DMA Testifies in Opposition of Proposed Expansion of FTC Authority

Washington, DC, March 17, 2010 — Direct Marketing Association’s (DMA) Executive Vice President, Government Affairs, Linda Woolley, testified today before the Senate Commerce Committee’s Consumer Protection, Product Safety, and Insurance Subcommittee in opposition to the proposed expansion of the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) rulemaking and enforcement authority.

Woolley testified that the “FTC does a commendable job in protecting consumers against unfair or deceptive acts or practices through its existing enforcement actions under the more than twenty statutes it currently administers.”

“We do not believe providing the FTC with broad new authority of the type included in the “Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act” – and as requested by the Commission – is a necessary or relevant response to the causes of the current financial crisis,” said Woolley. “The kind of additional authority that the FTC seeks is in no way related to ‘credit default swaps’ or ‘subprime mortgages,’ and would have far-reaching effects on a multitude of businesses outside of the financial services area.”

DMA recently joined with nearly thirty other major trade associations, representing virtually every industry, in sending a letter to the Senate Commerce Committee expressing concerns about the proposed repeal of statutory protections that currently govern the FTC’s rulemaking ability. “We do not believe that a complete elimination of important procedural safeguards is necessary, or that it will ultimately be in the best interest of businesses and consumers,” stated Woolley.

DMA is particularly concerned that the Commission would use expanded rulemaking authority to regulate areas where its involvement would hinder new and emerging business practices, such as Internet commerce – one of the continued key economic drivers and areas of job growth. Woolley stated that DMA’s Power of Direct Marketing, 2009-2010 Edition “…Recently forecast that the Internet marketing workforce has the potential to grow 6.1 percent over the next five years – with 11 percent growth in the social networking medium alone – generating more than 2.6 million new jobs. Growth of the mobile marketing workforce was projected at more than 30 percent by 2014. Instead, new rules could limit market innovation, and jeopardize the corresponding jobs and products that flow from such innovation.”

For more information please visit www.dmaaction.org.

About Direct Marketing Association (DMA)

The Direct Marketing Association (www.the-dma.org) is the leading global trade association of businesses and nonprofit organizations using and supporting multichannel direct marketing tools and techniques. DMA advocates standards for responsible marketing, promotes relevance as the key to reaching consumers with desirable offers, and provides cutting-edge research, education, and networking opportunities to improve results throughout the end-to-end direct marketing process. Founded in 1917, DMA today represents companies from dozens of vertical industries in the US and 48 other nations, including nearly half of the Fortune 100 companies, as well as nonprofit organizations.

In 2009, marketers – commercial and nonprofit – spent $149.3 billion on direct marketing, which accounted for 54.3% of all ad expenditures in the United States. Measured against total US sales, these advertising expenditures will generate approximately $1.783 trillion in incremental sales. In 2009, direct marketing accounted for 8.3% of total US gross domestic product. Also in 2009, there were 1.4 million direct marketing employees in the US. Their collective sales efforts directly supported 8.4 million other jobs, accounting for a total of 9.9 million US jobs.

The Power of Direct: Relevance. Responsibility. Results.

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