U.S. Chamber Letter to FTC IG:
The U.S. Chamber requests that the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) investigate whether the FTC is in compliance with (Executive Order 12988 — Civil Justice Reform (EO or Order). Based on public filings and media reports, there is reason to believe that the FTC is failing to comply with the Order's directives that, prior to filing a civil complaint and throughout any litigation, federal agencies should "attempt to achieve a settlement" and "Identify any type of bias on the part of the decision-makers." These concerns constitute the type of "fraud, waste, abuse, misconduct, and mismanagement" that the OIG is charged with investigating: The FTC's apparent failure to comply with EO 12988 may cost taxpayers millions of dollars in litigation expenses and attorney time that could have been avoided via reasonable attempts at settlement, while its failure to resolve bias concerns undermines the agency's law enforcement mission.
In addition, the Chamber asks the OIG to investigate whether the FTC is fulfilling its responsibilities to ensure the confidentiality of nonpublic information, pursuant to the FTC Act, 15.U.S.C. § 50, the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act, 15 USC 18(a)(h), and other statutes. In several instances, there is a concern that agency personnel may have leaked confidential information, or their analyses of confidential information, to the media about ongoing investigations. If this has happened, such disclosures would compromise the integrity of the Agency's processes, unfairly damage the reputations of the subject individual and companies, and arguably violate both federal law and basic notions of procedural fairness and due process. In its semiannual report from earlier this year, OIG itself acknowledged that the FTC has failed to develop a comprehensive strategy for safeguarding nonpublic information and records. Further review is now warranted.
U.S. Chamber Letter to DOJ IG:
The U.S. Chamber requests that the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) investigate whether the Antitrust Division in compliance with (Executive Order 12988 — Civil Justice Reform (EO or Order). Based on public filings and media reports, there is reason to believe that the FTC is failing to comply with the Order's directives that, prior to filing a civil complaint and throughout any litigation, federal agencies should "attempt to achieve a settlement" and "Identify any type of bias on the part of the decision-makers." These concerns constitute the type of "fraud, waste, abuse, misconduct, and mismanagement" that the OIG is charged with investigating: The FTC's apparent failure to comply with EO 12988 may cost taxpayers millions of dollars in litigation expenses and attorney time that could have been avoided via reasonable attempts at settlement, while its failure to resolve bias concerns undermines the agency's law enforcement mission.
