Editing Price gouging (section)

=== United States ===
As of March 2021, [[Proskauer Rose]] counted 42 states that have emergency regulations or price-gouging statutes.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Koenig |first=Bryan |date=March 8, 2021 |title=Analysis: Price-Gouging Rules, E-Commerce To Collide At 6th Circ |url=https://www.law360.com/articles/1362471/price-gouging-rules-e-commerce-to-collide-at-6th-circ |access-date=2021-03-15 |website=[[Law360]] |language=en}}</ref>{{Update needed|date=August 2024}} Price-gouging is often defined in terms of the three criteria listed below:<ref name="zwolinski3">{{cite journal |author=M. Zwolinski |year=2008 |title=The Ethics of Price Gouging |journal=[[Business Ethics Quarterly]] |volume=18 |issue=3 |pages=347–378 |doi=10.5840/beq200818327 |s2cid=153570535 |ssrn=1099567}}</ref>

# Period of emergency: The majority of laws apply only to price shifts during a declared [[State of emergency#United States|state of emergency]] or [[disaster]].
# [[Basic needs|Necessary]] items: Most laws apply exclusively to items essential to survival, such as food, water, and housing.
# [[Price ceiling]]s: Laws limit the maximum price that can be charged for given goods.

[[Washington (state)|Washington state]] does not have a specific statute addressing price gouging, can nevertheless have sought to apply its [[consumer protection]] act to argue that high prices during COVID-19 for PPE was an "unfair" or "deceptive" practice.<ref>{{cite web |last=Carroll |first=Megan |date=2020-03-31 |title=Spokane seller accused of price gouging coronavirus supplies on Amazon |url=https://www.krem.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/spokane-seller-price-gouging-amazon/293-f5e0bd75-d329-4782-8c5e-d79de1954f6b |website=[[KREM (TV)|KREM]]}}</ref>

{{Original research section|date=August 2024}}
==== When the law goes into effect ====
Statutory prohibitions on price gouging become effective once a state of emergency has been declared. States have legislated different requirements for who must declare a state of emergency for the law to go into effect. Some state statutes that prohibit price gouging—including those of Alabama,<ref>Ala. Code § 8-31-4 (2017).</ref> Florida,<ref>Fla. Stat. § 501.160 (2017).</ref> Mississippi,<ref>Miss. Code Ann. § 75-24-25 (2008).</ref> and Ohio<ref>Ohio Rev. Code Ann. § 1345.01 (2009).</ref>—prohibit price increases only once the President of the United States or the state's governor has declared a state of emergency in the impacted region. California permits emergency proclamations by officials, boards, and other governing bodies of cities and counties to trigger the state's price gouging law.<ref name=":02" />

==== What the law prohibits ====
State laws vary on what price increases are permitted during a declared disaster. California has set a 10 percent ceiling on price increases.<ref name=":22" /> The law includes exceptions for price increases that can be justified in terms of the increased cost of supply, transportation, demand, or storage.<ref>See Cal. Penal Code § 396 (West 2018). California Penal Code Section 396 permits price increases greater than 10 percent if the vendor demonstrates that the markup results from "the seller's supplier or additional costs of providing the good or service during the state of emergency" and that the price represents no greater than 10 percent above the total cost to seller plus the customary markup. Landlords may also increase the cost of their rental units by an additional 5 percent if they are renting a previously unfurnished residence with furniture. &nbsp;</ref> Florida prohibits a price increase "that grossly exceeds the average price" of that same item in the 30 days leading up to the emergency declaration.<ref>Fla. Stat. § 501.160(b) (2017).</ref> Alabama state law does not define what constitutes a "gross disparity", making it difficult for either affected residents or law enforcement to determine when price gouging has occurred, while others merely limit vendors and landlords to price increases of less than 25 percent.<ref>''Id''.; Ala. Code § 8-31-4 (2017).</ref> 

==== Enforcement ====
Enforcement of anti-price gouging statutes can be difficult because of the exceptions often contained within the statutes and the lack of oversight mechanisms. Statutes generally give wide discretion not to prosecute. In 2004, Florida determined that one-third of complaints were unfounded, and a large fraction of the remainder was handled by [[consent decree]]s, rather than prosecution.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

==== California ====
California Penal Code 396 prohibits price gouging, generally defined as anything greater than a 10 percent increase in price on items such as rent, hotel lodging, gasoline, food, and other essentials, once a state of emergency has been declared.{{ r | PD_2018-11-30 }}<ref name=":02">Cal. Penal Code § 396 (West 2018).</ref>&nbsp;Unlike other states that require the [[President of the United States]] or the state's governor to declare a state of emergency, California allows emergency proclamations by officials, boards, and other governing bodies of cities and counties to trigger C.P.C. § 396.<ref>''See e.g.'', Ala. Code § 8-31-4 (2017); Fla. Stat. § 501.160 (2017); Miss. Code Ann. § 75-24-25 (2008); Ohio Rev. Code Ann. § 1345.01 (2009).</ref> The prohibition lasts for up to 30 days at a time and may be renewed as necessary.<ref name=":22">Cal. Penal Code § 396(b) (West 2018) (stipulating that a person or entity may not sell any of the enumerated goods or services for more than 10 percent more than the price that vendor charged for that good or service "immediately prior to the proclamation or declaration of emergency").</ref>

