Why It Matters

An upcoming House subcommittee hearing on July 22 will examine legislative proposals to strengthen consumer safeguards, from buy-now-pay-later schemes to subscription trap tactics to the proliferation of counterfeit products sold online. Fraud and deceptive practices are siphoning billions from American wallets, and federal agencies like the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) have lost authority they previously wielded to recover those losses.

The Big Picture

The regulatory landscape has shifted adversely for consumers in recent years. The FTC's monetary relief authority was significantly curtailed by the Supreme Court's 2021 AMG Capital Management v. FTC ruling. That loss prompted Senate lawmakers to introduce the Consumer Protection Remedies Act of 2026, which would fully restore the FTC's authority to obtain monetary relief for consumers under Section 13(b) of the FTC Act.

The landscape of consumer deception has expanded as well. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission launched a crackdown on fake safety labels being used to push dangerous foreign products into U.S. homes through online marketplaces. In response, House members advanced H.R. 2889, the Online Consumer Protection Act, which would require online marketplaces to notify users of recalled or dangerous products and would allow users to report suspected fraud.

Buy-now-pay-later arrangements have become a flashpoint. H.R. 9275, the Buy Now Pay Later Consumer Protection Act of 2026, has been introduced in the 119th Congress to set guardrails around how those services operate. The proposed FTC Click-to-Cancel rule would require that canceling subscriptions be as easy as signing up, addressing a widespread complaint about subscription services.

On July 7, the FTC announced it was sending checks totaling more than 2.7 million dollars to eligible consumers harmed by gig economy company Handy Technologies, which made deceptive claims about how much workers on its platform would earn.

The Bottom Line

Chairmen Brett Guthrie, chair of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, and Gus Bilirakis, chair of the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade, announced the hearing "Legislative Proposals To Strengthen Consumer Protection In A Changing Marketplace." Rep. Kathy Castor is the Ranking Member of the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade.

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