Standard Merger and Acquisition Reviews Through Equal Rules Act of 2014
Latest action. Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 495.
(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary of that version is repeated here.)
Standard Merger and Acquisition Reviews Through Equal Rules Act of 2014 - Amends the Clayton Act with respect to actions brought by the Attorney General for violations of antitrust laws. Requires the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), but only under the Clayton Act, to exercise the same authority and procedures of the Attorney General specified in the Act with respect to the prohibition against acquisition by one corporation of the stock of another (merger) that may substantially lessen competition or tend to create a monopoly.
Amends the Federal Trade Commission Act (FTCA) to exclude proposed mergers, acquisitions, joint ventures, or similar transactions from FTC proceedings.
Grants jurisdiction to the U.S. district courts to issue writs of mandamus commanding compliance with the FTCA or any FTC order, if the FTC applies to such courts with respect to any activity related to consummation of a merger, acquisition, joint venture, or similar transaction that results in an unfair method of competition.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Reported to House without amendment" stage on December 11, 2014. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on December 11, 2014: Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 495.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 113th Congress (2013-14), 296 of the 9,091 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 3.3 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
Blake Farenthold (R-TX) introduced it on September 8, 2014, and 1 member has since signed on as a cosponsor.
They are 1 Republican.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on September 8, 2014, 4385 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 4291 days ago, on December 11, 2014.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 113th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2015 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers