House Approves Bill To Punish Price Gouging In Fuel Sales
May 4, 2006, WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Rep. Bart Gordon voted for legislation Wednesday (May 3) that would establish the first federal regulations against price gouging in fuel sales.
The U.S. House of Representatives approved H.R. 5253, which gives the Federal Trade Commission the authority to stop price gouging for wholesale and retail sales of gasoline, diesel fuel, crude oil, home heating oil and biofuels. The bill now goes to the Senate for consideration.
“With gas prices at more than $3.00 a gallon in many areas, consumers have the right to know if they are paying a fair price for gas,” said Gordon, a senior member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
On April 27, Gordon joined almost 100 of his colleagues in sending a letter to the Speaker of the House asking him to hold congressional hearings to investigate possible price gouging. The lawmakers also asked the Speaker to bring up legislation to hold price gougers responsible for their actions.
“It’s about time that Congress take action on this issue rather than argue over partisan politics,” said Gordon. “I am disappointed it took so long for the House to act, and I hope the Senate will consider this issue sooner rather than later.”
H.R. 5253 requires the FTC to define price gouging and labels the practice as an “unfair or deceptive act.” That designation will enable the FTC to punish price gougers with fines of up to $10,000 per incidence. In instances of price gouging in wholesale or retail fuel sales, additional fines could penalize violators by charging them three times the amount of their unjust profits or up to $3 million per day for repeat offenders.
In addition, the U.S. Justice Department could bring criminal charges against price gougers and penalize them with two years in prison. Retail gougers could receive fines of up to $2 million, while wholesale gougers could be fined up to $150 million. State attorneys general would be able to file lawsuits against price gougers on behalf of residents if an FTC case is not pending.
“While this legislation will help protect consumers from being cheated by price gougers, our dependence on foreign oil is a problem we still need to address,” said Gordon. “Our nation needs a more balanced energy policy that will maximize our domestic energy resources, including clean and renewable sources of energy, as well as promote conservation and energy efficiency.”
