According to an article in the New York Post:
Betsy DeVos’ well-connected family wants Amway to get a leg up on Herbalife — and it’s pushing Congress to make it happen.
The US education secretary’s Michigan-based family, which is the controlling shareholder of privately held Amway, is backing a little-noticed amendment to the US House spending bill that would limit regulatory oversight of so-called multilevel marketers, or MLMs.
Specifically, the rider would curb the ability of the Federal Trade Commission to investigate whether MLMs like Amway are pyramid schemes — potentially protecting Amway from costly regulations that have recently ensnared its archrival Herbalife.
“Of course, Amway is supportive” of the amendment,
said Joseph Mariano, president of the Direct Selling Association, which represents MLMs and counts Amway as its biggest member.
Meanwhile, Herbalife Senior Vice President Ed Rosen asked several US Congressmen in a July letter to tack added consumer protections to the bill — the kind that Herbalife will be forced to implement whether Amway’s bill passes or not.
Under a 2016 settlement with the FTC, Herbalife agreed to fully restructure its US business operations, and distinguish customers, who sign up to purchase products at a discount, from distributors, who resell the products to earn commissions.
“[The] compensation