Consumer Issues Objective 5.01C Students will understand consumer protection agencies.

1. Consumer IssuesObjective 5.01CStudents will understand consumer protection agencies. Rights of consumers were first identified by President John F. Kennedy in a message to Congress in 1962. Later presidents have added additional rights to this “Consumer Bill of Rights.” Activist against corporate carelessness and greed, Ralph Nader brought attention to products that were not safe for consumers. He gained national attention in 1965 with his book, “Unsafe at Any Speed”. Known as “Father of the Consumer Movement”

2. What Laws Protect Consumers? • Brainstorm with a partner.

3. Federal Laws/Agencies That Protect • Clayton Antitrust Act • Clean Air Act • Clean Water Act • CPSA-Consumer Product Safety Act • EEOC-Equal Employment Opportunity Commission • EPA- Environmental Protection Agency • FCC- Federal Communications Commission • FDA – Food and Drug Administration • FLSA – Fair Labor Standards Act • FPLA -Fair Packaging & Labeling Act • FTC -Federal Trade Commission • ICC -Interstate Commerce Commission • NLRB - National Labor Relations Board • OSHA - Occupational Safety and Health Administration • Patent and Trademark Office • Robinson-Patman Act • IRS -Internal Revenue Service • TILA - Truth in Lending Act • UCC –Uniform Commercial Code • USDA - United States Dept of Agriculture • USPS – United States Postal Service

4. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) http://ftc.gov/ • Prohibits deceptive and unfair trade practices among businesses • Very broad act that created numerous laws and agencies to regulate special areas • Have you ever been deceived? • Key concept: FAIR TRADE PRACTICES • ADVOCATE for every US consumer

5. What are Unfair and Deceptive Trade Practices? Includes: • Price fixing on goods/services • Deceptive prices on service contracts • Door-to-Door Sales • Fraudulent Misrepresentation • Telemarketing Fraud • Work at home schemes • Illegal Lotteries • Scams • Gambling

6. Antitrust Laws • Purpose: • To foster competition and fair trade • To eliminate restraint of trade caused by • Monopolies • Price fixing • Price discrimination • Q: Are all monopolies a bad thing for consumers? • Q: Why are some monopolies, such as utility companies, legal?

7. Antitrust Acts Sherman Antitrust Act - 1890 • First antitrust law • Evolved from the “Robber Baron” historical period Clayton Antitrust Act - 1914 Clarifies laws, adds penalties for monopolies, fair trade, price fixing and price discrimination Robinson-Patman Act-1936 • Protects small businesses from price discrimination

8. United States Postal Service (USPS) https://www.usps.com/ • Established to provide a federal system of mail • Protects consumers from mail fraud* with federal USPS regulations * Example: chain letters

9. Federal Communications Commission http://www.fcc.gov/ • Licenses and regulates the operation of airwaves that are utilized in: • Television • Radio • Telephone • Telegraph Policies banning nudity, expletives and other indecent content on broadcast radio and television Ex: Janet Jackson 2004 Super bowl Expose

10. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) • Responsible for environmental protection • Governs the environmental laws for air, water, solid waste, toxic substances, pesticides, and noise pollution Boston’s “Green” Project http://www.epa.gov

11. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) • Manages all federal antipollution programs • Handles air, solid waste, toxic substances, and pesticides • Sets guidelines for program • Monitors programs • Establishes grants to help eliminate pollution • Researches and sets national standards for programs • Issues permits Standards for Lead in Paint Record Setting 300 +mpg

12. Clean Water Act Purpose: Protects water quality • Regulates water quality standards for rivers, lakes, streams, and oceans • Helps to reduce pollution in waterways, rivers, oceans, wetlands, wastewater treatment plants, and controls runoff pollution • Protects the water for swimming, fish, shell fish, and wildlife in water

