The House of Representatives passed the Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act, by a vote of 217-207 on May 19, taking the country closer …
The House of Representatives passed the Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act, by a vote of 217-207 on May 19, taking the country closer to greater government involvement in energy markets as gasoline prices soar to new heights. The bill, H.R. 7688, would let President Joe Biden declare an “energy emergency.”
Such an emergency would empower the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to target people who sell fuel at a price judged “unconscionably excessive” or that “indicates the seller is exploiting the circumstances related to an energy emergency to increase prices unreasonably.”
That presidential emergency proclamation would last 30 days but could be renewed indefinitely “as the president deems appropriate.”
The bill also prioritizes FTC enforcement actions against firms with $500 million or more in annual wholesale or retail consumer fuel sales. While 217 Democrats voted for the bill, 203 Republicans and four Democrats voted against it. During the debate, Democrats and Republicans clashed over the causes of record-high gasoline prices. While the GOP emphasized new regulations and decisions against domestic energy under the Biden administration, Democrats pointed out that record-breaking energy prices have been accompanied by billions in profit for oil and gas firms.
“Our residents are so fed up with corporate greed,” said Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), a supporter of the bill. Tlaib spoke in front of a large poster listing the 2021 profits of various large oil companies, including Shell and Chevron. Meanwhile, Republican John Joyce (R-Pa.) stood beside a poster illustrating the long lines of cars at gas stations during the 1970s, when the United States implemented price controls in an attempt to deal with rising gas prices caused by OPEC’s oil embargo.
