FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 19, 2023 

CONTACT: Ashley Woolheater, woolheater@openmarketsinstitute.org 

WASHINGTON, DC – Open Markets Insititute Executive Director Barry Lynn released the following statement on the draft, new merger guidelines published today by the Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission: 

“Written 40 years ago by President Ronald Reagan and followed by both Democratic and Republican administrations ever since, the U.S. government's 1982 “merger guidelines” fundamentally changed the American economy and society by making it far easier for private corporations to concentrate economic power and control. The “consumer welfare” philosophy embedded in these guidelines upset fundamental balances in politics and business in all corners of the nation. The result today directly threatens the freedom and wellbeing of every American. 

“That’s why we at the Open Markets Institute strongly welcome the publication today by the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission of a draft version of entirely new merger guidelines. This document marks the first effort by U.S. law enforcers to rethink and restate the basic purposes and rules of competition since Reagan. This is a challenging and complicated task, and we congratulate the staff of both the DOJ and FTC on concluding the first stage in this process.  

“The most important goal of such guidelines must be to ensure a clear rule of law that provides independent businesses, investors, innovators, working people, and creators with confidence that their ideas, properties, and labor won’t be stolen by the biggest of the big. There are many flaws with the “consumer welfare” philosophy. Most dangerous is that it replaced simple rules governing market structure and corporate behavior with subjective attempts to predict consumer effects of mergers on a case-by-case basis. The result was a de facto license for the powerful few to build systems of autocratic control over the many.  

“The DOJ and FTC – with the full support of President Biden – today made clear those days are over. The new guidelines are designed to provide law enforcers, judges, entrepreneurs, and the public with all the tools they need to ensure the American people master the many grave threats posed by today’s monopolists. This draft promises a significant improvement over the current framework. We look forward to working with both the DOJ and FTC to build on this fine start and ensure the final guidelines empower the American people to rebuild our political economy in ways that protect our democracy and prosperity for the next 250 years.” 

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