Skip to main content
HR 5315 114th Congress House

CLEAR Act of 2016

Official title: To amend the Federal Trade Commission Act to require annual reports to Congress regarding the status of investigations of unfair or deceptive acts or practices… Show full official titleShow less

Official title: To amend the Federal Trade Commission Act to require annual reports to Congress regarding the status of investigations of unfair or deceptive acts or practices, and of unfair methods of competition, in or affecting commerce.

Introduced: May 24, 2016 Introduced by: Guthrie, Brett Republican · Kentucky See on congress.gov
Commerce Competition and antitrustCongressional oversightConsumer affairsFederal Trade Commission (FTC)Government studies and investigations
Sign in to write a letter Sign in to watch
This bill died when the 114th Congress ended
It never became law before the 114th Congress (2015–2016) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 2 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
May 24, 2016
Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
May 24, 2016
Introduced in House
 Ask about this bill AI · grounded in the bill text

Have a question about what this bill does? Ask in plain English; the answer is drawn from the bill's actual text and official record, and it'll tell you when something isn't in the text rather than guess.

AI answers can be imperfect; always confirm against the full bill text.

 Latest action May 24, 2016

Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Clarifying Legality and Enforcement Action Reasoning Act of 2016 or the CLEAR Act of 2016

This bill amends the Federal Trade Commission Act to require the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to submit an annual report to Congress about its investigations concerning unfair or deceptive acts or practices, or unfair methods of competition, in or affecting commerce. The reports must detail:

  • the number of such investigations the FTC has commenced and the disposition of investigations that concluded with official agency action; and
  • the number of investigations the FTC has closed with no official agency action, along with a description that indicates the legal analysis supporting the FTC's decision not to continue such investigations, and the industry sectors of the entities subject to each such investigation.

The bill prohibits the FTC from identifying a person who is the subject of an investigation in its description of an investigation that closed with no official agency action.

 Related & companion bills 2
  • HR 5109 Related bill CLEAR Act
  • HR 5510 Related bill FTC Process and Transparency Reform Act of 2016
 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 2
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.R. 5315: CLEAR Act of 2016. 114th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/114-HR-5315/
MLA
"H.R. 5315: CLEAR Act of 2016." 114th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/114-HR-5315/.
Bluebook (legal)
H.R. 5315, 114th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/114-HR-5315/.
Markdown link
[H.R. 5315: CLEAR Act of 2016](https://openamerica.io/bill/114-HR-5315/)
Report a problem