Federal Trade Commission 2005 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents
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Premerger Notification; Reporting and Waiting Period Requirements
This final rule amends 16 CFR part 801 and part 803, Appendix, the Antitrust Improvements Act Notification and Report Form for Certain Mergers and Acquisitions (the ``Form''). The Form must be completed and submitted by persons required to report mergers and acquisitions pursuant to Section 7A of the Clayton Act, as added by Title II of the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, as amended. The revised Form requires that 2002 revenue data, identified by the 2002 North American Industry Classification System (``NAICS''), be provided in response to certain items on the Form.
Notice of Intent To Request Public Comments
As part of its ongoing systematic review of all Federal Trade Commission rules and guides, the Commission gives notice that, during 2006, it intends to request public comments on the rules and guides listed below. The Commission will request comments on, among other things, the economic impact of, and the continuing need for, the rules and guides; possible conflict between the rules and guides and state, local, or other federal laws or regulations; and the effect on the rules and guides of any technological, economic, or other industry changes. No Commission determination on the need for or the substance of the rules and guides should be inferred from the notice of intent to publish requests for comments. In addition, the Commission announces a revised 10-year regulatory review schedule.
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request
The information collection requirements described below will be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (``OMB'') for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act (``PRA'') (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520). The FTC is seeking public comments on its proposal to extend through December 31, 2008 the current PRA clearances for information collection requirements contained in four product labeling rules enforced by the Commission. Those clearances expire on December 31, 2005.
Charges for Certain Disclosures
The Federal Trade Commission announces that the ceiling on allowable charges under section 612(f) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (``FCRA'') will increase from $9.50 to $10.00 on January 1, 2006. Under 1996 amendments to the FCRA, the Federal Trade Commission is required to increase the $8.00 amount referred to in paragraph (1)(A)(i) of section 612(f) on January 1 of each year, based proportionally on changes in the Consumer Price Index (``CPI''), with fractional changes rounded to the nearest fifty cents. The CPI increased 23.33 percent between September 1997, the date the FCRA amendments took effect, and September 2005. This increase in the CPI and the requirement that any increase be rounded to the nearest fifty cents results in an increase in the current maximum allowable charge to $10.00 effective January 1, 2006.
Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request; Extension
The information collection requirements described below will be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (``OMB'') for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act (``PRA'') (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520). The FTC is seeking public comments on its proposal to extend through November 30, 2008, the current PRA clearance for information collection requirements contained in its regulations under the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act, 15 U.S.C. 1451-1461 (``FPLA''). On October 14, 2005, the OMB granted the FTC's request for a short-term extension of this clearance to December 30, 2005.
DSW, Inc.; Analysis of Proposed Consent Order To Aid Public Comment
The consent agreement in this matter settles alleged violations of Federal law prohibiting unfair or deceptive acts or practices or unfair methods of competition. The attached Analysis to Aid Public Comment describes both the allegations in the draft complaint and the terms of the consent orderembodied in the consent agreementthat would settle these allegations.
