2017-14975. Imperial Paints, LLC; Analysis To Aid Public Comment

AGENCY:

Federal Trade Commission.

ACTION:

Proposed consent agreement.

SUMMARY:

The consent agreement in this matter settles alleged violations of federal law prohibiting unfair or deceptive acts or practices. The attached Analysis to Aid Public Comment describes both the allegations in the 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 August 10, 2017.

ADDRESSES:

Interested parties may file a comment online or on paper, by following the instructions in the Request for Comment part of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below. Write: “In the Matter of Imperial Paints, LLC, File No. 1623080” on your comment, and file your comment online at https://ftcpublic.commentworks.com/​ftc/​imperialpaintsconsent by following the instructions on the Web-based form. If you prefer to file your comment on paper, write “In the Matter of Imperial Paints, LLC, File No. 1623080” on your comment and on the envelope, and mail your comment to the following address: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Suite CC-5610 (Annex D), Washington, DC 20580, or deliver your comment to the following address: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the Secretary, Constitution Center, 400 7th Street SW., 5th Floor, Suite 5610 (Annex D), Washington, DC 20024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Alejandro Rosenberg (202-326-2698), Bureau of Consumer Protection, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20580.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Pursuant to Section 6(f) of the Federal Trade Commission Act, 15 U.S.C. 46(f), and FTC Rule 2.34, 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 July 11, 2017), on the World Wide Web, at https://www.ftc.gov/​news-events/​commission-actions.

You can file a comment online or on paper. For the Commission to consider your comment, we must receive it on or before August 10, 2017. Write “In the Matter of Imperial Paints, LLC, File No. 1623080” on your comment. Your comment—including your name and your state—will be placed on the public record of this proceeding, including, to the extent practicable, on the public Commission Web site, at https://www.ftc.gov/​policy/​public-comments.

Postal mail addressed to the Commission is subject to delay due to heightened security screening. As a result, we encourage you to submit your comments online. To make sure that the Commission considers your online comment, you must file it at https://ftcpublic.commentworks.com/​ftc/​imperialpaintsconsent by following the instructions on the web-based form. If this Notice appears at http://www.regulations.gov/​#!home,, you also may file a comment through that Web site.

If you prefer to file your comment on paper, write “In the Matter of Imperial Paints, LLC, File No. 1623080” on your comment and on the envelope, and mail your comment to the following address: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Suite CC-5610 (Annex D), Washington, DC 20580, or deliver your comment to the following address: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the Secretary, Constitution Center, 400 7th Street SW., 5th Floor, Suite 5610 (Annex D), Washington, DC. 20024. If possible, submit your paper comment to the Commission by courier or overnight service.

Because your comment will be placed on the publicly accessible FTC Web site at https://www.ftc.gov,, you are solely responsible for making sure that your comment does not include any sensitive or confidential information. In particular, your comment should not include any sensitive personal information, such as your or anyone else'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. You are also solely responsible for making sure that your comment does not include any sensitive health information, such as medical records or other individually identifiable health information. In addition, your comment should not include any “trade secret or any commercial or financial information which . . . is privileged or confidential”—as provided by Section 6(f) of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. 46(f), and FTC Rule 4.10(a)(2), 16 CFR 4.10(a)(2)—including in particular competitively sensitive information such as costs, sales statistics, inventories, formulas, patterns, devices, manufacturing processes, or customer names.

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). In particular, the written request for confidential treatment that accompanies the comment must include the factual and legal basis for the request, and must identify the specific portions of the comment to be withheld from the public record. See FTC Rule 4.9(c). Your comment will be kept confidential only if the General Counsel grants your request in accordance with the law and the public interest. Once your comment has been posted on the public FTC Web site—as legally required by FTC Rule 4.9(b)—we cannot redact or remove your comment from the FTC Web site, unless you submit a confidentiality request that meets the requirements for such treatment under FTC Rule 4.9(c), and the General Counsel grants that request.

