Democrats: Protect Consumers Against Gas Price Gouging
Press Release
Democrats: Protect Consumers Against Gas Price Gouging
Democrats: Energy Independence by 2020
Senate Democratic leaders joined together today with farmers, airline employees and other consumers hit hard by rising gas prices to fight gas price gouging. Democrats want to give the President the authority to declare a national energy emergency and strengthen the hand of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) when fighting illegal price gouging that is hitting consumers hard at the pumps. Democrats are committed to fighting illegal practices as they work to make America energy independent. Democrats know that America can do better and are determined to increase our national security and protect consumers by breaking our dependence on foreign oil.
Following the devastating impact of Hurricane Katrina, consumers across the country have also been dealt an expensive blow at the gas pump. Even before Katrina, skyrocketing gas prices are having an effect all across the economy, squeezing the budgets of American families, hurting farmers, threatening airlines and putting the trucking industry at risk. At the same time, oil companies continue to make record profits.
"Skyrocketing oil and gas prices are hurting the American economy and consumers," said Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA), a member of the Senate Energy and Commerce Committees. "We need a serious national strategy to address this issue ."
" We need to make price gouging at the pump a crime so that in times of national energy emergencies, oil companies aren't tempted to rake in outrageous profits," Cantwell continued. " Federal regulators need to have every tool in their arsenal to protect consumers against price manipulation at the gas pump."
"American must do better, we must be energy independent by 2020," Cantwell added.
Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) stated , "It's taking the help of all Americans to recover from Hurricane Katrina, from kids with lemonade stands to families making donations and taking in strangers - all we're asking the oil industry to do is not to gouge consumers, to stop manipulating the market as they have for years. If the oil companies won't step up in this time of crisis, the FTC needs to step in, and Congress has a duty to make sure that happens."
Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) added, "No one anywhere in this country should be able to get away with profiteering from a disaster like Hurricane Katrina. We must do everything we can to help ensure that consumers are not the victims of price gouging when they fill up their tanks or heat their homes later this fall."
Democrats want to strengthen FTC's hand to stop gas price gouging and profiteering.
Specifically, Democrats are proposing that Congress:
Create emergency authority at FTC to investigate gasoline price gouging if President makes an Energy Emergency declaration. Currently 28 states have similar type of authority.
The FTC, an independent regulatory commission, would conduct the investigation and would be authorized to fine companies for price gouging versus the more traditional remedies such as cease and desist orders and requiring that companies disgorge profits after the fact. Definition of price gouging would be done through FTC rulemaking. No preemption of state law.
The FTC would create a Web site and toll free number so consumers could report price gouging.
According to data from the federal Energy Information Administration (EIA), gasoline prices were averaging about $3.07 a gallonor $1.22 higher than last year, a more than 60 percent increase.
Earlier this month, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) also released a report on the projected economic impacts of Hurricane Katrina. The CBO report found that a 40 percent increase in prices during September could impact national GDP during the third and fourth quarters of this year, and called the spike in prices "a temporary redistribution of income from consumers of gasoline to the stockholders of refiners."
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