On April 15, the United States Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation held its first oversight hearing of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in more than five years. The witnesses were FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson and Commissioner Mark Meador, the two remaining Commissioners following the President’s March 2025 dismissal of Democratic Commissioners Rebecca Slaughter and Alvaro Bedoya. The FTC traditionally operates with a five-member bipartisan Commission, but its rules of practice permit a quorum of two commissioners to conduct agency business.
Concerns about affordability across the United States drove much of the questioning during the hearing. Senators addressed a range of competition-related issues affecting consumers, including housing, grocery prices, health care costs, ticket pricing, and college athletics. With respect to the automobile industry, members of both parties raised questions about consumer privacy related to vehicle data collection, as well as national security concerns associated with Chinese automobile manufacturing in the United States. The issue of right to repair was also discussed, though the conversation focused on its implications for the agricultural sector.
Notably, none of the senators raised the FTC’s March 13 issuance of 97 warning letters to undisclosed automobile dealerships regarding potential advertising transparency violations. NIADA is scheduled to meet with the FTC on April 20 to discuss these letters and other matters of importance to independent dealers.
