[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2243 Reported in House (RH)]

                                                  Union Calendar No. 76

103d CONGRESS

  1st Session

                               H. R. 2243

                          [Report No. 103-138]

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 To amend the Federal Trade Commission Act to extend the authorization 
         of appropriations in such Act, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                             June 17, 1993

Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union 
                       and ordered to be printed





                                                  Union Calendar No. 76
103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2243

                          [Report No. 103-138]

 To amend the Federal Trade Commission Act to extend the authorization 
         of appropriations in such Act, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 24, 1993

Mr. Swift (for himself and Mr. Dingell) introduced the following bill; 
       which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

                             June 17, 1993

Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union 
                       and ordered to be printed

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Federal Trade Commission Act to extend the authorization 
         of appropriations in such Act, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE, REFERENCE.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Federal Trade 
Commission Act Amendments of 1993''.
    (b) Reference.--Whenever in this Act an amendment or repeal is 
expressed in terms of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other 
provision, the reference shall be considered to be made to a section or 
other provision of the Federal Trade Commission Act.

SEC. 2. EFFECTIVE DATE OF ORDERS.

    Section 5(g) (15 U.S.C. 45(g)) is amended to read as follows:
    ``(g) An order of the Commission to cease and desist shall become 
final as follows:
            ``(1) Upon the expiration of the time allowed for filing a 
        petition under subsection (c) for review if no such petition 
        has been duly filed within such time, except that the 
        Commission may after the order becomes final modify or set it 
        aside to the extent provided in the last sentence of subsection 
        (b).
            ``(2) Except as to any order provision subject to paragraph 
        (4), upon the 60th day after such order is served if a petition 
        under subsection (c) for review has been duly filed, except 
        that any such order may be stayed, in whole or in part and 
        subject to such conditions as may be appropriate, by--
                    ``(A) the Commission,
                    ``(B) an appropriate court of appeals of the United 
                States if (i) a petition for review of such order is 
                pending in such court, and (ii) an application for such 
                a stay was previously submitted to the Commission and 
                the Commission, within the 30-day period beginning on 
                the date the application was received by the 
                Commission, either denied the application or did not 
                grant or deny the application, or
                    ``(C) the Supreme Court if an applicable petition 
                for a writ of certiorari is pending.
            ``(3) For purposes of subsection (m)(1)(B) and section 
        19(a)(2)--
                    ``(A) if a petition under subsection (c) for review 
                of the order of the Commission has been filed and if 
                the order of the Commission has been affirmed or the 
                petition for review has been dismissed by a court of 
                appeals of the United States and no petition for 
                certiorari has been duly filed, upon the expiration of 
                the time allowed for filing a petition to the Supreme 
                Court for a writ of certiorari,
                    ``(B) if a petition under subsection (c) for review 
                of the order of the Commission has been filed and if 
                the order of the Commission has been affirmed or the 
                petition for review has been dismissed by a court of 
                appeals of the United States, upon the denial of a 
                petition for a writ of certiorari, or
                    ``(C) if a petition under subsection (c) for review 
                of the order of the Commission has been filed, upon the 
                expiration of 30 days from the date of issuance of a 
                mandate of the Supreme Court directing that the order 
                of the Commission be affirmed or the petition for 
                review be dismissed.
            ``(4) In the case of an order provision requiring a person, 
        partnership, or corporation to divest itself of stock, other 
        share capital, or assets--
                    ``(A) if a petition under subsection (c) for review 
                of such order of the Commission has been filed and if 
                the order of the Commission has been affirmed or the 
                petition for review has been dismissed by a court of 
                appeals of the United States and no petition for 
                certiorari has been duly filed, upon the expiration of 
                the time allowed for filing a petition to the Supreme 
                Court for a writ of certiorari,
                    ``(B) if a petition under subsection (c) for review 
                of such order of the Commission has been filed and if 
                the order of the Commission has been affirmed or the 
                petition for review has been dismissed by a court of 
                appeals of the United States upon the denial of a 
                petition for a writ of certiorari, or
                    ``(C) if a petition under subsection (c) for review 
                of such order of the Commission has been filed, upon 
                the expiration of 30 days from the date of issuance of 
                a mandate of the Supreme Court directing that the order 
                of the Commission be affirmed or the petition for 
                review be dismissed.''.

SEC. 3. PROCEEDINGS SUBSEQUENT TO VIOLATIONS OF ORDERS.