Premerger Notification; Reporting and Waiting Period Requirements
The Federal Trade Commission is amending the premerger notification rules, which require the parties to certain mergers or acquisitions to file reports with the Commission and with the Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice (``DOJ'') and to wait a specified period of time before consummating such transactions, pursuant to Section 7A of the Clayton Act (``the Act''). The filing and waiting period requirements enable these enforcement agencies to determine whether a proposed merger or acquisition may violate the antitrust laws if consummated and, when appropriate, to seek a preliminary injunction in Federal court to prevent consummation. If either agency determines during the waiting period that further inquiry is necessary, it can issue a Request for Additional Information and Documentary Materials (``second request''), which extends the waiting period for a specified period after all parties have complied with the request (or, in the case of a tender offer or a bankruptcy sale, after the acquiring person complies). The Commission is amending the Notification and Report Form and its Instructions (``the Form and Instructions'') to relieve some of the burden when complying with Items 4(a) and (b). Currently, paper copies of annual reports, annual audit reports and regularly prepared balance sheets and copies of certain documents, such as 10Ks filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (``SEC''), must be provided in response to these Items. The modification of paragraph 803.2(e) will allow filing persons to provide an operative Internet address linking directly to the documents required by Items 4(a) and (b) in lieu of providing paper copies. The Commission is also amending the rules to specify that an acquiring person's notification, and an acquired person's notification in certain types of transactions, shall expire after eighteen months if a second request to either person remains outstanding. In addition, the Commission is making technical corrections to certain rules and to the Form and Instructions to address minor oversights in the final rules promulgated in connection with the treatment of unincorporated entities.\1\
Rules and Regulations Under the Textile Fiber Products Identification Act
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC or Commission) amends the Rules and Regulations under the Textile Fiber Products Identification Act (Textile Rules) pursuant to the Miscellaneous Trade and Technical Corrections Act of 2004, enacted December 3, 2004. That Act imposes specific requirements for the disclosure of country of origin of socks included within certain Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheadings. For the affected socks, the country of origin label must be on the front of the package, adjacent to the size designation. The amendments announced herein conform the Textile Rules to the amended Textile Fiber Products Identification Act (Textile Act). Because the amendments are technical in nature and merely incorporate the statutory change, the Commission finds that notice and comment are not required. See 5 U.S.C. 553(b). For this reason, the requirements of the Regulatory Flexibility Act also do not apply. See 5 U.S.C. 603, 604.
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request
The FTC intends to survey consumers to advance its understanding of the incidence of identity theft (``ID Theft'') and to allow the FTC to better serve the people who experience ID Theft and the law enforcement agencies that investigate and prosecute it. The survey is a follow-up to the FTC's ID Theft Survey conducted in March 2003 and released in September 2003. Before gathering this information, the FTC is seeking public comments on its proposed consumer research. The information collection requirements described below will be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (``OMB'') for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act (``PRA'') (44 U.S.C. 3501- 3520).
Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request; Extension
The FTC has submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (``OMB'') for review under the Paperwork Reduction Act (``PRA'') information collection requirements contained in its Automotive Fuel Ratings, Certification and Posting Rule (``Fuel Rating Rule'' or ``Rule''). The FTC is seeking public comments on the proposal to extend through December 31, 2008 the current PRA clearance for information collection requirements contained in the regulations. That clearance expires on December 31, 2005.
Johnson & Johnson; Analysis of Agreement Containing Consent Order To Aid Public Comment
The consent agreement in this matter settles alleged violations of federal law prohibiting unfair or deceptive acts or practices or unfair methods of competition. The attached Analysis to Aid Public Comment describes both the allegations in the draft complaint and the terms of the consent orderembodied in the consent agreementthat would settle these allegations.
Consent Agreement Settlements; Corrections
The Federal Trade Commission published a document in the Federal Register on April 3, 2001 (66 FR 17622), that, inter alia, revised Sec. 3.25(c) of the Commission Rules of Practice by adding a new sentence, and by adding a new clause to an existing sentence, and made those revisions effective on May 18, 2001. The Commission subsequently published a document in the Federal Register on December 12, 2001 (66 FR 64142), that, inter alia, further revised Sec. 3.25(c), and made those revisions effective on December 12, 2001. Inadvertently, however, the December 12, 2001 document did not include in its depiction of Sec. 3.25(c), as revised, the new sentence and new clause added by the April 3, 2001 document. This document corrects Sec. 3.25(c) by re-adding the new sentence and the new clause originally added by the April 3, 2001 document.
Rule Concerning Disclosures Regarding Energy Consumption and Water Use of Certain Home Appliances and Other Products Required Under the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (“Appliance Labeling Rule”)
Section 137 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 requires the Commission to conduct a rulemaking to examine the effectiveness of current energy efficiency labeling requirements for consumer products issued pursuant to the Energy Policy and Conservation Act. In response to that directive, the Commission is seeking comments on the effectiveness of the Appliance Labeling Rule and suggestions for improvements to the energy labeling program. The Commission is also requesting comments about the overall costs and benefits of the Rule and its overall regulatory and economic impact as a part of the Commission's systematic review of all its regulations and guides.
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request
The information collection described below will be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520). The FTC proposes to issue compulsory process orders to the largest cigarette manufacturers and smokeless tobacco manufacturers in order to obtain information from those companies concerning, inter alia, their sales and marketing expenditures.
