Security breaches, privacy violations and numerous scandals have done little to diminish the power of Big Tech companies like Facebook and Google. Federal institutions meant to punish these companies and protect the American people have failed. It is hard for companies with immense wealth and power to feel compelled to change when they receive little more than a slap on the wrist for wrongdoing.
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) wants this to change. He has stepped forward with a proposal of meaningful reform, a plan to reshape the Federal Trade Commission into an entity with serious teeth.
The FTC has taken fire from both sides of the political aisle for its inability to mete out meaningful penalties to tech companies caught illegally sharing user data or lying to the public. The agency has also found itself squabbling with the Department of Justice, as neither party has been sure who has jurisdiction when investigating Big Tech.
Hawley has said the FTC is “poorly designed,” as its current structure limits the opportunity for improvement. And so the Missouri senator has proposed remaking the agency from the ground up.
Hawley’s plan would make the FTC a branch of the DOJ, ending the turf war between the two agencies. This overhaul would streamline federal investigations of tech companies. Responsibilities would be clearly delineated. The FTC would focus primarily on privacy and data violations, while the DOJ would review mergers and acquisitions for potential antitrust issues.
The FTC would also be given the ability to better enforce the law thanks to an expanded and strengthened set of legal options. This would include the power to levy civil penalties for first-time rule violations and the authority to enforce standards that allow users to control and protect their data.
The proposal would also give significant power to state attorneys general, authorizing them to enforce all of the same laws as the FTC. Hawley, who made a name for himself by launching lawsuits against Google while serving as the state attorney general of Missouri, believes that empowering states to take action can move the needle on major issues. Look no further than what has been achieved through state action against the seemingly unbeatable opioid manufacturers.
As is the case with most any plan, there are reasons to be cautious about adopting Hawley’s plan. For instance, critics believe that doing away with the FTC’s current five-commissioner panel and rolling the agency into the DOJ could increase the risk of politicization. This could lead to politically motivated investigations and punishment of tech companies — an unacceptable risk that could undermine legitimate efforts to hold bad actors to account. Such concerns must be addressed and remedied through robust congressional debate.
But the FTC, as it currently exists, does not work. It is ill-equipped to handle its job. Something has to change. Hawley’s proposal, imperfect though it may be, has started a conversation about how best to bring the 106-year-old agency into the 21st century. Modern problems require innovative thinking, and Hawley has stepped up to the challenge.
— Pittsburgh Post-Gazette