A group of mostly Democrats pressed Federal Trade Commission (FT) Chair Lina Khan this week for more information on how a federal price gouging ban could help “hold bad actors accountable” in the event of major disasters like Hurricane Helene .
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Rep. Hank Johnson (D-Ga.) led 11 lawmakers in signing onto the letter, including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Reps. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), Cartwright (D-Pa.), Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.), Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) and Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.).
In the letter, lawmakers cited efforts taken in dozens of states to tackle price gouging , including legislation and hotlines, while pointing to recent allegations of price gouging in North Carolina and South Carolina in the aftermath of Helene .
“In the two weeks since the hurricane made landfall, Florida and North Carolina activated state-specific price gouging hotlines, which allow consumers to report instances of suspected price gouging,” they wrote.