President Biden on on July 9 signed an executive order to end anti-competitive practices. “The heart of American capitalism is a simple idea: open and fair competition—that means that if your companies want to win your business, they have to go out and they have to up their game; better prices and services; new ideas and products,” the president stated.
The Executive Order directs every agency to address corporate consolidation and remove barriers that hinder innovation.
The Order includes 72 initiatives by more than a dozen federal agencies to promptly tackle some of the most pressing competition problems across our economy. It encourages the leading antitrust agencies to focus enforcement efforts on problems in key markets and coordinates other agencies’ ongoing response to corporate consolidation.
The Order calls on the leading antitrust agencies, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC), to enforce the antitrust laws vigorously and recognizes that the law allows them to challenge prior bad mergers that past Administrations did not previously challenge.
In the Order, the President:
- Encourages the FTC to ban or limit non-compete agreements.
- Encourages the FTC to ban unnecessary occupational licensing restrictions that impede economic mobility.
- Encourages the FTC and DOJ to strengthen antitrust guidance to prevent employers from collaborating to suppress wages or reduce benefits by sharing wage and benefit information with one another.
Additionally, the Order also tackles issues that limit competition, raise prices, and reduce choices for internet service. The Order tackles specific areas in which dominant tech firms are undermining competition and reducing innovation.
