Creating the Attorney General Public Protection Bureau (H 6164, S 956)

We strongly opposed legislation which would expand the authority and powers of the Department of Attorney General to engage in intrusive investigatory practices. Specifically, this extraordinarily broad bill gives sweeping power to the Attorney General to conduct civil investigations and bring court action to enjoin any "repeated illegal acts" or "persistent illegality in the carrying on, conducting or transaction of business or governmental activity." In providing this power, this bill would allow the Attorney General to initiate investigations without first seeking court authorization or any input by the agencies already statutoritly entrusted to regulate such activities. It thus would allow the Attorney General to supersede, and potentially interfere with, the current jurisdiction of numerous other executive agencies that enforce statutory and regulatory protections over a wide array of business and governmental conduct.