Gas Price Gouging Prevention Act
Bill: S.3920 | Sponsor: Sen. Duckworth, Tammy (D-IL)
Policy area: Commerce

Summary:
Gas Price Gouging Prevention Act  This bill prohibits any person from selling, during a proclaimed international crisis affecting the oil markets, gasoline at a price that (1) is unconscionably excessive, and (2) indicates that the seller is taking unfair advantage of the crisis to increase prices unreasonably. The President may issue a proclamation of such a crisis that specifies the geographic area covered and how long the proclamation applies.
The bill provides for enforcement by the Federal Trade Commission and imposes enhanced civil penalties and criminal fines. It also authorizes state attorneys general to bring a civil action to enforce the prohibitions of this bill.

To protect consumers from price-gouging of gasoline and other fuels, 
                        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 ``Gas Price Gouging Prevention Act''.

SEC. 2. UNCONSCIONABLE PRICING OF GASOLINE AND OTHER PETROLEUM 
              DISTILLATES DURING EMERGENCIES.

    (a) Unconscionable Pricing.--
            (1) In general.--It shall be unlawful for any person to 
        sell, at wholesale or at retail in an area and during a period 
        of an international crisis affecting the oil markets proclaimed 
        under paragraph (2), gasoline or any other petroleum distillate 
        covered by a proclamation issued under paragraph (2) at a price 
        that--
                    (A) is unconscionably excessive; and
                    (B) indicates the seller is taking unfair advantage 
                of the circumstances related to an international crisis 
                to increase prices unreasonably.
            (2) Energy emergency proclamation.--
                    (A) In general.--The President may issue a 
                proclamation of an international crisis affecting the 
                oil markets and may designate any area within the 
                jurisdiction of the United States (including the entire 
                United States), where the prohibition in paragraph (1) 
                shall apply. The proclamation shall state the 
                geographic area covered, the gasoline or other 
                petroleum distillate covered, and the time period that 
                such proclamation shall be in effect.
                    (B) Duration.--The proclamation--
                            (i) may not apply for a period of more than 
                        30 consecutive days, but may be renewed for 
                        such consecutive periods, each not to exceed 30 
                        days, as the President determines appropriate; 
                        and
                            (ii) may include a period of time not to 
                        exceed 1 week preceding a reasonably 
                        foreseeable emergency.
            (3) Factors considered.--In determining whether a person 
        has violated paragraph (1), there shall be taken into account, 
        among other factors--
                    (A) whether the amount charged by such person for 
                the applicable gasoline or other petroleum distillate 
                at a particular location in an area covered by a 
                proclamation issued under paragraph (2) during the 
                period such proclamation is in effect--
                            (i) grossly exceeds the average price at 
                        which the applicable gasoline or other 
                        petroleum distillate was offered for sale by 
                        that person during the 30 days prior to such 
                        proclamation;
                            (ii) grossly exceeds the price at which the 
                        same or similar gasoline or other petroleum 
                        distillate was readily obtainable in the same 
                        area from other competing sellers during the 
                        same period;
                            (iii) reasonably reflected additional 
                        costs, not within the control of that person, 
                        that were paid, incurred, or reasonably 
                        anticipated by that person, or reflected 
                        additional risks taken by that person to 
                        produce, distribute, obtain, or sell such 
                        product under the circumstances; and
                            (iv) was substantially attributable to 
                        local, regional, national, or international 
                        market conditions; and
                    (B) whether the quantity of gasoline or other 
                petroleum distillate the person produced, distributed, 
                or sold in an area covered by a proclamation issued 
                under paragraph (2) during a 30-day period following 
                the issuance of such proclamation increased over the 
                quantity that that person produced, distributed, or 
                sold during the 30 days prior to such proclamation, 
                taking into account usual seasonal demand variations.
    (b) Definitions.--As used in this section--
            (1) the term ``wholesale'', with respect to sales of 
        gasoline or other petroleum distillates, means either truckload 
        or smaller sales of gasoline or petroleum distillates where 
        title transfers at a product terminal or a refinery, and dealer 
        tank wagon sales of gasoline or petroleum distillates priced on 
        a delivered basis to retail outlets; and
            (2) the term ``retail'', with respect to sales of gasoline 
        or other petroleum distillates, includes all sales to end users 
        such as motorists as well as all direct sales to other end 
        users such as agriculture, industry, residential, and 
        commercial consumers.

SEC. 3. ENFORCEMENT BY THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION.