Rule Concerning Disclosures Regarding Energy Consumption and Water Use of Certain Home Appliances and Other Products Required Under the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (“Appliance Labeling Rule”)
The Federal Trade Commission (``Commission'') amends its Appliance Labeling Rule (``Rule'') by publishing new ranges of comparability for required labels on central air conditioners, heat pumps, and compact dishwashers. The Commission also announces that the current ranges of comparability for standard dishwashers will remain in effect until further notice.
DaVita, Inc.; Analysis of Agreement Containing Consent Orders To Aid Public Comment
The consent agreement in this matter settles alleged violations of Federal law prohibiting unfair or deceptive acts or practices or unfair methods of competition. The attached Analysis to Aid Public Comment describes both the allegations in the draft complaint and the terms of the consent orderembodied in the consent agreementthat would settle these allegations.
The Procter & Gamble Company and The Gillette Company; Analysis of Agreement Containing Consent Orders to Aid Public Comment
The consent agreement in this matter settles alleged violations of federal law prohibiting unfair or deceptive acts or practices or unfair methods of competition. The attached Analysis to Aid Public Comment describes both the allegations in the draft complaint and the terms of the consent orderembodied in the consent agreementthat would settle these allegations.
Superior Mortgage Corporation; Analysis of Proposed Consent Order To Aid Public Comment
The consent agreement in this matter settles alleged violations of Federal law prohibiting unfair or deceptive acts or practices or unfair methods of competition. The attached Analysis to Aid Public Comment describes both the allegations in the draft complaint and the terms of the consent orderembodied in the consent agreementthat would settle these allegations.
Guides for the Jewelry, Precious Metals, and Pewter Industries
On July 6, 2005, the Federal Trade Commission (``FTC'' or ``Commission'') requested public comments on whether the platinum section of the FTC's Guides for the Jewelry, Precious Metals, and Pewter Industries (``Jewelry Guides''), 16 CFR 23, should be amended. The Commission solicited comments until September 28, 2005. In response to a request from the Appraisal Information NetWork (``AI NetWork''), the Commission grants an extension of the comment period until October 12, 2005.
SES Performance Review Board
Notice is hereby given of the appointment of members to the FTC Performance Review Board.
Agency Information Collection Activities: Reinstatement of Existing Collection; Comment Request
The Federal Trade Commission (``FTC'' or ``Commission'') intends to conduct a survey of parents who have one or more children, age 11-16 years, who play video or personal computer games. The FTC will also survey children, between the ages of 11 and 16, who play video or personal computer games. The surveys are a follow up to the Commission's surveys conducted in 2000 on consumers' use of and familiarity with the Entertainment Software Rating Board (``ESRB'') rating system. Before gathering this information, the FTC is seeking public comments on its proposed consumer research. Comments will be considered before the FTC submits a request for Office of Management and Budget (``OMB'') review under the Paperwork Reduction Act (``PRA''), 44 U.S.C. 3501-3520.
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request
The information collection requirements described below will be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (``OMB'') for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act (``PRA'') (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520). The FTC is seeking public comments on its proposal to extend through January 31, 2009 the current PRA clearances for information collection requirements contained in four consumer financial regulations enforced by the Commission. Those clearances expire on January 31, 2006.
Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request; Extension
The information collection requirements described below will be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (``OMB'') for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act (``PRA'') (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520). The FTC is seeking public comments on its proposal to extend through December 31, 2008 the current PRA clearances for information collection requirements contained in four product labeling rules enforced by the Commission. Those clearances expire on December 31, 2005.
Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request; Extension
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is seeking public comments on its proposal to extend through November 30, 2008, the current Paperwork Reduction Act (``PRA'') clearance for information collection requirements contained in its regulations under the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act, 15 U.S.C. 1451-1461 (``FPLA''). That clearance expires on November 30, 2005.
Quorums
The Federal Trade Commission is amending Sec. 4.14(b) of its Rules of Practice to provide that the number of Commissioners needed for a quorum will be a majority of those sitting and not recused in a matter.
