Ron Wyden: “when it comes to energy, the Federal Trade Commission, FTC, is basically out of the consumer protection business. Well…”

“when it comes to energy, the Federal Trade Commission, FTC, is basically out of the consumer protection business. Well over a year ago, I released a report documenting the Federal Trade Commission's campaign of inaction when it comes to protecting consumers at the gas pump. My report documented how the FTC has refused to challenge oil industry mergers that the Government Accountability Office says have raised gas prices at the pump by 7 cents a gallon on the West Coast. My report also documented how the FTC failed to act when refineries have been shut down or to stop anti-competitive practices like redlining and zone pricing. Since then, nothing has changed. Despite the recent record-high prices for consumers and record profits by big oil companies, we are seeing a record level of inaction by the Federal Trade Commission, FTC, on behalf of energy consumers. In the last few months, when the price of gasoline soared to an all- time record-high level, the FTC has been invisible. As far as I can tell, the FTC failed to take any action at all in the wake of hurricanes in the gulf that sent the price of gasoline skyrocketing to over $3 a gallon nationwide. If you do a Google search on the ``FTC and gasoline prices,'' nothing comes up that shows the FTC is taking any action on behalf of energy consumers.…”