House Democrats have the votes and are looking to pass a bill from Rep. Katie Porter to ban gasoline price gouging.
According to the Punchbowl AM Newsletter:
This bill, the Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act, was introduced by Rep. Kim Schrier (D-Wash.) and Katie Porter (D-Calif.). Under the proposal, the president could declare an “energy emergency proclamation.” Companies would be barred from charging “unconscionably excessive” prices for gasoline or other fuels during the emergency. The Federal Trade Commission could investigate allegations of price gouging at the federal level, while state attorneys general could take action at the retail level.
House Democrats were still doing a whip count on the bill on Monday night. While there was some “resistance,” the leadership was certain they could pass it. We heard from some House Democrats that they were concerned about the price control provisions in the bill.
Rep. Porter said when she introduced The Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act , “Oil companies are not struggling—they continue to announce record profits and tens of billions dollars worth of stock buybacks—but families are. Big Oil is price gouging families because they can. Enough is enough. I’m proud to help introduce this bill that will hold these corporations accountable, stop their abuse, and give families relief.”
Porter was correct. Big Oil is gouging Americans at the pump because the FTC is an overwhelmed and understaffed Commission that doesn’t have the resources to quickly crackdown on Big Oil.
It will be a bad look for any Republican or Democratic Senator who is running for reelection to vote in support of Big Oil stealing from Americans at the pump, so this bill might not be as dead in the Senate as one might first think.
While Republicans are using baby formula as a racist attack, Democrats are taking on Big Oil to lower prices at the pump.
Mr. Easley is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association