Sec. 3. Federal Trade Commission enforcement against price gouging
394 words·~2 min read·
/bill/116/s/3576/is/section-3A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
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) ). 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. 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— 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 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. 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. 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.
Connectionstraces to 2
Citation graph
cites case law
Cites 2Cited by 0 across 0 sources