    (a) Civil Penalties.--Section 5(m)(1)(B) (15 U.S.C. 45(m)(1)(B)) is 
amended by inserting ``, other than a consent order,'' immediately 
after ``order'' the first time it appears.
    (b) Determinations of Law.--Section 5(m)(2) (15 U.S.C. 45(m)(2)) is 
amended by adding at the end the following: ``Upon request of any party 
to such an action against such defendant, the court shall also review 
the determination of law made by the Commission in the proceeding under 
subsection (b) that the act or practice which was the subject of such 
proceeding constituted an unfair or deceptive act or practice in 
violation of subsection (a).''.

SEC. 4. CIVIL INVESTIGATIVE DEMANDS.

    (a) Section 20(a).--Section 20(a) (15 U.S.C. 57b-1(a)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (2), by striking ``unfair or deceptive 
        acts or practices in or affecting commerce (within the meaning 
        of section 5(a)(1))'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``act or 
        practice or method of competition declared unlawful by a law 
        administered by the Commission'';
            (2) in paragraph (3), by striking ``unfair or deceptive 
        acts or practices in or affecting commerce (within the meaning 
        of section 5(a)(1))'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``acts or 
        practices or methods of competition declared unlawful by a law 
        administered by the Commission''; and
            (3) in paragraph (7), by striking ``unfair or deceptive act 
        or practice in or affecting commerce (within the meaning of 
        section 5(a)(1))'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``act or 
        practice or method of competition declared unlawful by a law 
        administered by the Commission''.
    (b) Section 20(c).--Section 20(c)(1) (15 U.S.C. 57b-1(c)) is 
amended by striking ``unfair or deceptive acts or practices in or 
affecting commerce (within the meaning of section 5(a)(1))'' and 
inserting in lieu thereof ``any act or practice or method of 
competition declared unlawful by a law administered by the 
Commission''.
    (c) Section 20(j).--Section 20(j) (15 U.S.C. 57b-1(j)) is amended 
by inserting immediately before the semicolon the following: ``, any 
proceeding under section 11(b) of the Clayton Act, or any adjudicative 
proceeding under any other provision of law''.

SEC. 5. AGRICULTURAL COOPERATIVES.

    The Federal Trade Commission Act is amended by redesignating 
sections 24 and 25 as sections 25 and 26, respectively, and by 
inserting after section 23 the following:
    ``Sec. 24. (a) The Commission shall not have any authority to 
conduct any study, investigation, or prosecution of any agricultural 
cooperative for any conduct which, because of the provisions of the Act 
entitled `An Act to authorize association of producers of agricultural 
products', approved February 18, 1922 (7 U.S.C. 291 et seq., commonly 
known as the Capper-Volstead Act), is not a violation of any of the 
antitrust Acts or this Act.
    ``(b) The Commission shall not have any authority to conduct any 
study or investigation of any agricultural marketing orders.''.

SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    Section 25 (15 U.S.C. 57c) (as so redesignated by section 5) is 
amended to read as follows:
    ``Sec. 25. To carry out the functions, powers, and duties of the 
Commission there are authorized to be appropriated $88,000,000 for 
fiscal year 1993, $92,000,000 for fiscal year 1994, and $99,000,000 for 
fiscal year 1995.''.

SEC. 7. ACTION OF COMMISSION RESPECTING CERTAIN PROCEEDINGS.

    (a) In General.--The Federal Trade Commission shall not have any 
authority to use any funds which are authorized under section 25 to be 
appropriated to carry out the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 
41 et seq.) for fiscal years 1993, 1994, or 1995 for the purpose of 
submitting statements to, appearing before, or intervening in the 
proceedings of, any Federal or State agency unless the Commission 
notifies the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate of such action as soon as possible.
    (b) Notice.--The notice required by subsection (a) with respect to 
Federal Trade Commission action shall include--
            (1) the name of the agency involved,
            (2) the date of such action, and
            (3) a concise statement regarding the nature and purpose of 
        such action.

SEC. 8. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    (a) In General.--Except as provided in subsections (b) and (c), the 
amendments made by this Act and this Act shall take effect on the date 
of enactment of this Act.
    (b) Section 2.--
            (1) In general.--The amendment made by section 2 shall 
        apply only with respect to cease and desist orders issued under 
        section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 45) 
        after the date of enactment of this Act.
            (2) Construction.--The amendment made by section 2 shall 
        not be construed to affect in any manner a cease and desist 
        order which was issued before the date of enactment of this 
        Act. Such amendment shall not be construed to affect in any 
        manner a cease and desist order issued after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, if such order was issued pursuant to 
        remand from a court of appeals or the Supreme Court of an order 
        issued by the Federal Trade Commission before the date of 
        enactment of this Act.
    (c) Section 4.--The amendments made by section 4 shall apply only 
with respect to compulsory process issued after the date of enactment 
of this Act.