Today, the Senate passed the “Merger Filing Fee Modernization Act.” The bill, if signed into law, will increase merger filing fees for large mergers reviewed by the Department of Justice Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission. These fees would increase the budgets of the two enforcers.
Public Knowledge applauds Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) for their leadership in helping our antitrust enforcement agencies keep up with the increasing number of mergers and costs of the merger review process.
The following can be attributed to Charlotte Slaiman, Competition Policy Director at Public Knowledge:
“As enforcers have launched major cases against Big Tech, they run the risk of being outgunned by some of the richest companies on the planet. The Merger Filing Fee Modernization Act sends our agencies some much-needed financial reinforcements so they can better fulfill their mandates to promote competition and protect consumers.
“Senators Klobuchar and Grassley have shown there is bipartisan momentum to reinvigorate antitrust enforcement, and I hope to see bipartisan support for other important antitrust reforms this Congress. The House should immediately move to pass its own version of this bill so it can become law. Congress must also continue its work on oversight of our enforcement agencies, reforming the antitrust laws, and formulating new laws and rules focused on dominant digital platforms.”
Members of the media may contact Communications Director Shiva Stella with inquiries, interview requests, or to join the Public Knowledge press list at shiva@publicknowledge.org or 405-249-9435.