Lina Khan Positioned to Name FTC’s Next Inspector General
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has enormous investigatory and legal power against U.S. companies. To ensure that power is not abused, it is essential that the agency have a strong Inspector General and that there are related checks and balances from Congress.
From June 2018 to November 2024, the FTC’s Inspector General was Andrew Katsaros. He was appointed by then FTC Chair Joseph Simons, a Republican.
On September 30, Katsaros issued a report strongly critical of management for news leaks at the FTC. Relatedly, Senator Tom Cotton and four other Senators are further investigating some of the leaks.
According to LinkedIn, a search has been underway for Katsaros’s successor since a few days after the election, and the deadline for applications to replace him was December 9. The FTC’s Marissa Gould serves as the FTC’s Interim Inspector General.
In a November 14 letter to FTC Chair Lina Khan, Jim Jordan, Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee said that Chair Khan and her colleagues “should not choose the new FTC Inspector General. This decision should be left to the incoming Trump Administration.” The letter also said it, “serves as a formal request to preserve all existing and future records and materials related to FTC’s actions and operations during the Biden-Harris Administration.”
At the FTC, one of the Inspector General’s key roles is to ensure proper record-keeping, especially during a transition, as specified by the stringent requirements of the Federal Records Act.
One of the most important decisions the Chair of the FTC can make is who to appoint as Inspector General. Chair Khan has until January 20 to make this appointment, after which Commissioner Andrew Ferguson is expected to become chair. President-elect Trump has announced he will name Commissioner Ferguson chair, an act that does not require U.S. Senate confirmation.
Given the many controversies surrounding the FTC under the Biden-Harris Administration, the process should be carefully documented internally by the FTC and Congress.