Seal of the United States Federal Trade Commission

The following is a list of individuals who have served as a member of the

Federal Trade Commission The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is an independent agency of the United States government whose principal mission is the enforcement of civil (non-criminal) antitrust law and the promotion of consumer protection. The FTC shares jurisdiction ov ...

(FTC) beginning in 1949.

List of current commissioners

Current members of the FTC

The commission is headed by five commissioners, who each serve seven-year terms. Commissioners are nominated by the

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

and confirmed by the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

. No more than three commissioners can be of the same

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology ...

. In practice, this means that two commissions are of the opposition party. However, three members of the FTC throughout its history have been without party affiliation, with the most recent independent,

Pamela Jones Harbour Pamela LeDeyce Jones Harbour (born July 15, 1959) is an American lawyer who served as a member of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) from 2003 to 2009. As of 2021, Harbour is one of just three African-Americans to have served as a member of the ...

, serving from 2003 to 2009.

List of former commissioners

The following is a list of individuals who have served as a member of the

(FTC) beginning in 1949, including party affiliation.

Backgrounds of commissioners

Demographics

As of 2021, there have been: * Three

African-Americans African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...

to serve on the FTC:

A. Leon Higginbotham Jr. Aloysius Leon Higginbotham Jr. (February 25, 1928 – December 14, 1998) was an American civil rights, civil rights advocate, historian, presidential adviser, and United States federal judge, federal court judge. From 1990 to 1991, he served as ...

(served from 1962 to 1964),

Mozelle W. Thompson Mozelle Willmont Thompson is an American attorney who served as a member of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) from 1997 to 2004. Thompson was the second African American to serve as a member of the FTC. Education Originally from Pittsburgh, P ...

(served from 1997 to 2004),

(served from 2003 to 2009). * Three

Asian-Americans Asian Americans are Americans of Asian ancestry (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of such immigrants). Although this term had historically been used for all the indigenous peoples ...

to serve on the FTC:

Dennis Yao Dennis Alden Yao (born August 29, 1953) is an American academic who served as a member of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) from 1991 to 1994. A member of the Democratic Party, Yao was the first Asian American to serve on the FTC and the third ...

(served from 1991 to 1994),

Rohit Chopra Rohit (Devanagri: रोहित), ) is a given name, typically male, used among Indian people. It is also used in some parts of Nepal. It is mostly used by Jains, Hindus, and Sikhs. The word "rohit" signifies the color red. It is derived fro ...

(served since 2018), and

Lina Khan Lina M. Khan (born March 3, 1989) is a British-born American legal scholar serving as chairwoman of the Federal Trade Commission since 2021. While a student at Yale Law School, she became known for her work in antitrust and competition law in t ...

(served since 2021); Khan is the first Asian-American to serve as FTC Chair. * Three independents to serve on the FTC:

Philip Elman Philip Elman (March 14, 1918 – November 30, 1999) was an American lawyer at the United States Department of Justice and former member of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Elman is best known for writing the government's brief in ''Brown v. B ...

(served from 1961 to 1970),

Mary Azcuenaga Mary Laurie Azcuenaga (born July 25, 1945) is an American attorney who served from 1984 to 1998 as a member of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). As of 2017, Azcuenaga is one of just three political independents to serve on the FTC. Early life ...

(served from 1984 to 1998), and Pamela Jones Harbour (served from 2003 to 2009)

Career backgrounds

The vast majority of FTC members have been individuals with legal backgrounds, with notable exceptions. President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

appointed the first two professional economists, James C. Miller III and George W. Douglas, to serve on the body.

, a Democrat who served from 1991 to 1994, held a Ph.D in economics, and

Joshua D. Wright Joshua Daniel Wright (born January 20, 1977) is an American economist and legal scholar who served as a commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) from 2013 to 2015. He has been a professor of law at George Mason University's Antonin Scali ...

, a Republican who served from 2013 to 2015, held a both a J.D. and a

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...

in economics.{{Cite web, last=, date=2012-09-10, title=Josh Wright to be nominated to be next FTC Commissioner, url=https://truthonthemarket.com/2012/09/10/josh-wright-to-be-nominated-to-be-next-ftc-commissioner/, url-status=live, access-date=2021-09-27, website=Truth on the Market, language=en-US

References

Federal Trade Commission Federal Trade Commission personnel