Consumer Bill of Rights: President Clinton this...

Consumer Bill of Rights: President Clinton this week endorsed consumers’ rights to service in the marketplace--convenience, courtesy and responsiveness to their problems--as he signed the 1994 proclamation establishing National Consumers Week. “Consumer organizations throughout the country are thrilled with the President’s inclusion of an individual’s right to fair and considerate service as a part of the national Consumer Bill of Rights,” said Polly Baca, director of the U.S. Office of Consumer Affairs. Clinton’s action is the first addition to the Consumer Bill of Rights in nearly 20 years.

In 1962, President John F. Kennedy delivered a message to Congress outlining these basic principles affecting consumers: the right to choice, information and safety in the marketplace, and the right to a fair hearing. In 1975, President Gerald R. Ford expanded these to include the right to consumer education.