Consumer protection refers to the laws designed to aid retail consumers of goods and services that have been improperly manufactured, delivered, performed, handled, or described. Such laws provide the retail consumer with additional protections and remedies not generally provided to merchants and others who engage in business transactions, on the premise that the consumers do not enjoy a sufficient bargaining position with respect to the businessmen with whom they deal and therefore should not be strictly limited by the legal rules that govern recovery for damages among businessmen. The overarching goal is to protect individuals and the interest of the public in general from unfair and misleading activity in business and commerce (such as false advertising and deceptive trade practices) and scams perpetrated by criminals (such as identity theft and pyramid schemes) that harm a substantial number of consumers.
Bloomington is an unincorporated town at the confluence of the North Branch Potomac River and Savage River in southeastern Garrett County, Maryland. It lies to the west of Luke on MD 135 (state highway 135) and is bounded to the northwest by Savage River State Forest. Originally known as Llangollen when the town's post office was established on December 4, 1872, its name was later changed to Bloomington. Jennings Randolph Lake to the southwest was completed in 1982 as Bloomington Lake but was renamed in 1987 by the United States Congress for West Virginia Senator William Jennings Randolph. A proposal has been filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission by Fairlawn Hydroelectric Company to construct a 10.5 MW hydroelectric facility at the Army Corps of Engineers-operated dam for the lake. If approved, construction could occur as early as 2012.