RULE XXII. REPORTS SHOWING COMPLIANCE WITH ORDERS AND WITH
STIPULATIONS

In every case where an order to cease and desist is issued by the Commission for the purpose of preventing violations of law and in every instance where the Commission approves and accepts a stipulation in which a party agrees to cease and desist from the unlawful methods, acts, or practices involved, the respondents named in such orders and the parties so stipulating shall file with the Commission, within sixty days of the service of such order and within sixty days of the approval of such stipulation, a report, in writing, setting forth in detail the manner and form in which they have complied with said order or with said stipulation; provided, however, that where the order prevents the use of a false advertisement of a food, drug, device, or cosmetic, which may be injurious to health because of results from such use under the conditions prescribed in the advertisement, or under such conditions as are customary or usual, or if the use of such advertisement is with intent to defraud or mislead, an interim report stating whether and how respondents intend to comply shall be filed within 10 days.

Within its sound discretion, the Commission may require any respondent upon whom such order has been served and any party entering into such stipulation, to file with the Commission, from time to time thereafter, further reports in writing, setting forth in detail the manner and form in which they are complying with said order or with said stipulation.

Reports of compliance shall be signed in ink by respondents or by the parties stipulating.

RULE XXIII. REOPENING PROCEEDINGS

In any case where an order to cease and desist or an order dismissing a proceeding has been issued by the Commission, the Commission may (a) in the case of an order to cease and desist, at any time after the expiration of the statutory time for filing of a petition for review where no such petition has been filed, or (b) in the case of an order dismissing a proceeding at any time thereafter, give reasonable notice to all respondents and to all intervenors, if any, of a hearing as to whether the said proceedings should be reopened. If after said hearing the Commission shall have reason to believe that conditions of fact or of law have so changed since the said order was made as to require, or that the public interest requires, the reopening of such proceeding, the Commission will issue an order for the reopening of the same.

RULE XXIV-TRADE PRACTICE CONFERENCE PROCEDURE1

(a) Purpose.-The trade practice conference procedure has for its purpose the establishment, by the Commission, of trade practice rules in the interest of industry and the purchasing public. This procedure affords opportunity for voluntary participation by industry groups or other interested parties in the formulation of rules to provide for elimination or prevention of unfair methods of competition, unfair or deceptive acts or practices and other illegal trade practices. They may also include provisions to foster and promote fair competitive conditions and to establish standards of ethical business practices in harmony with public policy. No provision or rule, however, may be approved by the Commission which sanctions a practice contrary to law or which may aid or abet a practice contrary to law.

1 Paragraphs (b) to (h), inclusive, are published at p. 111, under Trade-Practice Conferences.

STATEMENT OF POLICY

POLICY AS TO PRIVATE CONTROVERSIES

It is the policy of the Commission not to institute proceedings against alleged unfair methods of competition or unfair or deceptive acts or practices where the alleged violation of law is a private controversy redressable in the courts, except where said practices tend to affect the public. In cases where the alleged injury is one to a competitor only and is redressable in the courts by an action by the aggrieved competitor and the interest of the public is not involved, the proceeding will not be entertained.

SETTLEMENT OF CASES BY STIPULATION

In proceedings prior to the service of complaint by the Commission, the Commission may, in its discretion and in the public interest, permit respondents to dispose of cases by stipulations, in which stipulations the respondent promises and agrees to cease and desist from the unfair methods of competition or unfair or deceptive acts or practices involved, and in which the respondent, after admitting the material facts, agrees that said admissions may be used against him, if thereafter the Commission has reason to believe the respondent is violating his promise and agreement to cease and desist, and issues its complaint against him. All such stipulations shall be altogether for the public records of the Commission. The disposition of a case by stipulation is regarded as a privilege and not a right. It is the policy of the Commission not to accept stipulations in cases where it has reason to believe that the respondents have been guilty of intentional fraud or wrongdoing or violation of Sec. 14 of the Federal Trade Commission Act, or of violation of certain sections of the Clayton Act or of violations of the criminal sections of the Sherman Act or of any other statute, or where, in the opinion of the Commission, the respondents will not keep the agreement. The Commission reserves the right in all cases, for any reasons which it regards as sufficient, to refuse to extend this privilege.

