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House Judiciary Committee’s Chairman Looks To Subpoena FTC Over Failure To Provide Records

By  |  April 5, 2023

The House Judiciary Committee’s Chairman, Jim Jordan, has requested documents from the Federal Trade Commission regarding their approach to reviewing company mergers. He has also stated that he may use subpoena powers if the FTC does not comply.

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    n a letter to FTC Chair Lina Khan, a Biden-nominated Democrat who has been a prime target of the GOP due to her aggressive enforcement agenda, Rep. Jim Jordan, R-OH., said the FTC had failed to comply with a March 9 request for information and set a second deadline of April 10 for the agency to respond.

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    Complying with records preservation requests remains a top concern for agency officials as the House Republican majority increases scrutiny of federal government operations. In January, the National Archives widened its digital records retention guidance for agencies to include other forms of electronic messaging such as text messages.

    Related: House Republican Pushes Congress To Enact Legislation To Curb Big Tech

    “Historically, the FTC is among the most responsive agencies when it comes to answering congress’s questions and providing information, so it certainly raises serious concerns when they are being this obstructionist,” Russell Dye, spokesperson for Chairman Jordan told FedScoop.

    Moran is in support of Jordan’s more aggressive steps to obtain documents from the FTC and says the FTC needs to be held accountable for its approach to mergers.

    “The FTC’s current approach to mergers and acquisitions has stifled innovation and left consumers at a disadvantage,” Moran told FedScoop in a statement. “I appreciate my colleagues, Chairman Jim Jordan and Congressman Thomas Massie, for building on our previous efforts to demand transparency for the American people and continuing to press Chairwoman Lina Khan on this important issue.”

    Responding to the missive, Rep. David Cicilline, D-RI, who is the ranking member on the House Judiciary Committee on Antitrust, said the letter was another example of GOP lawmakers seeking to hamper pro-competition work by the FTC.