On March 4, 2019, the Federal Trade Commission published in the
Federal Register its 2019 adjustments to the Hart-Scott-Rodino
("HSR") Act thresholds. The adjusted thresholds take
effect on April 3, and will remain in effect through early
2020.
Each year by January 31, the FTC must publish adjusted
thresholds, which are used to determine when transactions require
premerger reporting under the HSR Act. Following the government
shutdown last December, publication of the 2019 thresholds was
delayed. April 3 marks the latest effective date for new HSR
thresholds since Congress amended the Act to require annual
indexing in 2005.
The Commission also published notification of revised thresholds
under Section 8 of the Clayton Act, which prohibits interlocking
directorates in certain circumstances. The new Section 8 thresholds
take effect on March 4.
