[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 11 (Tuesday, January 18, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2908-2910]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-926]
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FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
[File No. 102 3064]
Nonprofit Management LLC and Jeremy Ryan Claeys; Analysis of
Proposed Consent Order To Aid Public Comment
AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission.
ACTION: Proposed consent agreement.
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SUMMARY: The consent agreement in this matter settles alleged
violations of Federal law prohibiting unfair or deceptive acts or
practices or unfair methods of competition. The attached Analysis to
Aid Public Comment describes both the allegations in the draft
complaint and the terms of the consent order--embodied in the consent
agreement--that would settle these allegations.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before February 11, 2011.
ADDRESSES: Interested parties are invited to submit written comments
electronically or in paper form. Comments should refer to ``Tested
Green, File No. 102 3064'' to facilitate the organization of comments.
Please note that your comment--including
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your name and your state--will be placed on the public record of this
proceeding, including on the publicly accessible FTC Web site, at
http://www.ftc.gov/os/publiccomments.shtm.
Because comments will be made public, they should not include any
sensitive personal information, such as an individual's Social Security
Number; date of birth; driver's license number or other State
identification number, or foreign country equivalent; passport number;
financial account number; or credit or debit card number. Comments also
should not include any sensitive health information, such as medical
records or other individually identifiable health information. In
addition, comments should not include any ``[t]rade secret or any
commercial or financial information which is obtained from any person
and which is privileged or confidential * * *,'' as provided in Section
6(f) of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. 46(f), and Commission Rule 4.10(a)(2),
16 CFR 4.10(a)(2). Comments containing material for which confidential
treatment is requested must be filed in paper form, must be clearly
labeled ``Confidential,'' and must comply with FTC Rule 4.9(c), 16 CFR
4.9(c).\1\
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\1\ The comment must be accompanied by an explicit request for
confidential treatment, including the factual and legal basis for
the request, and must identify the specific portions of the comment
to be withheld from the public record. The request will be granted
or denied by the Commission's General Counsel, consistent with
applicable law and the public interest. See FTC Rule 4.9(c), 16 CFR
4.9(c).
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Because paper mail addressed to the FTC is subject to delay due to
heightened security screening, please consider submitting your comments
in electronic form. Comments filed in electronic form should be
submitted by using the following Web link: https://ftcpublic.commentworks.com/ftc/testedgreen and following the
instructions on the Web-based form. To ensure that the Commission
considers an electronic comment, you must file it on the Web-based form
at the Web link: https://ftcpublic.commentworks.com/ftc/testedgreen. If
this Notice appears at http://www.regulations.gov/search/index.jsp, you
may also file an electronic comment through that Web site. The
Commission will consider all comments that regulations.gov forwards to
it. You may also visit the FTC Web site at http://www.ftc.gov/ to read
the Notice and the news release describing it.
A comment filed in paper form should include the ``Tested Green,
File No. 102 3064'' reference both in the text and on the envelope, and
should be mailed or delivered to the following address: Federal Trade
Commission, Office of the Secretary, Room H-135 (Annex D), 600
Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20580. The FTC is requesting
that any comment filed in paper form be sent by courier or overnight
service, if possible, because U.S. postal mail in the Washington area
and at the Commission is subject to delay due to heightened security
precautions.
The Federal Trade Commission Act (``FTC Act'') and other laws the
Commission administers permit the collection of public comments to
consider and use in this proceeding as appropriate. The Commission will
consider all timely and responsive public comments that it receives,
whether filed in paper or electronic form. Comments received will be
available to the public on the FTC Web site, to the extent practicable,
at http://www.ftc.gov/os/publiccomments.shtm. As a matter of
discretion, the Commission makes every effort to remove home contact
information for individuals from the public comments it receives before
placing those comments on the FTC Web site. More information, including
routine uses permitted by the Privacy Act, may be found in the FTC's
privacy policy, at http://www.ftc.gov/ftc/privacy.shtm.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Elsie B. Kappler (202-326-2466),
Bureau of Consumer Protection, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW.,
Washington, DC 20580.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to section 6(f) of the Federal
Trade Commission Act, 38 Stat. 721, 15 U.S.C. 46(f), and Sec. 2.34 of
the Commission Rules of Practice, 16 CFR 2.34, notice is hereby given
that the above-captioned consent agreement containing a consent order
to cease and desist, having been filed with and accepted, subject to
final approval, by the Commission, has been placed on the public record
for a period of thirty (30) days. The following Analysis to Aid Public
Comment describes the terms of the consent agreement, and the
allegations in the complaint. An electronic copy of the full text of
the consent agreement package can be obtained from the FTC Home Page
(for January 11, 2011), on the World Wide Web, at http://www.ftc.gov/os/actions.shtm. A paper copy can be obtained from the FTC Public
Reference Room, Room 130-H, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington,
DC 20580, either in person or by calling (202) 326-2222.
