Online Country of Origin Rules Proposed

Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc) and JD Vance (R-Ohio) are co-sponsoring legislation to ensure that all goods sold online list their country-of-origin so that US consumers will know where products have been made.

Unlike products sold in-person, products sold online are not currently required to disclose their country-of-origin. The Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) Online Act would increase transparency online by updating labeling laws for the e-commerce era so online shoppers have the same access to country-of-origin and seller location information that in-person shoppers do.

“The American people deserve to know where the products they buy are made, regardless of whether they’re shopping in-store or online,” Sen. Vance commented. “Our legislation would close a legal loophole by extending current, commonsense labeling requirements to e-commerce. With this proposal, we can give American consumers the confidence that their online purchases support American workers and industry.”

The bill would require:

• The country-of-origin labeling for a product, as required by existing law, be clearly and conspicuously stated in the website’s description of the product and
• Clear disclosure of the country in which the seller of the product is located in the online product listing.