Public Workshop: Competition Policy and the Real Estate Industry
The FTC and DOJ are planning to host a public workshop, ``Competition Policy and the Real Estate Industry.'' The workshop will focus on issues related to the competitiveness of the residential real estate industry, and will cover topics such as multiple listing services (``MLSs''), online ``virtual office Web sites'' (``VOWs''), discount brokers and limited-service brokers, and minimum-service requirements. The event is open to the public and there is no fee for attendance. For admittance to the conference center, all attendees will be required to show a valid form of photo identification, such as a driver's license. The FTC will accept pre-registration for this workshop. Pre- registration is not necessary to attend, but is encouraged so that we may better plan this event. To pre-register, please e-mail your name and affiliation to the e-mail box for the workshop, at CompetitionandRealEstate@ftc.gov. When you pre-register, we collect your name, affiliation, and your e-mail address. This information will be used to estimate how many people will attend and better understand the likely audience for the workshop. We may use your email address to contact you with information about the workshop. Under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) or other laws, we may be required to disclose the information you provide us to outside organizations. For additional information, including routine uses permitted by the Privacy Act, see the Commission's Privacy Policy at www.ftc.gov/ftc/privacy.htm. The FTC Act and other laws the Commission administers permit the collection of this contact information to consider and use for the above purposes. Additional information about the workshop will be posted on the FTC and DOJ Web sites at https://www.ftc.gov/opp/workshops/comprealestate/ index.htm and www.usdoj.gov/atr/public/workshops/reworkshop.htm.
Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request; Extension
The information collection requirements described below will be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (``OMB'') for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act (``PRA'') (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520). The FTC is seeking public comments on its proposal to extend through August 31, 2008, the current Paperwork Reduction Act clearances for information collection requirements contained in four Commission rules and one clearance covering the Commission's administrative activities. Those clearances expire on August 31, 2005.
Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request; Extension
The FTC is seeking public comments on its proposal to extend through December 31, 2008 the current Paperwork Reduction Act (``PRA'') clearance for information collection requirements contained in its Fuel Rating Rule (``Rule''). That clearance expires on December 31, 2005.
Agency Information Collection Activities; Reinstatement of Existing Collection; Comment Request
The FTC intends to conduct a survey of consumers to advance its understanding of the incidence of identity theft (``ID Theft'') and to allow the FTC to better serve the people who experience it and the law enforcement agencies that investigate and prosecute it. The survey is a follow-up to the FTC's ID Theft Survey conducted in March 2003 and released in September 2003. Before gathering this information, the FTC is seeking public comments on its proposed consumer research. Comments will be considered before the FTC submits a request for Office of Management and Budget (OMB) review under the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA), 44 U.S.C. 3501-3520.
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request
The information collection requirements described below are being submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (``OMB'') for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act (``PRA''). The Federal Trade Commission (``FTC'' or ``Commission'') is seeking public comments on its proposal to conduct a survey of consumers to advance its understanding of the incidence of consumer fraud and to allow the FTC to better serve people who experience fraud. The survey is a follow-up to the FTC's Consumer Fraud Survey conducted in 2003 and released in August 2004.
Premerger Notification; Reporting and Waiting Period Requirements
The Commission is proposing amendments to the premerger notification rules (``the rules'') to enable filing parties to provide Internet links to certain documents in lieu of paper copies, and to address ``stale filing'' situations, in which parties make premerger notification filings but then fail to comply with a Request for Additional Information and Documentary Material (``second request''). Section 7A of the Clayton Act (``the Act'') requires the parties to certain mergers and acquisitions to file notification with the Federal Trade Commission (``the Commission'' or ``FTC'') and the Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice (``the Assistant Attorney General'' or ``DOJ'') and to wait a specified period of time before consummating such transactions. The reporting and waiting period requirements are intended to enable these enforcement agencies to determine whether a proposed merger or acquisition may violate the antitrust laws if consummated and, when appropriate, to seek a preliminary injunction in Federal court to prevent consummation. If either agency determines during the waiting period that further inquiry is necessary, it can issue a second request, which extends the waiting period for a specified period after all parties have complied with the request (or, in the case of a tender offer or a bankruptcy sale, after the acquiring person complies). The Commission is proposing a change to relieve the burden of complying with Items 4(a) and (b) of the Notification and Report Form (``the Form''). Currently, paper copies of annual reports, annual audit reports and regularly prepared balance sheets and copies of certain documents, such as 10Ks filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (``SEC''), must be provided in response to these Items. The proposed modification would allow filing persons to provide an Internet address linking directly to the documents required by Items 4(a) and (b) in lieu of providing paper copies. The Commission is also proposing an amendment to the rules to specify that an acquiring person's notification, and an acquired person's notification in certain types of transactions, shall expire after eighteen months if a second request to them remains outstanding.
