A person on President Trump’s short list to become the new head of the Federal Trade Commission has a potential conflict of interest, The Post has learned.
Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes, who is among the people under consideration to become chairman of the federal regulator, accepted a contribution from a local discount contact lens- maker while in court defending a law that benefited the company.
The company, 1-800-Contacts, also has a case before an FTC administrative judge.
The FTC filed a complaint against the Draper, Utah, company, the No. 1 online seller of contact lenses in the US, accusing it of masterminding a deal with 14 other online sellers not to compete in online advertising auctions.
Under the alleged deal, certain ad auctions on Google and other search engines would be reserved only for 1-800-Contacts, the FTC claimed.
Any appeal from that hearing would come before FTC commissioners. Reyes is being eyed as the chairman of the five-person board, Politico reported last month.
In all, the company donated $24,000 to Reyes from 2012 through 2015, public records show. Reyes was criticized for accepting one donation check after the state lawsuit commenced.
A Reyes spokesman said the donation was solicited before the suit.
Good-government groups slammed Reyes for not returning the check.
If Trump names Reyes to chair the FTC and the 1-800-Contacts case comes before the commissioners, the new chairman could recuse himself — although he could still have undue influence, one antitrust source said.
Interim FTC Chairwoman Maureen Ohlhausen is also in the running for the permanent job, sources said.
Reyes’ office did not return calls.
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