FTC Extends Its “Made in USA” Enforcement Push
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced on July 6, 2026, that it had sent seven warning letters to companies it says appear to have misrepresented products as “Made in the USA”—and, in one instance, as “Made in Texas”—that were imported in whole or in significant part. The letters follow an April 2026 enforcement sweep that included three proposed settlements and a March 2026 executive order directing the Commission to prioritize U.S.-origin enforcement. Companies that make domestic-origin claims should read the sequence as a signal of sustained regulatory attention.
What the Standard Requires
The FTC polices U.S.-origin claims under Section 5 of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. § 45, and, for labels, Section 45a. The commission’s Made in USA Labeling Rule, 16 C.F.R. Part 323, effective August 13, 2021, codified the long-standing “all or virtually all” standard: an unqualified “Made in USA” claim requires that final assembly and all significant processing occur in the United States and that all or virtually all components be U.S.-sourced.
Many of the agency’s recent enforcement matters involve allegations that companies performed final assembly in the United States using imported components and treated that as sufficient for an unqualified claim. The FTC’s position is that domestic final assembly does not, by itself, support an unqualified “Made in USA” representation.
The April Settlements
In April 2026, the commission announced three matters resolved through proposed stipulated orders. The sellers of electronic dartboards, flag and patriotic products, and footwear stipulated to orders barring the challenged claims and providing consumer redress; the largest, involving the dartboard seller, provided $625,000, which the FTC described as the largest redress in a Made in USA Labeling Rule case to date.
By contrast, the July 2026 warning letters do not impose penalties or reflect a formal determination of an FTC Act violation. Rather, they advise the recipients to “immediately come into compliance” with the FTC’s “Made in USA” requirements and request that each company contact the FTC to discuss its plan for doing so.
Where the Risk Lies
The FTC’s recent Made in USA enforcement has reached companies across diverse industry sectors. The products involved span industrial machinery, consumer electronics, footwear, vaping products, and flags. Any marketer making an unqualified domestic-origin claim on a product with meaningful foreign content or offshore processing is a candidate for scrutiny. Qualified claims—for example, “Assembled in USA” or “Made in USA with imported components”—remain available where accurate and clearly disclosed.
For companies that advertise environmental attributes alongside origin claims, the two obligations compound: each representation needs its own competent, reliable substantiation. The FTC likewise expects environmental marketing claims to be truthful, non-misleading, and supported by competent and reliable evidence.
