Three years after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling limited how far the Federal Trade Commission could go to help scam victims, Illinois residents who have fallen victim to scams have had problem receiving help.
According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Illinois residents lost $338 million to fraud in 2023 alone.
The 2021 decision ruled that the FTC, which typically enforces consumer protection laws, could only take companies to court to halt illegal behavior while being unable to recover damages, which the agency had been doing for decades.
Illinois Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky recently introduced the Consumer Protection and Recovery Act, aimed at restoring the FTC's authority.
“We're talking about millions and billions of dollars that had been returned to consumers,” Schakowsky said.
According to a U.S. Senate report, the FTC recovered more than $65 million for over 375,000 Illinois residents between 2018 and 2021 from the agency's legal action against various corporations.
Schakowsky said the agency is now extremely limited in what it can do to help consumers get their money back.
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“It takes a long time to try and do anything to get the money back. And so, to the extent that any money might be brought back, it is a very cumbersome process,” Schakowsky said.
According to FTC data, the agency was able to recoup $483 million for consumers in 2020, an amount that dropped 30% to $330 million in 2023.
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“It's been not fair and unfortunately, because the companies that do that, it's been much easier for them to just get away with it. And we're tired of that. It's not right,” Schakowsky said.
A spokesperson for the FTC said the agency could not comment on pending legislation in a statement to NBC Chicago, but that it has called on Congress to restore its ability to "ask courts to order companies to return the money they unlawfully took from consumers."
That bill is currently in the committee process and could be up for a vote next month.