In the wake of the [[2017 California wildfires]] and the [[2018 California wildfires]], Governor [[Jerry Brown]] repeatedly extended the price-gouging ban for impacted counties.<ref name=PD_2018-11-30>{{cite news|url=https://www.pressdemocrat.com/business/9018789-181/gov-jerry-brown-extends-price-gouging?sba=AAS|title=Governor Jerry Brown Extends Price Gouging Protections | last=Swindell | first=Bill | date=2018-11-30 | newspaper=[[The Press Democrat]] | quote=It caps annual rent increases at 10 percent along with some additional tenant protections. The cap also applies to hotel rooms, food, fuel, medicine and other essential supplies during a declared emergency. }}</ref> One of his last acts as governor was to extend the prohibitions until May 31, 2019.<ref>''Id''.</ref>

Until 2018, the state had no limitations on the rent that could be charged for housing that was not on the market until after a disaster.{{ r | LAT_2025-01-23 }}  Due to complaints from the district attorney that she could not prosecute high priced new rentals which came on the market after the [[Tubbs Fire]], the legislature amended C.P.C. § 396.{{ r | LAT_2025-01-23 }} 

The above 2018 price gouging law makes it illegal to offer a previously unrented property for more than about $10,000 per month during an emergency.{{ r | LAT_2025-01-23 }} It also prohibits landlords from increasing rent prices by more than 10% when an emergency is declared. Landlords are also prohibited from accepting fees above this amount even if the tenant submits an offer well above the asking price.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://latimes.com/california/story/2025-01-18/california-atty-gen-says-bidding-wars-arent-exempt-from-price-gouging-rules|title=California attorney general says bidding wars aren't exempt from price-gouging rules|last=Khouri|first=Andrew|date=2025-01-18|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=9 February 2025}}</ref> In the wake of the January 2025 [[Palisades Fire]], this price cap has made it harder for displaced people to find housing, because many comparable properties normally rent for more than this, and this rent cap discourages owners of high-end vacation homes from making their homes available for rent.{{ r | LAT_2025-01-23 }}  One expert estimated that hundreds to thousands more homes might be available for rent if this rent cap did not exist.<ref name=LAT_2025-01-23 > {{ cite news | url=https://www.latimes.com/homeless-housing/story/2025-01-23/price-gouging-rules-high-end-homes-la-rental-market | title=Some price-gouging rules could be keeping high-end homes off L.A.'s rental market | last=Dillon | first=Liam | newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]] | date=2025-01-23 | quote=...Shane Phillips, manager of the Randall Lewis Housing Initiative at the UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies. He estimated that potential landlords could be holding back “in the high hundreds to the low thousands” of homes due to the price limitations on new listings. That amount is too small to affect L.A.’s overall rental market but does make it harder for displaced people to find houses, he said. “Every home does count,” Phillips said. “It does matter. And no matter how fancy it is, someone from the Palisades can afford it.” }} </ref>

====Florida====

[[Florida|Florida's]] "state of emergency" law criminalizes price gouging.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://myfloridalegal.com/pages.nsf/Main/5D2710E379EAD6BC85256F03006AA2C5?OpenDocument |title=Florida Attorney General - Price Gouging Frequently Asked Questions|publisher=Florida office of the [[attorney general]]|access-date=2016-09-25}}</ref> A supplier of essential goods and services may be charged when it sharply raises prices in anticipation of or during a civil emergency or when it cancels or dishonors contracts in order to take advantage of an increase in prices related to such an emergency. The model case is a retailer who increases the price of existing stocks of milk and bread when a hurricane is imminent. Though the effect of such laws have been proven to actually increase the risk of extreme shortages since the absence of increased prices replaces higher prices with an incentive for the earliest person to market to obtain all of a product about to imminently experience a period of very high demand.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Bourne |first1=Ryan |last2=Subramaniam |first2=Brad |title=Longstanding Anti-Price Gouging Statutes Worsen Shortages |url=https://www.cato.org/blog/longstanding-anti-price-gouging-statutes-worsen-shortages |access-date=16 May 2022 |website= |publisher=[[Cato Institute]]}}</ref>

In Florida, it is a defense to show that the price increase mostly reflects increased costs, such as running an emergency generator or [[hazard pay]] for workers, while [[California]] places a ten percent cap on any increases.<ref>{{cite web |last=Giberson |first=Michael |date=2011 |title=The Problem with Price Gouging Laws |url=http://object.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/serials/files/regulation/2011/4/regv34n1-1.pdf |access-date=2016-09-25 |website=[[Cato Institute]]}}</ref>