Lawmakers Introduce Bill To Fight Coordinated Price-Hikes

Congresswoman Katie Porter (D-CA) has reintroduced the Competitive Prices Act,which would empower consumers to hold big corporations accountable for coordinating price hikes. 

“It’s on Congress to pass safeguards to protect Americans from monopoly power and coordinated price hikes that gouge consumers on basic necessities,” said Rep. Porter, a consumer protection advocate. “My bill would crack down on greedy companies that abuse loopholes in antitrust laws to raise costs for families and boost corporate profits.”

Loopholes in core antitrust laws, like the 133-year-old Sherman Act, let companies off the hook for tacitly coordinating raising prices on consumers. The Competitive Prices Act closes these gaps and provides new tools for consumers to hold big corporations accountable through the justice system. 

Read more: Bulgaria’s Antitrust Watchdog Probes Price Hikes In Foods

The Competitive Prices Act is cosponsored by Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY), Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), and Rep. David Cicilline (D-RI). It was also endorsed by American Economic Liberties Project, Demand Progress, Farm Action, Food and Water Watch, Groundwork Collaborative, Liberation in a Generation, Public Citizen, Revolving Door Project, and Small Business Majority. 

“Representative Porter’s Competitive Prices Act will make sure powerful corporations can no longer elude anti-collusion laws to essentially steal from consumers,” said Krista Brown, Senior Policy Analyst at the American Economic Liberties Project. “In a severely monopolized economy, it’s easy for a handful of firms that don’t fear competition to coordinate to keep prices high. And because of loopholes in the law, it’s hard for antitrust enforcers to crack down on this blatantly illegal activity. This bill would change that, and we encourage Congress to make it law.”