On May 8, the Federal Trade Commission announced that the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California granted its request to preliminarily enjoin affiliated California-based debt relief companies from continuing operations, and to freeze their assets. In its complaint , the FTC alleged that the companies violated Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act, 15 U.S.C. 45 , by deceiving consumers and falsely promising they could help consumers avoid foreclosure and lower mortgage payments.