Contrary to Chairman Miller's apparent concern, I am not making this report public. However, I would urge you to do so. As you will see, the references to internal documents contained in the report in no way jeopardize pending cases or reveal confidential commercial information. The only references to non-public matters concern closed cases, matters buried indefinitely by the current majority, or information already made public. In a few cases, references are made to staff reasoning on pending matters but the company itself is not identified. The report does show how the Miller Commission has distorted the law, refused to take action when it should have, and misled the public. Despite my confidence that no legitimate confidentiality concern is breached by releasing the entire report, I will be happy to revise it if you feel that some information should not be disclosed. There is one final point which I believe the report fails adequately to emphasize that the recent record of the Federal Trade Commission and the other regulatory agencies you oversee, as dismal as they are, would have been far more reprehensible if you and your Committee had not stood during these four long and painful years, as a bulwark against defiance and neglect of the laws Congress has enacted. With warmest regards, MICHAEL PERTSCHUK, Commissioner. LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, SUBCOMMITTEE ON OVERSIGHT AND INVESTIGATIONS To Members, Committee on Energy and Commerce: Pursuant to its responsibilities under rules X and XI of the House of Representatives to review the adequacy of implementation of the laws within the jurisdiction of the committee, the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations conducts a vigorous and continuous oversight into the performance of the Federal Trade Commission. As one part of this continuing review, Commissioner, and former Chairman, Michael Pertschuk was requested by letter of November 2, 1983, to report on the performance of the agency during his 7-year term of office which expires September 25, 1984. The subcommittee received a formal report from Commissioner Pertschuk on August 8, 1984. Shortly thereafter, by letter of August 13, 1984, Chairman James Miller and Commissioners Patricia Bailey, George Douglas, and Terry Calvani were requested to provide comments to the subcommittee on the weight and credibility of Commissioner Pertschuk's conclusions and the adequacy of the substantiation adduced to support them. The Commission members were also advised that the subcommittee recognized that the report contained references to nonpublic material, and they were invited to provide comments to the subcommittee concerning the appropriate treatment of these references, assuming that the subcommittee would release the report to the public. The subcommittee has determined that Commissioner Pertschuk's report and the comments on it received from Chairman Miller and Commissioners Bailey, Douglas, and Calvani should be made available to the public. In taking this action, the subcommittee expressly declines any endorsement of the report or its conclusions, or of the comments from the other Commission members. Our purpose in releasing these materials is to provide the committee, the Congress, and the public with firsthand information from varying perspectives on the functioning of an important agency of the Federal Government. These documents will serve as a tool for oversight of the Federal Trade Commission not only by the Congress but by the public as well. They are also decidedly pertinent to our regrettably protracted consideration of the agency's reauthorization, as they address issues of the agency's functioning under its existing statutory mandate and areas where Congress could consider modifications. We emphasize that the subcommittee has made public only the materials contained here. We have not made public underlying materials referenced in these documents, and we are not asking the Commission to do so. We do not consider the Commission to have waived its right to withhold any document from release to any third party pursuant to its rules implementing the Freedom of Information Act or upon any other appropriate basis. In fact, the Commission has opposed release by the subcommittee of any information in the Pertschuk report considered nonpublic under its rules. In reviewing the nonpublic references in Commissioner Pertschuk's report, we have applied three standards to accommodate legitimate concerns over harm from the release of nonpublic information with our desire to achieve the objectives discussed above. The standards applied were: (a) prevent prejudice to ongoing Commission law enforcement and regulatory activity; (b) protect Commission career staff from unnecessary tension and pressure resulting from their identification as the source of argument or recommendation; and (c) protect third parties from unfair prejudice through revelation of nonpublic investigations that were not pursued by the Commission or its staff. It is our considered belief that the airing of these divergent views on the performance of the Federal Trade Commission serves an important public purpose. An informed citizenry is an intelligent citizenry, and each interested member of the public should have the opportunity to hear both sides and decide accordingly. Sincerely, JOHN D. DINGELL, Chairman, Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations. I. Introduction and overview__. II. The Reagan administration assault on the FTC_ E. Other legislative proposals_ B. Overall enforcement levels. J. Antitrust reporting programs-- 1. The Grocery merger reporting program_ 2. The dairy merger reporting program_ 3. Report on mergers and acquisitions__ IV. Consumer protection enforcement-- 1. Miller's review of the ad substantiation program_-- 2. Relaxation of substantiation D. The FTC and State attorney general. F. The FTC and open government--- G. Abandoning established procedures. VIII. The once and future FTC__ |