STATUS OF APPLICANT OR COMPLAINANT

The so-called "applicant" or complaining party has never been regarded as a party in the strict sense. The Commission acts only in the public interest. It has always been and now is the rule not to publish or divulge the name of an applicant or complaining party, and such party has no legal status before the Commission except where allowed to intervene as provided by the statute.

INVESTIGATIONS BY THE COMMISSION, 1915–1938

DESCRIPTIONS OF GENERAL INQUIRIES INCLUDING TITLES OF PUBLISHED REPORTS General investigations of the Federal Trade Commission are described in the following paragraphs devoted to the more than 100 inquiries undertaken at the request of the Congress, the President, the Attorney General, other departmental heads, and on motion of the Commission in pursuance of certain provisions of its organic act.

Published reports of the Commission in connection with these inquiries are also listed, including the Senate and House Document numbers for those of the reports that were ordered printed by the Congress. Publications not designated by such document numbers were published as Commission reports. Many of these publications are now out of print and are so listed.

Accounting Systems. This inquiry was made on motion of the Commission, with a view to improving accounting practices, and led to the publication of two reports, entitled Fundamentals of a Cost System for Manufacturers (31 pages), and A System of Accounts for Retail Merchants (19 pages, out of print), both published in 1916.

Agricultural Implement and Machinery.—This inquiry was made pursuant to Public Resolution No. 130, otherwise known as Senate Joint Resolution No. 277, Seventy-fourth Congress, second session, approved June 24, 1936. It called for an investigation to determine whether there had been recently any conspiracy in unlawful restraint of trade or unfair methods of competition in the manufacture or sale of agricultural implements and machinery, the extent of concentration and control in the industry, the costs, prices, and profits of manufacturers and distributors, the methods and price margins of dealers, and the course of prices of farm machinery and of other similar machinery, since 1914. The report, Agricultural Implement and Machinery Industry, was issued June 6, 1938, and ordered printed as House Document No. 702, Seventy-fifth Congress, third session. For details of the investigation, see p. 23. (See also Farm Implements and Independent Harvester.)

Agricultural Income. This inquiry was made pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution No. 9, Seventy-fourth Congress, first session (Public Resolution No. 61, Seventy-fourth Congress, approved August 27, 1935, as amended by Public Resolution No. 86, Seventy-fourth Congress, and by Public Resolution No. 112, Seventy-fourth Congress). The first resolution called for an inquiry with respect to the "principal farm products" and the last one with respect to "table and juice grapes, fresh fruits and vegetables." The chief topics covered were: the decline in agricultural income; the increases or decreases in the income of principal corporations engaged in the manufacture and distribution of principal farm products; the proportion of total consumer cost of such products represented by proceeds to the farmers, manufacturers, and distributors; the financial position of the aforementioned principal corporations, including assets, investment and rates of return; the salaries of officers of such corporations; the concentration of control of major farm products, the methods used for obtaining such control, and the extent to which unfair methods were employed in handing farm products, such methods including any combinations, monopolies, and price-fixing. The resolution also required an inquiry into the extent to which cooperative agencies had entered into the processing and marketing of such farm products.

Five reports were issued: (1) Interim Report of the Federal Trade Commission on the Agricultural Income Inquiry, December 26, 1935, printed as House Document No. 380, Seventy-fourth Congress, second session (6 pages); (2) Fruits and Vegetables-Agricultural Income Inquiry (interim report), February 1, 1937, printed as Senate Document No. 17, Seventy-fifth Congress, first session (16 pages); (3) Agricultural Income Inquiry, Part I, Principal Farm Products, March 2, 1937, of which the first two chapters were first printed,

namely, (a) summary and (b) conclusions and recommendations, as Senate Document No. 54, Seventy-fifth Congress, first session (40 pages), the complete report (1134 pages) later being printed by the Commission; (4) Part II, Fruits, Vegetables and Grapes, June 10, 1937, printed by the Commission (906 pages), and Part III, Supplementary Report, November 8, 1937 (see also p. 29), printed by the Commission (154 pages). (See also Price Deflation.)