13. Clean Air Act • Established to protect public health and the environment • Created by the US EPA to authorize the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) to assist in the creations of law to protect the atmospheric environment • Sets quality standards for factories and auto emissions • Handles problems such as acid rain, ground-level ozone, smog, and air toxins • Weather channel gives air quality info daily- “air particulates”

14. Toxic Substance Control Act • Tracks industrial chemicals produced and imported into the US • Governed by EPA • Screens, tests, and reports chemicals that pose a threat to the environment • EPA can prohibit the manufacture or import of chemicals thought to be hazardous

15. Labor Laws Fair Labor Standards Act: • Restricts child labor • Identifies dangerous jobs • Minimum wage • Time and a half overtime Equal Pay Act: equal pay for equal work • Social Security: • Contributions by employee and employer for benefits • Worker’s Compensation Act: • provides income or health care • if illness caused by job or injured on the job

16. Labor Laws Link: Civil Rights Act and the EEOC Civil Rights Act of 1964: • Prohibits discrimination in employment practices • Complain to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)

17. Laws Protecting Debtors • Set maximum interest rates • Usury- state laws that regulate the maximum interest rate legally chargeable to consumers Truth in Lending Act • Requires full disclosure of interest and finance charges over life of loan • Limits chargeable items on lost/stolen credit cards to $50

18. Laws Protecting Debtors Equal Credit Opportunity Act When applying for credit, decisions must be made on: *Ability to repay, based on evaluation of application, including: Income, current debt obligations, credit rating, dependents *Cannot legally discriminate based on gender, age, ethnicity, or religion *Acceptance and rejection • Based on income, current debts, or poor credit record • If denied, applicant may request reasons in writing

19. Product Liability http://www.cpsc.gov/ • Consumer Product Safety Act of 1972 • Created the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) • Sets product standards for hazardous products • Requires manufacturer or seller to test quality and reliability before marketing product • Can require recall, repair, replacement or refunding of the purchase price, of unsafe products • Examples: • Children’s toys with dangerous parts • Defective vehicle tires that cause accidents

20. Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act • Created the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) • Passed in 1903 after President Teddy Roosevelt read “The Jungle” by Upton Sinclair • Prohibits adulteration or mislabelingof foods, drugs or cosmetics • Creates standards for packaged foods, drugs and cosmetics • Approves new pharmaceuticals (prescription drugs) http://www.fda.gov/

21. Food and Drug Administration • FDA regulates packaged Food, Drugs, Cosmetics including: • Inspecting production facilities for cleanliness • Setting standards of purity and quality • Approving ingredient lists as to fitness for human consumption or use • Requiring labeling with manufacturer, packager, distributor, weight & nutritional information to assist consumer in informed decision making

22. Food and Drug Administration • FDA discourages the sale of harmful products through: • Imposing high taxes. • Issuing label or package warning. • Prohibiting the sale of the product. • Examples: tobacco, alcohol, saccharin, red food dye • Can you name other examples?

23. United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) • Regulates • preparation and sale of fresh produce, meats and dairy products • Inspects • canners, packers and processors and distributors for sanitary conditions and handling • Inspects • products to ensure freedom from disease and fit for human consumption http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/usda/usdahome

24. What could you do with 90 Gatorade bottles? National Energy Conservation Policy Act - How can we be more efficient?

25. Weights and Measures Division of the National Institute of Standards • Promotes uniformity in weights and measures laws, regulations, and standards • Allows consumers to make comparison shopping decisions such as unit pricing • Examples: gas pumps, dispensing of pharmaceuticals, measurement by nurses, food weights and measurements http://www.nist.gov/index.html

26. Division of Weights and Measures • The correct way to weigh yourself: • “I can't believe I was doing it wrong all these years.WE MUST SPREAD THE WORD!”

27. Better Business Bureau (BBB) • A private, non-government agency available at local and state levels • Logs complaints from consumers • Passes complaint information to businesses that are members, frequently resolving issue • Makes complaints available for public viewing • Tries to steer consumers to reliable businesses that conduct business ethically http://nwnc.bbb.org/