[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3647 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3647

   To prohibit price gouging for necessary products during federally 
              declared national emergencies or disasters.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 7, 2020

  Mr. Booker introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
   referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To prohibit price gouging for necessary products during federally 
              declared national emergencies or disasters.

    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 ``Prevent Emergency and Disaster 
Profiteering Act of 2020''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the 
        Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
            (2) Commission.--The term ``Commission'' means the Federal 
        Trade Commission.
            (3) Emergency period; emergency area.--An ``emergency 
        period'' is the period during which, and an ``emergency area'' 
        is a geographical area in which, there exists--
                    (A) a major disaster declared by the President 
                under section 401 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster 
                Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170);
                    (B) an emergency declared by the President under 
                section 501 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 5191); or
                    (C) a public health emergency declared by the 
                Secretary pursuant to section 319 of the Public Health 
                Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247d).
            (4) Price gouging.--The term ``price gouging'' means the 
        sale of a good or service at an unconscionably excessive price 
        by a person during an emergency period and in an emergency 
        area.
            (5) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Health and Human Services.
            (6) Unconscionably excessive price.--
                    (A) In general.--The term ``unconscionably 
                excessive price'' means, with respect to a good or 
                service sold or offered for sale by a person, a price 
                that exceeds, by a margin that is greater than the 
                allowable margin determined by the Administrator or the 
                Secretary (as applicable) for the good or service under 
                section 3, the average price at which the good or 
                service was sold by the person during the 90-day period 
                prior to the date on which an emergency or disaster 
                described in paragraph (2) is declared.
                    (B) Exception.--Such term shall not include any 
                price for a good or service that is increased beyond 
                the margin described in subparagraph (A) if such 
                increased price is directly attributable to an 
                appreciable increase in the cost of acquiring, 
                producing, selling, transporting, or delivering the 
                good or service, or is otherwise justified by 
                circumstances outside of the control of the seller, as 
                determined by the Administrator or the Secretary (as 
                applicable).

SEC. 3. PREVENTING PRICE GOUGING DURING FEDERALLY DECLARED EMERGENCIES.

    (a) In General.--During an emergency period and in an emergency 
area, it shall be unlawful for any person to engage in price gouging 
with respect to a necessary good or service covered by a list published 
by the Administrator under subsection (b)(1) or by the Secretary under 
subsection (b)(2).
    (b) Necessary Goods and Services Lists.--
            (1) Presidentially declared emergencies.--In the case of an 
        emergency that is described in subparagraph (A) or (B) of 
        section 2(3):
                    (A) The Administrator, in consultation with the 
                Secretary, may publish on the internet website of the 
                Federal Emergency Management Agency a list with respect 
                to an emergency area during an emergency period to 
                designate the goods and services to which the 
                prohibition described in subsection (a) shall apply.
                    (B) The Administrator, in consultation with the 
                Secretary, may update any list published under 
                subparagraph (A) to remove a good or service from the 
                list or add a good or service to the list, but the 
                prohibition described in subsection (a) shall not apply 
                to a good or service before the date on which good or 
                service is added to the list.
                    (C) For any good or service included in a list 
                under this paragraph, the Administrator shall specify 
                the allowable margin by which the price at which a 
                person sells or offers for sale such good or service 
                may exceed the average price at which the good or 
                service was sold or offered by the person during the 
                90-day period prior to the date on which the emergency 
                or disaster involved was declared.
            (2) Public health emergency.--In the case of an emergency 
        described in section 2(3)(C):
                    (A) The Secretary may publish on the internet 
                website of the Department of Health and Human Services 
                a list with respect to an emergency area during an 
                emergency period to designate the goods and services to 
                which the prohibition described in subsection (a) shall 
                apply.
                    (B) The Secretary may update any list published 
                under subparagraph (A) to remove a good or service from 
                the list or add a good or service to the list, but the 
                prohibition described in subsection (a) shall not apply 
                to a good or service before the date on which good or 
                service is added to the list.
                    (C) For any good or service included in a list 
                under this paragraph, the Secretary shall specify the 
                allowable margin by which the price at which a person 
                sells or offers for sale such good or service may 
                exceed the average price at which the good or service 
                was sold or offered by the person during the 90-day 
                period prior to the date on which the emergency or 
                disaster involved was declared.
    (c) Duration of Prohibition.--The prohibition described in 
subsection (a) shall apply to a good or service that is included on a 
list published by the Administrator or the Secretary (as applicable) 
under subsection (b)--
            (1) beginning with the first day that the good or service 
        is included on such a list; and
            (2) ending with the earlier of--
                    (A) the last day that the good or service is 
                included on such a list; and
                    (B) the last day of every emergency period relating 
                to a list on which the good or service is included.

SEC. 4. ENFORCEMENT.

    (a) Enforcement by Federal Trade Commission.--
            (1) Unfair or deceptive acts or practices.--A violation of 
        section 3 shall be treated as a violation of a regulation under 
        section 18(a)(1)(B) of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 
        U.S.C. 57a(a)(1)(B)) regarding unfair or deceptive acts or 
        practices.
            (2) Powers of commission.--The Commission shall enforce 
        section 3 in the same manner, by the same means, and with the 
        same jurisdiction, powers, and duties as though all applicable 
        terms and provisions of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 
        U.S.C. 41 et seq.) were incorporated into and made a part of 
        this Act. Any person who violates such section shall be subject 
        to the penalties and entitled to the privileges and immunities 
        provided in the Federal Trade Commission Act.
    (b) Effect on Other Laws.--Nothing in this Act shall be construed 
in any way to limit or affect the authority of the Commission under any 
other provision of law.
    (c) Enforcement by State Attorneys General.--
            (1) In general.--If the chief law enforcement officer of a 
        State, or an official or agency designated by a State, has 
        reason to believe that any person has violated or is violating 
        section 3, the attorney general, official, or agency of the 
        State, in addition to any authority it may have to bring an 
        action in State court under its consumer protection law, may 
        bring a civil action in any appropriate United States district 
        court or in any other court of competent jurisdiction, 
        including a State court, to--
                    (A) enjoin further such violation by such person;
                    (B) enforce compliance with such section;
                    (C) obtain civil penalties; and
                    (D) obtain damages, restitution, or other 
                compensation on behalf of residents of the State.
            (2) Notice and intervention by the ftc.--The attorney 
        general of a State shall provide prior written notice of any 
        action under paragraph (1) to the Commission and provide the 
        Commission with a copy of the complaint in the action, except 
        in any case in which such prior notice is not feasible, in 
        which case the attorney general shall serve such notice 
        immediately upon instituting such action. The Commission shall 
        have the right--
                    (A) to intervene in the action;
                    (B) upon so intervening, to be heard on all matters 
                arising therein; and
                    (C) to file petitions for appeal.
            (3) Limitation on state action while federal action is 
        pending.--If the Commission has instituted a civil action for 
        violation of this Act, no State attorney general, or official 
        or agency of a State, may bring an action under this subsection 
        during the pendency of that action against any defendant named 
        in the complaint of the Commission for any violation of this 
        Act alleged in the complaint.
            (4) Relationship with state-law claims.--If the attorney 
        general of a State has authority to bring an action under State 
        law directed at acts or practices that also violate this Act, 
        the attorney general may assert the State-law claim and a claim 
        under this Act in the same civil action.
    (d) Savings Clause.--Nothing in this Act shall preempt or otherwise 
affect any State or local law.
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