Partners Health Network, Inc.; Analysis of Agreement Containing Consent Order To Aid Public Comment
The consent agreement in this matter settles alleged violations of Federal law prohibiting unfair or deceptive acts or practices or unfair methods of competition. The attached Analysis to Aid Public Comment describes both the allegations in the draft complaint and the terms of the consent orderembodied in the consent agreementthat would settle these allegations.
Penn National Gaming, Inc.; Analysis of Proposed Consent Order To Aid Public Comment
The consent agreement in this matter settles alleged violations of Federal law prohibiting unfair or deceptive acts or practices or unfair methods of competition. The attached Analysis to Aid Public Comment describes both the allegations in the draft complaint and the terms of the consent orderembodied in the consent agreementthat would settle these allegations.
Advertising.com, Inc., and John Ferber; Analysis of Proposed Consent Order To Aid Public Comment
The consent agreement in this matter settles alleged violations of Federal law prohibiting unfair or deceptive acts or practices or unfair methods of competition. The attached Analysis to Aid Public Comment describes both the allegations in the draft complaint and the terms of the consent orderembodied in the consent agreementthat would settle these allegations.
Public Workshop: Marketing, Self-Regulation & Childhood Obesity
Due to requests for additional time to prepare more comprehensive comments in response to the issues that were addressed by the public workshop, an amendment is being issued to the Notice Announcing Public Workshop: Marketing, Self-Regulation & Childhood Obesity to extend the time period during which persons may submit written comments on the workshop until August 12, 2005.
Telemarketing Sales Rule Fees
The Federal Trade Commission (the ``Commission'' or ``FTC'') is issuing this Final Rule to amend the FTC's Telemarketing Sales Rule (``TSR'') by revising the fees charged to entities accessing the National Do Not Call Registry (``the Registry'').
Privacy Act of 1974; New Routine Uses
The FTC proposes to revise an existing system of records titled ``Inspector General Investigative FilesFTC'' to comply with requirements established by the Homeland Security Act of 2002. The major change to the system is the addition of new routine uses to allow the disclosure of information to authorized officials within the President's Council on Integrity and Efficiency (PCIE) and the Executive Council on Integrity and Efficiency (ECIE), who are charged with the responsibility for conducting qualitative assessment reviews of investigative operations for the purpose of reporting to the President and Congress on the activities of the OIG.
Novartis AG; Analysis of Agreement Containing Consent Order To Aid Public Comment
The consent agreement in this matter settles alleged violations of Federal law prohibiting unfair or deceptive acts or practices or unfair methods of competition. The attached Analysis to Aid Public Comment describes both the allegations in the draft complaint and the terms of the consent orderembodied in the consent agreementthat would settle these allegations.
Cytodyne, LLC, Evergood Products Corp., and Melvin Rich; Analysis of Agreement Containing Consent Order to Aid Public Comment
The consent agreement in this matter settles alleged violations of Federal law prohibiting unfair or deceptive acts or practices or unfair methods of competition. The attached Analysis to Aid Public Comment describes both the allegations in the draft complaint and the terms of the consent orderembodied in the consent agreementthat would settle these allegations.
Guides for the Jewelry, Precious Metals, and Pewter Industries
The Commission is seeking comment on whether the platinum section of the FTC's Guides for the Jewelry, Precious Metals, and Pewter Industries, 16 CFR part 23, should be amended to provide guidance on how to mark or describe non-deceptively products containing between 500 and 850 parts per thousand pure platinum and no other platinum group metals.
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