. Initial decisions by

administrative law judges may be appealed to the full

Commission.

2 7

HOW THE FTC BRINGS AN ACTION
Final decisions issued by the Commission may be

appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals and, ultimately,

to the U.S. Supreme Court. If the Commission’s position is upheld, the FTC, in certain circumstances,

may then seek consumer redress in court. If the

company ever violates the order, the Commission also

may seek civil penalties or an injunction.

In some circumstances, the FTC can go directly to

court to obtain an injunction, civil penalties or consumer redress. In the merger enforcement arena, the

FTC may seek a preliminary injunction to block a

proposed merger pending a full examination of the

proposed transaction in an administrative proceeding. The injunction preserves the market’s competitive status quo. The FTC seeks federal court

injunctions in consumer protection matters typically

in cases of ongoing consumer fraud. By going

directly to court, the FTC can stop the fraud before

too many consumers are injured.

2 8

THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

DESIGNED BY CONCETTA

SCARAVAGLIONE FOR THE

FTC BUILDING, THIS BAS 

RELIEF SYMBOLIZES 

“AGRICULTURE” BY 

SHOWING TWO FIGURES

BINDING WHEAT.
The Commission also can issue Trade Regulation

Rules. If the FTC staff finds evidence of unfair or

deceptive practices in an entire industry, it can recommend that the Commission begin a rulemaking

proceeding. Throughout the rulemaking proceeding,

the public has opportunities to attend hearings and

file written comments. The Commission considers

these comments along with the entire rulemaking

record – the hearing testimony, the staff reports, and

the Presiding Officer’s report – before making a final

decision on the proposed rule. An FTC rule may be

challenged in any of the U.S. Courts of Appeal. When

issued, these rules have the force of law.

2 9
The FTC’s Regional Offices cover seven geographic areas. The regional offices work with the

Bureaus of Competition and Consumer Protection to

conduct investigations and litigation; provide advice

to state and local officials on the competitive implications of proposed actions; recommend cases; provide

local outreach services to consumers and businesspersons; and coordinate activities with local,

state, and regional authorities. FTC regional offices

frequently sponsor conferences for small businesses,

local authorities, and consumer groups.

The General Counsel is the FTC’s chief legal officer

and adviser. The Office’s major functions are representing the Commission in court and providing legal

counsel to the Commission, bureaus and other

offices.

The Office of Congressional Relations works

closely with members of Congress and their staffs.

The Office informs Commissioners and FTC staff of

Capitol Hill issues and policies, and helps provide

information on legislation of interest to the

Commission. It also coordinates the preparation of

both Congressional testimony and responses to

Congressional inquiries concerning FTC policies and

programs.

The Office of Public Affairs provides information

to the public through the media. It issues news

releases on all significant Commission actions;

responds to reporters’ inquiries; and arranges television, radio and print interviews for FTC officials. The

Office issues a weekly calendar of Commission events

and a weekly summary of press releases.

3 0

THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

FTC OFFICES YOU SHOULD 

KNOW ABOUT
The Secretary is the Commission’s “court clerk,”

responsible for implementing the Commission’s voting procedures, creating official records of its decisions, receiving and serving Commission orders and

other official documents, and coordinating the

preparation of responses to congressional constituent inquiries.

The Executive Director is the FTC’s chief operating

officer and manager, responsible for such matters as

administrative services, financial management, procurement, human resources management, information

and technology management, as well as overall FTC

program and policy execution. The Executive Director

directs the agency’s reauthorization and appropriations efforts, and works closely with the bureaus on

strategic planning and assessing the management and

resource implications of any proposed action.

The Office of Inspector General acts as the

“agency cop” and as such, is responsible for the

detection and prevention of waste, fraud and abuse in

agency programs. The Inspector General conducts

audits and investigates allegations of wrongdoing

within the agency. Persons aware of any staff misconduct are encouraged to call the Office of Inspector

General at 202-326-2800.

3 1
To file a complaint or to get free information on consumer issues, call the Consumer Response Center

toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357), or use

the complaint form at www.ftc.gov. The FTC enters

Internet, telemarketing, identity theft and other

fraud-related complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a

secure, online database available to hundreds of civil

and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S.

and abroad.

Contact the Public Reference Line, 202-326-2222;

TDD: 202-326-2502, for FTC reports, speeches or

testimony, trade regulation rules, and other general

information, or visit www.ftc.gov.

Reporters may call the Office of Public Affairs at

202-326-2180 for assistance.

Contact the Library, 202-326-2395, to use the volumes on legal, economic and business subjects; periodicals; and interlibrary loan service. 

3 2

THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

FOR MORE INFORMATION
FTC HEADQUARTERS

600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW

Washington, D.C. 20580

1-877-FTC-HELP (382-4357)

TDD (202) 326-2502

East Central Region

Federal Trade Commission

Eaton Center, Suite 200

1111 Superior Avenue

Cleveland, OH 44114

216-263-3455

Serves: Delaware, the District of

Columbia, Maryland, Michigan,

Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and

West Virginia

Midwest Region

Federal Trade Commission

55 East Monroe Street, Suite 1860

Chicago, IL 60603

312-960-5634

Serves: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa,

Kansas, Kentucky, Minnesota,

Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota,

South Dakota, and Wisconsin 

Northeast Region

Federal Trade Commission

One Bowling Green, Suite 318

New York, NY 10004

212-607-2829

Serves: Connecticut, Maine,

Massachusetts, New Hampshire,

New Jersey, New York, 

Rhode Island, Vermont, the U.S.

Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico

Northwest Region

Federal Trade Commission

2896 Federal Building

915 Second Avenue

Seattle, WA 98174

206-220-6350

Serves: Alaska, Idaho, Montana,

Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming

Southeast Region

Federal Trade Commission

225 Peachtree Street, NE, 

Suite 1500

Atlanta, GA, 30303

(404) 656-1390

Serves: Alabama, Florida,

Georgia, Mississippi, North

Carolina, South Carolina, and

Tennessee

Southwest Region

Federal Trade Commission

1999 Bryan Street, Suite 2150

Dallas, TX 75201

214-979-9350

Serves: Arkansas, Louisiana, New

Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas

Western Region

Federal Trade Commission

901 Market Street, Suite 570

San Francisco, CA 94103

415-848-5100

and

Federal Trade Commission

10877 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 700

Los Angeles, CA 90024

310-824-4343

Serves: Arizona, California,

Colorado, Hawaii, Nevada, 

and Utah

FTC REGIONAL OFFICES
January 2002