WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) today introduced the Click to Quit Act to require online platforms such as social networks, search engines and public websites to give users a straightforward way to delete their accounts. The Federal Trade Commission would penalize any platforms that violate this requirement.

“Quitting a social media account or a web app shouldn’t require a trip through a maze of tabs or legalese. Online platforms often make it confusing or hard for users to cut ties, and the Click to Quit Act would give users a quick, easy and sure way to delete their accounts,” said Kennedy.

Text of the Click to Quit Act is available here.

WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden today signed into law Sen. John Kennedy’s (R-La.) DUMP Opioids Act to allow everyone in a community to use drop boxes at VA medical centers to dispose of unused controlled substance prescription medications. The Senate unanimously passed Kennedy’s legislation in April, and the House of Representatives unanimously passed the bill earlier this week. 

“With the DUMP Opioids Act law, Americans will have an easy, safe way to get unneeded prescription opioids off the street. The pandemic has contributed to the opioid epidemic, and I’m thankful that President Biden and Congress came together to put this commonsense, compassionate law in place. Louisiana communities struggling against this crisis now have a key tool to fight and prevent addiction—and that makes everyone safer,” said Kennedy.

Beginning in 2022, certain VA medical centers will be approved to have drop boxes that veterans can use every day to drop off unused medications, and the DUMP Opioids Act would make those drop boxes accessible to their entire communities. The bill instructs the VA Secretary to designate times that the public can dispose of prescriptions at the drop boxes and allows the secretary to carry out public information campaigns to highlight those times. 

Kennedy spoke yesterday on the importance of the DUMP Opioids Act. That video is available here.

Text of the DUMP Opioids Act is available here.

WASHINGTON – Sens. John Kennedy (R-La.) and Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), along with five of their Senate colleagues, sent a letter to Chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Gary Gensler following the initial public offering (IPO) by the Chinese vehicle-for-hire company Didi and the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) enforcement actions against Didi.

The senators urged Gensler to enforce the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act and start thorough investigations of potentially fraudulent Chinese Companies listed on U.S. stock exchanges.

“As an illustration of our concern, the Chinese ride-hailing company, Didi Global Inc. recently held its initial public offering (IPO) on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). Prior to the offering, Didi officials and executives downplayed the risks of imminent Chinese regulation in its IPO prospectus filed at the SEC despite news reports that the CCP warned Didi officials to delay the IPO. . . . Immediately following the IPO, the CCP’s cyber arm, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), opened an investigation into Didi claiming that the company violated Chinese privacy and national security laws. . . . Resulting from this CAC crackdown, Didi’s stock price plummeted only two days after its IPO. The timing of the CAC investigation conveniently occurred after the company was able to snatch billions of dollars from American investors,” the senators wrote.

“The Didi IPO also highlights the troubling trend of Chinese companies taking advantage of our capital markets while ignoring the transparency that is required under U.S. law to access U.S. markets. According to the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, as of October 2020 there were 217 Chinese companies listed on U.S. exchanges, including 13 companies that are claimed by the CCP as Chinese state-owned enterprises. We have serious doubts that these companies are in compliance with U.S. transparency requirements,” the senators continued.

“All of this requires the SEC to get much more serious and focused on U.S. listed Chinese companies, starting with the full enforcement of the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act that became law last year after passing both chambers of Congress unanimously. This law will delist Chinese companies that do not comply with Public Company Accounting Oversight Board inspections within three years. The SEC should recognize the urgency of implementing this law and begin counting compliance years now. Congress has already recognized this urgency and is currently considering accelerating this law’s compliance shot clock,” the senators continued.

The senators recommended that, to combat the threat of fraudulent Chinese companies, the SEC should also:

• Launch investigations into Chinese companies, like Didi, and their underwriters to combat potential fraud and reporting oversights.

• Investigate the potential risks that certain Chinese-controlled shell companies pose to U.S. investors.

• Consider cooperative efforts among American, European and Japanese stock exchanges to prevent prospective or delisted Chinese companies from working their way into other prominent markets.

• Investigate index providers doing business in the U.S. that continue to add Chinese companies to their products despite these companies’ lack of transparency.

Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.) and Rick Scott (R-Fla.) joined Kennedy and Sullivan on the letter.

Text of the letter is available here.

Background

Last December, the president signed into law Kennedy’s Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act, which prohibits a company from being listed on any of the U.S. securities exchanges if the company has failed to comply with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board’s (PCAOB) audits for three years in a row.

Many Americans invest in U.S. stock exchanges as part of their retirement and college savings, and dishonest companies operating on the exchanges put Americans’ investments at risk. This legislation protects the interest of hardworking American investors by ensuring that foreign companies traded in America are subject to the same independent audit requirements that apply to their competitors in America and other countries.

This June, the Senate also passed Kennedy’s Accelerating Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act, which would put additional pressure on China by requiring foreign companies to comply with PCAOB audits within two consecutive years instead of three. This would help remove fraudulent and non-compliant companies from U.S. exchanges more quickly.

WASHINGTON – The House of Representatives today passed Sen. John Kennedy’s (R-La.) DUMP Opioids Act, which would allow everyone in a community to use drop boxes at VA medical centers to dispose of unused controlled substance prescription medications. The Senate passed Kennedy’s legislation in April, and the bill now heads to the president’s desk.

“Giving communities a way to safely get unneeded opioids off the street is a crucial step in combating the opioid epidemic. The House has taken a simple, lifesaving step, and I’m thankful to Dr. Miller-Meeks for championing this bill. I hope that President Biden signs this commonsense, compassionate bill very soon. The opioid crisis hurts families in Louisiana and around the country every day, and the DUMP Opioids Act gives everyone a key tool to make our communities safer and healthier,” said Kennedy. 

Beginning in 2022, certain VA medical centers will be approved to have drop boxes that veterans can use every day to drop off unused medications, and the DUMP Opioids Act would make those drop boxes accessible to their entire communities. The bill instructs the VA Secretary to designate times that the public can dispose of prescriptions at the drop boxes and allows the secretary to carry out public information campaigns to highlight those times. 

Text of the DUMP Opioids Act is available here.