{"id":43857,"date":"2024-01-26T13:19:51","date_gmt":"2024-01-26T18:19:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/d56fg8tfg.fitnews.club\/finance\/ftc-action-leads-to-2-million-penalty-against-kubota-for-false-made-in-usa-claims\/"},"modified":"2024-01-26T13:19:51","modified_gmt":"2024-01-26T18:19:51","slug":"ftc-action-leads-to-2-million-penalty-against-kubota-for-false-made-in-usa-claims","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/d56fg8tfg.fitnews.club\/finance\/ftc-action-leads-to-2-million-penalty-against-kubota-for-false-made-in-usa-claims\/","title":{"rendered":"FTC Action Leads to $2 Million Penalty Against Kubota for False Made in USA Claims"},"content":{"rendered":"
Tractor maker Kubota North America Corporation will pay a $2 million civil penalty as a result of a Federal Trade Commission action against the company for falsely labeling some of its replacement parts as being \u201cMade in USA.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Under a stipulated court order filed by the Department of Justice on the FTC\u2019s behalf and agreed to by the company, Kubota will be prohibited from making deceptive claims in addition to requiring them to pay the penalty, which is the largest ever in a Made in USA case.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n \u201cToday\u2019s settlement includes the largest civil penalty assessed for violating the Made in USA Labeling Rule,\u201d said Samuel Levine, Director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection.\u00a0 \u201cThe FTC will continue cracking down on deceptive Made in USA claims that cheat consumers and honest businesses.\u201d \u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The complaint<\/a> filed in the case charges that since at least 2021, Kubota has labeled thousands of replacement parts for its tractors and other agricultural equipment as Made In USA, even though they were made entirely overseas. In addition, after the company moved manufacturing for some parts to other countries, it failed to update the products\u2019 labeling to reflect that change, leaving them labeled as \u201cMade in USA,\u201d according to the complaint. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Kubota was <\/span>previously sued by the FTC<\/span><\/a> in 1999 for falsely claiming that a line of lawn tractors it manufactured was Made in USA, and was subject to an FTC order in that case that expired in 2019.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The stipulated order<\/a> against Kubota, which the company has agreed to, includes a number of requirements about the claims the company makes:<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The FTC is committed to ensuring that \u201cMade in USA\u201d claims are truthful. The FTC\u2019s Enforcement Policy Statement on U.S. Origin Claims<\/a>\u00a0provides guidance on making non-deceptive \u201cMade in USA\u201d claims. In addition, the FTC\u2019s Made in USA Labeling Rule<\/a>\u00a0went into effect on Aug. 13, 2021. Companies that violate the Rule from that date forward may be subject to civil penalties.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The Commission vote to authorize the staff to refer the complaint to the DOJ and to approve the stipulated consent decree was 3-0. The DOJ filed the complaint and stipulated consent decree on behalf of the Commission in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n NOTE: <\/b>The Commission authorizes the filing of a complaint when it has \u201creason to believe\u201d that the named defendants are violating or are about to violate the law and it appears to the Commission that a proceeding is in the public interest. Consent decrees have the force of law when approved and signed by the District Court judge.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The lead staff attorney on this matter was Julia Solomon Ensor in the Bureau of Consumer Protection.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n