Visit the FTC Web site at http://www.ftc.gov to read this Notice and the news release describing it. The FTC Act and other laws that 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 on or before August 10, 2017. For information on the Commission's privacy policy, including routine uses permitted by the Privacy Act, see https://www.ftc.gov/​site-information/​privacy-policy.

Analysis of Agreement Containing Consent Order To Aid Public Comment

The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC” or “Commission”) has accepted, subject to final approval, an agreement containing a consent order from Imperial Paints, LLC, a limited liability company (“respondent”), doing business as Lullaby Paints and Ecos Paints.

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 or make final the agreement's proposed order.

This matter involves respondent's marketing, sale, and distribution of purportedly “VOC-free” paints. “VOC” is the abbreviation for volatile organic compounds. VOC-free includes claims such as “zero VOCs,” “0 VOCs,” and “No VOCs.” According to the FTC complaint, respondent made unsubstantiated representations that its paints: (1) Are VOC-free; (2) are VOC-free during or immediately after painting; (3) will not emit any chemical or substance, including VOCs, that causes material harm to consumers, including sensitive populations such as babies, pregnant women, and allergy and asthma sufferers; and (4) will not emit any chemical or substance, including VOCs, during or immediately after painting, that causes material harm to consumers, including sensitive populations such as babies, pregnant women, and allergy and asthma sufferers. The FTC further alleges that respondent provided independent retailers with promotional materials containing the same claims it made to consumers. Thus, the complaint alleges that respondent engaged in deceptive practices in violation of Section 5(a) of the FTC Act.

The proposed consent order contains three provisions designed to prevent respondent from engaging in similar acts and practices in the future. Part I prohibits emission-free and VOC-free claims unless both content and emissions are actually zero or at trace levels. The orders define “emission” to include all emissions (not just VOCs that cause smog). This definition reflects the Commission's Enforcement Policy Statement and consumer expectations: consumers are likely concerned about the potential health effects from exposure to chemical emissions found in indoor air, not just VOCs that affect outdoor air quality. The order defines “trace level of emission” to mean (1) no intentionally added VOC, (2) emission of the covered product does not cause material harm that consumers typically associate with emission, including harm to the environment or human health, and (3) emission of the covered product does not result in more than harmless concentrations of any compound higher than would be found under normal conditions in the typical residential home without interior architectural coating. Part II prohibits misleading representations regarding emission, VOC levels, odor, and any general environmental and health benefit of paints. The order requires competent and reliable scientific evidence to substantiate these representations. Part IV prohibits respondent from providing third parties with the means and instrumentalities to make false, unsubstantiated, or otherwise misleading representations of material fact regarding paints, including any representation prohibited by Parts I or II.

To correct existing unsubstantiated zero emission and VOC claims, Part III requires the respondent to send letters to its dealers and distributors, instructing them to put stickers on paint cans to obscure allegedly unsubstantiated emission and VOC claims.

Part V through IX are reporting and compliance provisions. Part V mandates that respondent acknowledge receipt of the order, distribute the order to certain employees and agents, and secure acknowledgments from recipients of the order. Part VI requires that respondent submit compliance reports to the FTC within sixty (60) days of the order's issuance and submit additional reports when certain events occur. Part VII requires that respondent must create and retain certain records for five (5) years. Part VIII provides for the FTC's continued compliance monitoring of respondent's activity during the order's effective dates. Part IX is a provision “sunsetting” the order after twenty (20) years, with certain exceptions.

If the Commission finalizes the agreement's proposed order, it plans to propose harmonizing with this order the consent orders issued in the PPG Architectural Finishes, Inc. (Docket No. C-4385) and The Sherwin-Williams Company (Docket No. C-4386) matters. Specifically, the Commission plans to issue orders to show cause why those matters should not be modified pursuant to Section 3.72(b) of the Commission Rules of Practice, 16 CFR 3.72(b).

The purpose of the 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.