15 attorneys general call for national ban on price gouging

Fifteen attorneys general called on congressional leaders to support a national ban on price gouging in a letter sent Wednesday.

The letter — addressed to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) — expressed concern about the lack of federal legislation preventing companies from increasing prices on essential commodities during emergencies.

More than 40 states ban price gouging, according to the letter, but a national ban, they argued, would give the federal government the power to address price gouging issues “that cannot be stopped by a single state,” and to address issues that have to do with national supply chains.

“Individual states face heightened challenges when protecting consumers from price gouging when so many product supply chains are nationwide. A federal price gouging prohibition would provide critical partnership to state enforcement and protect consumers and small businesses alike,” read the letter, led by New York Attorney General Letitia James’s office.

James and her fellow attorneys general noted that price gouging was especially prevalent at the onset of the Ukraine war and during the COVID-19 pandemic, both of which were issues that affected the national supply chain.

“Businesses should never be able to hike prices during an emergency just to increase their profits,” James wrote in a press release.

“When companies take advantage of major disruptions and raise prices of food and supplies that New Yorkers rely on, my office holds them accountable, getting people their money back and protecting their wallets,” she continued. “Our federal government should have the same power to protect Americans when disaster strikes and stop price gouging at the national level that threatens both hardworking families and small businesses.”

Ahead of Hurricane Milton’s landfall on Florida’s western coast this month, federal agencies warned companies against price gouging and told consumers to be on alert for potential scams. Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan said her agency saw price gouging efforts before landfall “for essentials that are necessary for people to get out of harm’s way,” including for hotels, groceries and gas.