Comment Number: 522418-10733
Received: 7/16/2006 9:37:57 PM
Organization:
Commenter: Cameron
State: CA
Subject: Business Opportunity Rule
Title: Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
CFR Citation: 16 CFR Part 437
No Attachments

Comments:

Dear Sir or Madam : I am writing this letter because I am concerned about the proposed Business Opportunity Rule R511993. I believe that in its presented form, it could prevent me from continuing as a Distributor with XanGo, and destroy my small business. I have been an independent home based business Distributor for 1 yr. I incurred an injury that keeps me from doing my previous work of the last 20 yrs. Also, I have had to take in and care for my elderly disabled mother, so finding a good profession that I can do from home has been an enormous, life-saving blessing for me and my family. I started using this product because I was looking for help with my injury, and this has been very helpful and also has helped other members of my family. So I felt confident in selling thiis product through a home based Network Marketing business. Now my family is dependent on this income. It is my only source of income! Please don’t use this unnecessary Rule to destroy our small business!! We need it! The Heartbeat of American Business is Small Businesses, many of which are Home Based. Some of the sections in the proposed rule would make it virtually impossible for me to sell my product and operate my Home Based Business. . The waiting period will give the public the idea that there’s something wrong with me or our plan and also reflects badly on me. I also think this seven-day waiting period is totally unnecessary, because XanGo already has a 100% buyback policy for it’s single focus functional health beverage product . One of the most difficult sections of the proposed rule is the seven day waiting period to enroll a new Distributor. XanGo’s membership and sales kit only costs $35. People buy lunch, dinner, TVs, cars, and other items that cost much more than that and they don’t have to wait seven-days. Under this waiting period requirement, I will need to keep very detailed records when I first speak to someone a prospect and will then have to send in reports to my company. I am a small home business and this burden will hurt or destroy my business. This proposed rule is actually anti-small business. Finally, the proposed rule requires the disclosure of a minimum of 10 prior purchasers nearest to the prospective purchaser. I am glad to provide references, but in this day of identity theft, I am very uncomfortable giving out the personal information of individuals (without their approval) to strangers. Women in my organization may be subject to sexual or racial harassment so this part can’t go in at all, unless the FTC passes an addition to this rule prohibiting sexual or racial attacks related to this disclosure. In the end the rule must bind the FTC to take direct enforcement action on sexual and racial attacks with a special unit assigned to monitor actions related to the disclosure forms. This will actually hurt my business! This rule will not stop Crooks – they violate the current rule all the time. But I am a good American citizen and it will hurt me. In this day and age of soaring gas prices and baby boomers being faced with caring for their aging parents, home based businesses offer a solution to these very real challenges. It seems extremely unwise to take something that could benefit so many honest and hard working Americans, and take it away from them in a vain and naive jesture that will really just end up leaving this market open only for the crooks. Thank you in advance for your attention to and favorable consideration of this request. Sincerely, M. Cameron