FTC Puts 70 For-Profit Institutions on Notice

The Federal Trade Commission is planning to crack down on for-profit institutions that make false promises about their graduates’ outcomes, including job and earnings prospects, according to a Wednesday announcement. The commission has sent Notices of Penalty Offenses to 70 institutions, warning them that they could incur significant sanctions for engaging in unlawful practices.

“For too long, unscrupulous for-profit schools have preyed on students with impunity, facing no penalties when they defraud their students and drive them into debt,” said FTC chair Lina M. Khan. “The FTC is resurrecting a dormant authority to deter wrongdoing and hold accountable bad actors who abuse students and taxpayers.”

The notice allows the commission to seek civil penalties against an institution that engages in conduct previously determined by the FTC to be unlawful.

An institution’s inclusion on the list of those receiving notices doesn’t reflect any assessment as to whether it has engaged in deceptive or unfair conduct, the agency said.