COOL Online Act
Country of Origin Labeling Requirement Act or the COOL Online Act This bill requires sellers of imported products online to conspicuously disclose the country of origin of the products and the country where the seller's principal place of business is located. This requirement does not apply to specified products, such as agricultural commodities, food or drugs, or previously owned items. The Federal Trade Commission must enforce violations of this requirement as unfair or deceptive trade practices.
The provisions, in plain language.
Online sellers must clearly show the country (or countries) where a product was made, and the country where the seller's main office is located, on the product's webpage — using the same country-of-origin rules already required on the physical product label.
The country-of-origin and seller-location disclosure rules do NOT apply to: agricultural commodities already covered by the Agricultural Marketing Act (such as fresh produce and muscle cuts of meat), meat and poultry products inspected under federal meat and poultry laws, or egg products regulated under the Egg Products Inspection Act.
The disclosure rules also do NOT apply to foods or drugs regulated by the FDA under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.
The disclosure rules do NOT apply to used or previously-owned items sold through an online marketplace.
Small sellers — those with under $20,000 in annual sales and fewer than 200 transactions — are exempt from the disclosure requirements.
Non-prescription (over-the-counter) drugs sold online must clearly display the name and place of business of the manufacturer, packer, or distributor, as required on the physical drug label.
Manufacturers, importers, distributors, and other upstream suppliers must provide country-of-origin and seller-location information to retailers so retailers can display it online.
A retailer or marketplace seller satisfies the disclosure rule if it displays the country-of-origin and seller information it received from a third-party manufacturer, importer, or distributor — the retailer is not required to independently verify that information.
Violations of the online disclosure requirement are treated as violations of FTC rules and enforced by the Federal Trade Commission with the same penalties as other FTC Act violations.
Within six months of enactment, the FTC, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and the Department of Agriculture must sign a coordination agreement and publish it publicly to ensure consistent enforcement.
A retailer or seller is not liable for a violation if a third-party supplier provided false country-of-origin information, the retailer relied on it in good faith, and immediately removed the false information upon learning of it.
The law takes effect 12 months after the inter-agency coordination agreement is published.
Who it helps · who it burdens.
Who it helps
- Online shoppers / consumersConsumers who buy physical goods online gain the right to see where a product was made and where the seller is based, before they purchase — information the bill requires to be conspicuously displayed on product pages (Provision 1).
- Small online sellers (under $20,000 annual sales / fewer than 200 transactions)Small sellers are explicitly exempted from all disclosure obligations under the bill (Provision 5), shielding them from the compliance burden imposed on larger sellers.
- Retailers who rely in good faith on supplier-provided informationRetailers are shielded from liability if they display country-of-origin information provided by a third party, acted in good faith, and removed false information promptly upon notice (Provisions 8, 11).
Who it burdens
- Online retailers and marketplace sellers (excluding small sellers)Retailers selling products covered by the rule must add country-of-origin and seller-location disclosures to their online product listings; they must also obtain that information from upstream suppliers (Provisions 1, 7). Small sellers under $20k/200 transactions are exempt (Provision 5).
- Manufacturers, importers, distributors, and private labelersUpstream suppliers must actively provide country-of-origin and seller-location data to retailers to enable disclosure compliance (Provision 7); failure to do so or providing false information can expose them to FTC liability (Provisions 9, 11).