Bureau of Corporations

The Bureau of Corporations was a group made to check on businesses and make sure they followed the rules. It started as part of the Department of Commerce and Labor in the United States. This group worked before the Federal Trade Commission was created to do these jobs. The Bureau of Corporations helped watch over companies to keep things fair for everyone.

Background

President Theodore Roosevelt asked Congress to pass a law. On February 14, 1903, they created the Bureau of Corporations and the Department of Commerce and Labor. Roosevelt thought this was a big success.

The Bureau’s main job was to study industries and find unfair business practices. In 1906, it made a report about moving petroleum. This helped create the Hepburn Act. The report was also used in 1911 when the government took apart Standard Oil.

In 1912, the Bureau made a report about water power in the United States. It talked about who owned water power and the rules needed for its use. These ideas later helped shape the Federal Water Power Act of 1920. The Bureau also studied other industries like meatpacking, tobacco, steel, and lumber.

Merger

In 1915, the Bureau of Corporations joined the new Federal Trade Commission. The Federal Trade Commission took over the staff and work of the Bureau. Joseph E. Davies, who led the Bureau, became the first Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission. His deputy, Francis Walker, became the chief economist of the new Commission.