The Supreme Court recently heard arguments in the ongoing challenge by former Democratic Commissioner Rebecca Slaughter to the Trump Administration’s decision to remove her from the FTC in March before her term was set to expire.
Both the district court and the court of appeals had concluded that Trump’s firing of Slaughter without cause was unlawful under the FTC Act, which only allows removal of a commissioner for inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office, but not for policy differences. However, in September, the Supreme Court stayed those decisions and allowed Slaughter’s removal to take effect while agreeing to hear the administration’s appeal. Supreme Court precedent from 1935, in a case called Humphrey’s Executor v. United States, has constrained presidential power by protecting the heads of independent agencies from removal, but justices from the Court’s conservative majority indicated in December that Humphrey’s Executor was a “dried husk of whatever people used to think it was,” and signaled that the Court may be inclined to overturn that precedent, and a decision is expected sometime before the end of June 2026.
While the Court weighs the scope of the President’s power over independent agency heads, the number of Commissioners at the FTC is again in flux. In November, Commissioner Melissa Holyoak stepped down from her seat to become interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Utah. Holyoak’s departure leaves the Commission with only two members: Chair Andrew Ferguson and Commissioner Mark Meador, both Republicans. At full strength, the Commission normally has five members, with no more than three from the same political party. While being limited to two commissioners could raise potential issues in the event of a split vote on policy actions, the Commission has already operated for part of 2025 with only two commissioners after the administration terminated both Democratic commissioners.