[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3576 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3576

 To clarify that the Federal Trade Commission Act prohibits excessive 
  and unjustified price increases in the sale of certain products and 
services when an emergency or disaster results in abnormal disruptions 
                 of the market, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 24, 2020

Ms. Klobuchar (for herself, Mr. Blumenthal, Ms. Hirono, and Ms. Cortez 
Masto) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 
       to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To clarify that the Federal Trade Commission Act prohibits excessive 
  and unjustified price increases in the sale of certain products and 
services when an emergency or disaster results in abnormal disruptions 
                 of the market, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Disaster and Emergency Pricing Abuse 
Prevention Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this section:
     (a) Commission.--The term ``Commission'' means the Federal Trade 
Commission.
    (b) Essential Goods or Services.--The term ``essential goods or 
services'' means goods or services that may be used to preserve, 
protect, or sustain the health, safety, or welfare of members of the 
public from potential harms resulting from a natural disaster, a 
pandemic, or the circumstances giving rise to a state of emergency.
    (c) Natural Disaster.--The term ``natural disaster'' means a 
disaster, catastrophe, or emergency, including flood, fire, earthquake, 
storm, or other serious act of nature, which threatens the health, 
safety, or welfare of the public.
    (d) Person.--The term ``person'' means an individual or entity, its 
directors, officers, employees, agents, representatives, successors, 
and assigns, including any entity the person controls, and the 
respective directors, officers, employees, agents, representatives, 
successors, and assigns of each.
    (e) State of Emergency.--The term ``state of emergency'' means any 
state of emergency or disaster declared by the President or by the 
government of any State or territory of the United States.
    (f) Unconscionably Excessive Price.--The term ``unconscionably 
excessive price'' means a price that represents a gross disparity 
between the price of the essential good or service that is the subject 
of an offer or transaction during, or in anticipation of, a natural 
disaster, pandemic, or state of emergency and the average price at 
which such essential good or service was offered in the ordinary course 
of business prior to any public anticipation of a natural disaster, 
pandemic, or state of emergency.

SEC. 3. FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION ENFORCEMENT AGAINST PRICE GOUGING.

    (a) Violation.--Selling, or offering for sale, essential goods and 
services, in or affecting commerce, at an unconscionably excessive 
price during, or in anticipation of, a natural disaster, pandemic, or 
state of emergency, shall constitute an unfair or deceptive act or 
practice under section 5(a) of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 
U.S.C. 45(a)).
    (b) Civil Action.--
            (1) In general.--If the Commission has reason to believe 
        that there has been a violation of section 5(a) of the Federal 
        Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 45(a)) under subsection (a) of 
        this section, the Commission may commence a civil action to 
        recover a civil penalty and seek other appropriate relief in a 
        district court of the United States.
            (2) Presumption.--In a civil action under paragraph (1), 
        the price of an essential good or service shall be presumed to 
        be an unconscionably excessive price if the price charged or 
        offered by the defendant during, or in anticipation of, a 
        natural disaster, pandemic, or state of emergency, exceeded by 
        20 percent the greater of--
                    (A) the average price charged by the defendant for 
                the essential good or service during the preceding 60 
                days before the public could reasonably have 
                anticipated the natural disaster, pandemic, or state of 
                emergency; or
                    (B) the average price at which buyers could obtain 
                such good or service or similar goods or services in 
                the geographic area during the 60-day period before the 
                date on which the public could reasonably have 
                anticipated the natural disaster, pandemic, or state of 
                emergency,
        unless the price charged by the defendant is attributable to 
        price increases in related input markets or to additional 
        expenses not within the control of the defendant that increased 
        the defendant's costs to furnish the essential goods or 
        services.
            (3) Civil penalty.--In an action under paragraph (1), any 
        person that has been found liable for a violation of section 
        5(a) of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 45(a)) 
        under subsection (a) of this section shall be subject to a 
        civil penalty of an amount no greater than $10,000 per 
        violation.
            (4) Rule of construction.--The civil penalty provided in 
        this subsection is in addition to, and not in lieu of, any 
        other remedies provided by Federal law, including injunctive 
        relief under section 13(b) of the Federal Trade Commission Act 
        (15 U.S.C. 53(b)). Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed 
        to affect any authority of the Commission under any other 
        provision of law.

SEC. 4. PRICE GOUGING HOTLINE.

    The Commission shall establish a telephone hotline and an online 
portal dedicated solely to receiving price gouging complaints from the 
public, which shall be activated in anticipation of or during major 
disasters or states of emergency and shall remain operational until 120 
days after the conclusion of such major disasters or states of 
emergency.

SEC. 5. NO PREEMPTION OF STATE LAW.

    Nothing in this Act preempts any State law.
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