    (a) Enforcement by FTC.--A violation of section 2 shall be treated 
as a violation of a rule defining an unfair or deceptive act or 
practice prescribed under section 18(a)(1)(B) of the Federal Trade 
Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 57a(a)(1)(B)). The Federal Trade Commission 
shall enforce this Act in the same manner, by the same means, and with 
the same jurisdiction as though all applicable terms and provisions of 
the Federal Trade Commission Act were incorporated into and made a part 
of this Act. In enforcing section 2 of this Act, the Commission shall 
give priority to enforcement actions concerning companies with total 
United States wholesale or retail sales of gasoline and other petroleum 
distillates in excess of $10,000,000,000 per year.
    (b) Civil Penalties.--
            (1) In general.--Notwithstanding the penalties set forth 
        under the Federal Trade Commission Act, any person who violates 
        section 2 with actual knowledge or knowledge fairly implied on 
        the basis of objective circumstances shall be subject to--
                    (A) a civil penalty of not more than 3 times the 
                amount of profits gained by such person through such 
                violation; or
                    (B) a civil penalty of not more than $100,000,000.
            (2) Method.--The penalties provided by paragraph (1) shall 
        be obtained in the same manner as civil penalties obtained 
        under section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 
        45).
            (3) Multiple offenses; mitigating factors.--In assessing 
        the penalty provided by subsection (a)--
                    (A) each day of a continuing violation shall be 
                considered a separate violation; and
                    (B) the court shall take into consideration, among 
                other factors, the seriousness of the violation and the 
                efforts of the person committing the violation to 
                remedy the harm caused by the violation in a timely 
                manner.

SEC. 4. CRIMINAL PENALTIES.

    (a) In General.--In addition to any penalty applicable under 
section 3, any person who violates section 2 shall be fined under title 
18, United States Code, in an amount not to exceed $500,000,000.
    (b) Enforcement.--The criminal penalty provided by subsection (a) 
may be imposed only pursuant to a criminal action brought by the 
Attorney General or other officer of the Department of Justice. The 
Attorney General shall give priority to enforcement actions concerning 
companies with total United States wholesale or retail sales of 
gasoline and other petroleum distillates in excess of $10,000,000,000 
per year.

SEC. 5. ENFORCEMENT AT RETAIL LEVEL BY STATE ATTORNEYS GENERAL.

    (a) In General.--A State, as parens patriae, may bring a civil 
action on behalf of its residents in an appropriate district court of 
the United States to enforce the provisions of section 2 of this Act, 
or to impose the civil penalties authorized by section 3(b)(1)(B), 
whenever the attorney general of the State has reason to believe that 
the interests of the residents of the State have been or are being 
threatened or adversely affected by a violation of this Act or a 
regulation under this Act, involving a retail sale.
    (b) Notice.--The State shall serve written notice to the Federal 
Trade Commission of any civil action under subsection (a) prior to 
initiating such civil action. The notice shall include a copy of the 
complaint to be filed to initiate such civil action, except that if it 
is not feasible for the State to provide such prior notice, the State 
shall provide such notice immediately upon instituting such civil 
action.
    (c) Authority To Intervene.--Upon receiving the notice required by 
subsection (b), the Federal Trade Commission may intervene in such 
civil action and upon intervening--
            (1) be heard on all matters arising in such civil action; 
        and
            (2) file petitions for appeal of a decision in such civil 
        action.
    (d) Construction.--For purposes of bringing any civil action under 
subsection (a), nothing in this section shall prevent the attorney 
general of a State from exercising the powers conferred on the attorney 
general by the laws of such State to conduct investigations or to 
administer oaths or affirmations or to compel the attendance of 
witnesses or the production of documentary and other evidence.
    (e) Venue; Service of Process.--In a civil action brought under 
subsection (a)--
            (1) the venue shall be a judicial district in which--
                    (A) the defendant operates;
                    (B) the defendant was authorized to do business; or
                    (C) the defendant in the civil action is found;
            (2) process may be served without regard to the territorial 
        limits of the district or of the State in which the civil 
        action is instituted; and
            (3) a person who participated with the defendant in an 
        alleged violation that is being litigated in the civil action 
        may be joined in the civil action without regard to the 
        residence of the person.
    (f) Limitation on State Action While Federal Action Is Pending.--If 
the Federal Trade Commission has instituted a civil action or an 
administrative 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 Federal Trade Commission or the 
other agency for any violation of this Act alleged in the complaint.
    (g) Enforcement of State Law.--Nothing contained in this section 
shall prohibit an authorized State official from proceeding in State 
court to enforce a civil or criminal statute of such State.

SEC. 6. EFFECT ON OTHER LAWS.

    (a) Other Authority of Federal Trade Commission.--Nothing in this 
Act shall be construed to limit or affect in any way the Federal Trade 
Commission's authority to bring enforcement actions or take any other 
measure under the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 41 et seq.) 
or any other provision of law.
    (b) State Law.--Nothing in this Act preempts any State law.
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