It’s
inexcusable that Exxon Mobil has reaped
the largest profit ever for a U.S. company
when so many American families are struggling
financially –- struggling particularly
to pay the record-high prices Exxon Mobil
and other energy companies are charging
for the gas those families need to get
to work, to school and to the grocery
store.
I know many federal lawmakers share my
concerns, and I urge Congress to act immediately
to enact new federal price gouging legislation
and to require energy companies to refund
their unjust gains to consumers.
As New Jersey Attorney General, I support
state legislation sponsored by Senators
Sacco and Ciesla that would raise the
penalties that can be imposed on gas retailers
who violate the New Jersey Motor Fuels
Act. The Attorney General’s Office
relied on that statute and the New Jersey
Consumer Fraud Act to file suit last September
against three oil companies and several
independent gas-station operators in connection
with gas price increases after Katrina.
New Jersey’s enforcement action
sent a strong message to the industry
and has resulted in several settlements.
However, the penalties in the Motor Fuels
Act are outdated. Senators Sacco and Ciesla’s
bill would revise the penalties under
the Act, which currently range from $50
to $200, increasing them to up to $1,500
for the first offense and up to $3,000
for each subsequent offense.
As Attorney General, I am charged with
responsibility for protecting the interests
of New Jersey consumers. Consumers have
every right to be furious because they
can connect the dots between the hole
in their wallets and Exxon Mobil’s
$36 billion windfall. I intend to examine
whether, in addition to supporting federal
price-gouging legislation, we should expand
our state price-gouging law, which applies
only where a state of emergency has been
declared by the Governor, so that it applies
more broadly to unconscionable price hikes
that have no legitimate economic justification.
