Congress locks in consumer right to cancel subscriptions with one click

What it does

This bill converts the FTC's November 2024 click-to-cancel rule into federal law. The rule requires companies to make it as easy to cancel a subscription or recurring charge as it was to sign up. Consumers gain a statutory right to cancel with one click, and the FTC gains explicit enforcement power backed by civil penalties.

Why we flagged it

The bill takes an existing FTC administrative rule protecting consumers from subscription traps and elevates it to statutory law, making it harder to repeal and easier to enforce. This is straightforward consumer protection legislation.

What the text implies

• Codification into statute makes the rule much harder for future administrations to rescind via administrative action alone—repeal would require new legislation.
• The rule applies to all negative-option (recurring charge) offerings, potentially affecting streaming services, subscription boxes, gym memberships, and financial services—broad sectoral reach.
• FTC enforcement authority is explicitly tied to the Federal Trade Commission Act's penalty structure, meaning violations can trigger civil penalties up to $43,792 per violation (2024 adjusted amount), creating significant compliance incentives.

Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.

Who it affects

Consumers gain a clear statutory right to cancel subscriptions with the same ease as signup, eliminating dark patterns that trap users in recurring charges. The FTC gains explicit enforcement authority with civil penalties, creating a deterrent against deceptive cancellation practices.

Named in the bill

Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Negative Option Rule, Federal Trade Commission Act

Where it stands

19 cosponsors: 19 Democrats.

• Jul 29, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
• Jul 29, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on Energy and Commerce · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.

Money around this bill

1 lobbying clients named this bill on 2 disclosure filings across 2 quarters, Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $2,810,000 in lobbying spend. A filing names 36 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.

More lobbying clients named this bill than 0% of bills with at least one filing.

Brad Sherman, the sponsor, reported $801,500 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.

• Entertainment Software Association — $2,810,000 on 2 filings

Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 20, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.