An Idea Whose Time Has Passed

"The lobbyists have come out of the woodwork," said Jimmy Carter with obvious anger last week. "Selfish special-interest groups," he complained, were spreading"misinformation" about one of his pet projects: a new federal agency to guard consumer interests. The target of Carter's angry words was none other than the U.S. business community, whose support he has been ardently seeking since he took office. Led by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers, businessmen have mounted a lobbying campaign that may kill the agency's chances.

Ralph Nader and other consumer advocates have fought since the late 1960s for an agency that would operate autonomously within the Government, representing the public interest by monitoring other departments, testifying at their hearings, petitioning them to change injurious regulations and challenging their adverse decisions in the courts (TIME, April 18). Says Presidential Special Assistant for Consumer Affairs Esther Peterson: "We have got to have somebody that speaks for the consumer, as we have people who speak for business." Only Gerald Ford's threatened veto kept the agency from being established in 1975.

Tiny Amount. With Carter's campaign endorsement of an agency, consumer groups were more confident of victory this year. Yet in the House, many members question whether consumers would really be served by another layer of bureaucrats and red tape. Instead of creating a new consumer agency, the Congressmen suggest, the public can get along with the regulatory agencies--even though some critics think they also need reforming--and the 13 separate consumer offices that Gerald Ford set up within major departments.

Though the proposed new agency survived its first test last month, it did so by only one vote--22 to 21 in the House Government Operations Committee. The bill's chances of passing the House are very much in doubt. Coming to the bill's defense last week, Carter argued that it would cost only $15 million a year, v. $10.4 million for the 13 existing consumer offices. Said he: "It is a tiny amount, but very, very important." Yet even as staunch a supporter of the proposal as New York Democrat Benjamin Rosenthal has challenged the President's arithmetic. The first year's costs could be $25 million, and could rise in succeeding years. The consumer protection agency looks very much like an idea whose time has passed.

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