US Chamber Of Commerce Says FTC Is Overstepping Authority

The US Chamber of Commerce is challenging Federal Trade Commission Chairwoman Lina Khan, contending in a series of letters that she is overstepping the agency’s legal authority, reported The Wall Street Journal. 

In three letters to the FTC dated Friday, the Chamber cited potential breaches of administrative procedure that it said could be open to legal challenge. It also was set to file more than 30 requests with the FTC under the Freedom of Information Act, seeking documents that could include Ms. Khan’s personal communications and those of her staff.

The letters and records requests, which were reviewed by The Wall Street Journal, represent what Chamber leaders described as a rare public challenge to a regulatory agency that is still in the early months of new leadership.

“It feels to the business community that the FTC has gone to war against us, and we have to go to war back,” Suzanne Clark, the chamber’s president and chief executive, said in an interview.

“The FTC just announced we are ramping up efforts to combat corporate crime, and now the Chamber declares ‘war’ on the agency,” said FTC spokeswoman Lindsay Kryzak, referring to steps announced Thursday to facilitate criminal prosecutions of corporate defendants. “We are not going to back down because corporate lobbyists are making threats. We will continue to do our job and stand up for consumers, honest businesses, workers and entrepreneurs who deserve a fair marketplace,” she said.

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