Bakeries. At the request of the United States Food Administration the Commission made a brief report on the cost of bread, and other related factors, which was printed, with other data, by the Food Administration, November 1917, and entitled United States Food Administration, Report of the Federal Trade Commission on Bakery Business in United States (pp. 5-13, out of print). Bread and Flour.-This inquiry was made pursuant to Senate Resolution No. 163, Sixty-eighth Congress, first session, adopted February 16, 1924. The resolution directed the Commission to investigate the production, distribution, transportation, and sale of flour and bread, showing costs, prices, and profits at each stage of the process of production and distribution; the extent and methods of price fixing, price maintenance, and price discrimination; concentration of control in the milling and baking industries; and evidence indicating the existence of agreements, conspiracies, or combinations in restraint of trade. Two preliminary reports were issued, dealing with competitive conditions in flour milling and bakery combines and profits. The final report showed, among other things, that wholesale baking in recent years had been generally profitable. It disclosed also price-cutting wars by big bakery combines and subsequent pricefixing agreements. Reports were issued entitled Competitive Conditions in Flour Milling (140 pages) printed as Senate Document No. 97, Seventieth Congress, first session, May 3, 1926; Bakery Combines and Profits (95 pages), printed as Senate Document No. 212, Sixty-ninth Congress, second session, February 11, 1927; and Competition and Profits in Bread and Flour (509 pages) printed as Senate Document No. 98, Seventieth Congress, first session, January 11, 1928. A supplementary report covering data withheld during court proceedings (Millers' National Federation against Federal Trade Commission) entitled Conditions in the Flour Milling Business, was transmitted to the Senate May 28, 1932, and printed as Senate Document No. 96, Seventy-second Congress, first session (26 pages), May 9, 1932. (See also Bakeries, Flour Milling and Food Investigation.)

Calcium Arsenate. This inquiry was made pursuant to Senate Resolution No. 417, Sixty-seventh Congress, fourth session, adopted January 23, 1923. The high prices of calcium arsenate, a poison used to destroy the cotton boll weevil, led to this inquiry from which it appeared that the cause of such prices was the sudden increase in demand rather than any restraints of trade. The report, entitled Calcium Arsenate Industry, was transmitted to the Senate March 3, 1923, and printed as Senate Document No. 345, Sixty-seventh Congress, fourth session. (21 pages.)

Cement Industry. This inquiry was made pursuant to Senate Resolution No. 448, Seventy-first Congress, third session, adopted February 16, 1931. This resolution instructed the Commission to investigate competitive conditions and distributing processes in the cement industry to determine the existence, if any, of unfair trade practices or violations of the anti-trust laws. The report indicated that rigid application of the multiple basing-point price system, universally used in the industry, tended to lessen price competition and destroy the value of sealed bids; that manufacturers in concert with dealer organizations ha engaged in activities which strengthened the system's price effectiveness and that dealers' associations had engaged in practices designed to restrict sales to those recognized as legitimate dealers by the associations. It was indicated such practices also tended to control sales terms. This report, entitled Cement Industry, reiterated certain findings and conclusions of the Commission's earlier report on the cement industry made as a part of the price bases inquiry (see Price Bases and Steel Investigations herein for further reference to basing-point systems). The cement report was transmitted to the Senate June 9, 1933, and printed as Senate Document No. 71, Seventy-third Congress, first session (160 pages).

Chain Stores.-This inquiry was made pursuant to Senate Resolution No. 224, Seventieth Congress, first session, adopted May 12, 1928. Under the resolution the Commission was directed to ascertain the advantages and disadvantages of chain-store distribution as compared with other types of distribution and how far the increase in the former system depended upon quantity prices and whether or not such quantity prices were in violation of law and what legisla