Fighting for the Right Price
The thought of an anti-price gouging bill is something that retailers don't want to face. But, as long as high prices exist, gouging legislation will as well. The Federal Price Gouging Protection Act, passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on May 23, 2007 will give the Federal Trade Commission the authority to probe for price profiteering.

The current penalties for gouging include a fine up to three times the amount of the profits gained. There is proposed legislation for determining gouging during emergencies. In order for an incident to be defined as gouging five factors have to be identified: The price "grossly exceeds the average price for gas sold by a retailer during a 30 day period. A retailer's price exceeds competitors' price for gas. The price reflects costs not within the control of the retailer. The price can be attributable to local, regional, national or international markets. The gallons sold increased during the emergency by the president.

Gas gouging bills are here to stay, so until a bill is passed price gouging will continue to be an issue.