Senate Bill S5440

2017-2018 Legislative Session

Relates to price gouging

download bill text pdf

Sponsored By

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Consumer Protection Committee


  • Introduced
    • In Committee Assembly
    • In Committee Senate
    • On Floor Calendar Assembly
    • On Floor Calendar Senate
    • Passed Assembly
    • Passed Senate
  • Delivered to Governor
  • Signed By Governor

Do you support this bill?

Please enter your contact information

Home address is used to determine the senate district in which you reside. Your support or opposition to this bill is then shared immediately with the senator who represents you.

Optional services from the NY State Senate:

Create an account. An account allows you to officially support or oppose key legislation, sign petitions with a single click, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.

Include a custom message for your Senator? (Optional)

Enter a message to your senator. Many New Yorkers use this to share the reasoning behind their support or opposition to the bill. Others might share a personal anecdote about how the bill would affect them or people they care about.
Actions

2017-S5440 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:
A334
Current Committee:
Senate Consumer Protection
Law Section:
General Business Law
Laws Affected:
Amd §396-r, Gen Bus L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:
2013-2014: S3656
2015-2016: S2825, A2133
2019-2020: S803, A237
2021-2022: S4565, A5850
2023-2024: S3079

2017-S5440 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Relates to price gouging; defines unconscionably excessive price for the purposes of prohibiting price gouging during abnormal disruption of the market.

2017-S5440 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2017-S5440 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5440
 
                        2017-2018 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              March 28, 2017
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  LANZA  -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Consumer Protection
 
 AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to price gouging
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section  1.  Section  396-r of the general business law, as amended by
 chapter 510 of the laws of 1998, subdivision 4 as amended by chapter 224
 of the laws of 2008, is amended to read as follows:
   § 396-r. Price gouging. 1. Legislative findings and  declaration.  The
 legislature  hereby  finds that during periods of abnormal disruption of
 the market caused by strikes, power failures, severe shortages or  other
 extraordinary  adverse  circumstances,  some parties within the chain of
 distribution of consumer goods have taken unfair advantage of  consumers
 by  charging  grossly  excessive prices for essential consumer goods and
 services.
   In order to prevent any party within the chain of distribution of  any
 consumer goods from taking unfair advantage of consumers during abnormal
 disruptions  of  the  market,  the  legislature declares that the public
 interest requires that such conduct be prohibited and  made  subject  to
 civil penalties.
   2. During any abnormal disruption of the market for consumer goods and
 services  vital  and  necessary  for  the  health, safety and welfare of
 consumers, no party within the chain of distribution  of  such  consumer
 goods  or services or both shall sell or offer to sell any such goods or
 services or both for an amount which represents an unconscionably exces-
 sive  price.  For  purposes  of  this  section,  the  phrase   "abnormal
 disruption  of  the market" shall mean any change in the market, whether
 actual or imminently  threatened,  resulting  from  stress  of  weather,
 convulsion  of  nature,  failure  or shortage of electric power or other
 source of energy, strike, civil disorder, war, military action, national
 or local emergency, or other cause of  an  abnormal  disruption  of  the

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

Comments

Open Legislation is a forum for New York State legislation. All comments are subject to review and community moderation is encouraged.

Comments deemed off-topic, commercial, campaign-related, self-promotional; or that contain profanity, hate or toxic speech; or that link to sites outside of the nysenate.gov domain are not permitted, and will not be published. Attempts to intimidate and silence contributors or deliberately deceive the public, including excessive or extraneous posting/posts, or coordinated activity, are prohibited and may result in the temporary or permanent banning of the user. Comment moderation is generally performed Monday through Friday. By contributing or voting you agree to the Terms of Participation and verify you are over 13.

Create an account. An account allows you to sign petitions with a single click, officially support or oppose key legislation, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.