Public comments are invited, and may be filed with the Commission
in either paper or electronic form. All comments should be filed as
prescribed in the ADDRESSES section above, and must be received on or
before the date specified in the DATES section.
Analysis of Agreement Containing Consent Order To Aid Public Comment
The Federal Trade Commission has accepted, subject to final
approval, an Agreement Containing Consent Order from Nonprofit
Management LLC and Jeremy Ryan Claeys, also doing business as Tested
Green (``respondents'').
The proposed consent order has been placed on the public record for
thirty (30) days for receipt of comments by interested persons.
Comments received during this period will become part of the public
record. After thirty (30) days, the Commission will again review the
agreement and the comments received, and will decide whether it should
withdraw from the agreement and take appropriate action or make final
the agreement's proposed order.
This matter involves the advertising, marketing, and sale of
environmental certifications. From approximately February 2009 to April
2010, respondents marketed the Tested Green certification using their
Web site, http://www.testedgreen.com, as well as mass e-mails linking
to their Web site. The marketing claimed that Tested Green was the
``nation's leading certification program with over 45,000
certifications in the United States.'' However, respondents never
tested any of the companies to which they issued certifications, and
certified anyone willing to pay a designated fee of either $189.95 for
a ``Rapid'' certification, or $549.95 for a ``Pro'' certification.
Immediately upon certifying companies, respondents provided them with
HTML text for the Tested Green logo and a ``certification verification
page'' that they could, in turn, use to advertise their Tested Green
certified status. Respondents also claimed that Tested Green was
endorsed by the National Green Business Association (``NGBA'') and the
National Association of Government Contractors (``NAGC''), two
organizations which they own and operate.
The Commission alleges that the Tested Green certification
constituted an express or implied representation that the products,
services, programs, or entities bearing the certification had been
independently and objectively evaluated based on their environmental
attributes or benefits, when, in fact, they had not. Additionally, by
furnishing businesses with the certification and the tools to advertise
it, respondents provided such businesses with the
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means and instrumentalities for the commission of deceptive acts and
practices, and accordingly, themselves committed a deceptive act in
violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act.
The Commission also alleges that by stating that the NGBA and the
NAGC endorsed Tested Green, respondents represented expressly or
impliedly that they were independent from these organizations, when, in
fact, they own and operate NGBA and NAGC. Therefore, respondents'
statement of endorsement by NGBA and NAGC was false and misleading, in
violation of Section 5. Similarly, in light of respondents' express and
implied representation that these organizations were independent,
respondents' failure to disclose their relationship to NGBA and NAGC
was deceptive, in violation of Section 5.
Part I of the proposed order prohibits respondents from
misrepresenting: (1) The fact that, or degree to which, they have, or a
third party has, evaluated a product, package, service, practice, or
program based on its environmental benefits or attributes; (2) that
respondents have, or a third party has, the appropriate expertise to
evaluate the environmental benefits or attributes of a product,
package, service, practice, or program; (3) the number of
certifications issued by respondents; and (4) that a product, package,
certification, service, practice, or program is endorsed by an
independent person or organization.
Part II of the proposed order bars respondents, in connection with
the labeling, advertising, marketing, promotion, offering for sale,
sale, or distribution of any product, package, certification, service,
practice, or program, from providing others with the means and
instrumentalities to make, expressly or impliedly, any false or
misleading statement.
Part III of the proposed order bars respondents from making any
representation, expressly or by implication, about any user or endorser
of a product, package, certification, service, practice, or program,
unless they clearly and prominently disclose a material connection with
such user or endorser, where one exists.
Parts IV through VIII of the proposed order are reporting and
compliance provisions. Part IV requires respondents to retain documents
relating to their compliance with the order. Part V requires
dissemination of the order to all current and future principals,
officers, directors, managers, employees, agents, and representatives
having responsibilities relating to the subject matter of the order.
Part VI ensures notification to the FTC of changes in respondent
Nonprofit Management's corporate status. Part VII mandates that
respondent Claeys notify the FTC of any changes in his business
affiliations or employment. Part VIII mandates that respondents submit
a report to the Commission detailing their compliance with the order.
Part IX provides that the order expires after twenty (20) years, with
certain exceptions.
The purpose of this analysis is to aid public comment on the
proposed order. It is not intended to constitute an official
interpretation of the proposed order or to modify its terms in any way.
By direction of the Commission.
Donald S. Clark,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2011-926 Filed 1-14-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6750-01-P