| Comment Number: | 522418-07923 |
| Received: | 7/12/2006 12:27:50 AM |
| Organization: | Liberty Hill Enterprises/Legacy Business Group/Quixtar |
| Commenter: | David Post |
| State: | OH |
| Subject: | Business Opportunity Rule |
| Title: | Notice of Proposed Rulemaking |
| CFR Citation: | 16 CFR Part 437 |
| No Attachments |
Comments:
To whom it may concern, My wife and I have been Quixtar Independent Business Owners (IBOs) for the past two years. This home based business opportunity has allowed us to earn extra income commensurate with the amount of time and work that we have put into our business. Benefits other than income include self-improvement training in a positive environment, and business leadership training. When we registered in the business, we were provided answers to all our questions, more than enough to make an informed decision. The same information is provided to other business prospects. It is communicated up front in the business proposal presentation that Quixtar is not a get rich quick scheme, and there are no guarantees of success. The typical registration fee and optional product package cost is approximately $200.00. This is fully refundable. The average monthly gross income for active IBOs is $115.00. This is also stated in the presentation and in the IBO registration form. As to the proposed Business Opportunity Rule, I believe the original proposal contains several requirements that would impose crippling burdens on legitimate business owners without doing anything to prevent deception. Problem 1 Business prospects would have to wait seven days after receiving disclosures before they could register. Solution Eliminate the waiting period for business opportunities in which prospects are able to be fully refunded registration fees. Seven days would slow the registration process to the point of negative growth. Problem 2 Requirement to provide every business prospect a list of 10 references, to include name, phone number and address, of other IBOs in the area-seven days before registration. Solution Eliminate requirement to provide 10 references. This requirement infringes upon the privacy of the provided IBOs, not to mention that those IBOs may be more than willing to register the prospect themselves, thus unfairly penalizing the original sponsor. Problem 3 Provide every prospect a list of all lawsuits, arbitrations and other legal claims for the past 10 years involving Quixtar and its IBOs where the plaintiff alleged fraud, misrepresentation, or unfair trade practices, regardless of whether accusations are true. Solution Eliminate the requirement to disclose past litigation. Among other problems, this requirement would open up legitimate companies to false claims. Problem 4 Requirement to make a different disclosure for every income claim. Solution If disclosures are needed, require a simple, standard, easily understood disclosure such as average monthly gross income. In Quixtar, for example, this information is provided in writing on the registration form. Problem 5 Requirement to provide prospects with personal financial documents to substantiate any claim. Solution Business owners should possess substantiation for any claim, but should not be required to disclose it except when required by the FTC and similar state agencies in an agency investigation. I feel that providing detailed personal financial information to a business prospect that may or may not sign up to be an invasion of privacy. Thank you for your attention. David A. Post