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Choice:
The marketplace must give consumers the opportunity to make
informed choices among services, goods, and sellers. Safety:
Consumers should be able to purchase goods and services that
are safe or that carry appropriate warnings if they put the
user at risk. Fair
Play: Contracts, advertisements, telemarketing,
warranties, mailing envelopes, sweepstakes, and other
written materials should not be designed to confuse,
mislead, or frighten the public. Cooling-off periods should
be available to consumers in transactions that have high
financial risks or involve extended periodic payments. Information
Disclosure: The marketplace must make available to
consumers complete and accurate information regarding the
goods and services they purchase. Information should be
communicated in plain language, with written information
printed in type that is legible and readable or, if
broadcast, is audible and understandable, to a reasonable
consumer. Consumers should have reasonable time to review
disclosures before consummation of the transaction. Privacy:
Consumers have a right to personal privacy and should be
able to reject intrusive marketing practices,
communications, technology, and unauthorized use of records.
Consumers have a right to control individually identifiable
transaction information and to decide to whom and for what
purposes that information may go. Consumers’ records, such
as financial and medical information, should not be released
to a third party without permission and disclosure.
Children’s privacy interests deserve special protections. Redress:
When consumers are wronged in a marketplace transaction,
appropriate and adequate redress must be available. Clear
disclosures identifying how and where aggrieved consumers
can complain must be provided. Redress must be provided in a
timely manner and with a right of appeal. Enforcement:
There must be strong federal, state, and local enforcement
of consumer protection laws and regulations. The full range
of enforcement actions (e.g., administrative, enforcement,
individual and class action lawsuits, and civil and criminal
prosecutions) should be available and utilized where
appropriate by government officials and individuals. Consumer
education should be made a national priority. Federal
agencies, a reinstated Federal Office of Consumer Affairs,
new consumer advisory councils at all levels, state and
local consumer protection agencies and nonprofits must
aggressively educate homeowners regarding laws that protect
homeowners and provide redress mechanisms in areas where
there is a substantial evidence of problems. Areas receiving
high levels of consumer complaints include home remodeling,
purchase and sale of homes, and moving. Informal disputes
resolution mechanisms for these types of disputes should be
encouraged. Homeowners
suffer because of the current uncompetitive circumstances
and confusing and contradictory policies in the air
transport industry. Effective airline competition does not
exist in many markets and ticket pricing reflects that
companies are taking advantage of their monopolies in those
markets. Widely varying and often changing airline policies
regarding changing tickets, stand-bys etc. are confusing
consumers. Congress and the administration should assign a
high priority to maximizing competition in as many markets
as possible by whatever means are appropriate. Airline
companies should be required to adopt a standard industry
policy for changing tickets, stand-bys, etc. Antitrust
Enforcement 
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