Proposed bill would close a critical loophole in state law, empowering municipalities to prevent exploitative pricing during declared local emergencies
Pittsburgh, PA – May 5, 2025 – In the wake of last week’s deadly storm, today, Mayor Ed Gainey is leading an effort in partnership with County Executive Sara Innamorato, State Senator Lindsey Williams, State Representative Aerion Abney, and other members of the state legislative delegation to protect Pittsburghers against exploitative businesses, contractors, and corporations engaged in price gouging essential goods and services after disasters. As part of the effort, Mayor Gainey will introduce an amendment to close a loophole in the Pennsylvania Price Gouging Act that would ensure the provisions apply to locally declared emergency declarations like the one he declared last week.
“When disasters like last week’s deadly storm hit close to home, no Pittsburgher should be forced to pay jacked-up prices that force them to choose between keeping their lights on, feeding their family, or making the repairs they need to recover,” said Mayor Ed Gainey. “But right now, companies and contractors can legally hike prices during locally declared emergencies like the one I issued last week because state law only protects people during state-declared disasters. That’s wrong, and it hurts working families the most. I’m proud to have worked with County Executive Innamorato, Senator Williams, and Representative Abney over the weekend to identify this loophole and move towards closing it to ensure no one here in Pittsburgh gets exploited in the wake of a crisis.”
“After getting hit by a storm, no one should experience a second, unjust blow to their finances as they are trying to get back on their feet and recover,” said County Executive Sara Innamorato. “It is unacceptable that working people can be squeezed into paying artificially inflated prices to fix their homes, feed their families, or buy any of the essentials they need to recover. We must enable local leaders to protect our residents against this kind of price gouging”
Currently, the Pennsylvania State Price Gouging Act only protects people during state-declared disasters, not local ones. Earlier today, Senator Williams and Representative Abney circulated co-sponsorship memos with the intention of introducing state legislation that closes this loophole and enables local leaders to protect our residents against price gouging.
“This is about protecting residents from further harm,” said State Senator Lindsey Williams. “No one should be allowed to profit off the pain of our communities just because a disaster was declared locally instead of at the state level. This amendment ensures that all Pennsylvanians — whether in Pittsburgh or any other municipality — have the same protections from predatory pricing during emergencies.”
“I have long believed that those closest to the problem are closest to the solution,” said State Representative Aerion Abney. “This is a commonsense fix to give local governments the same tools the state already has, and to make sure no one takes advantage of our residents when they’re most vulnerable. As chair of the Allegheny County delegation, I’m proud that our members are taking this action together and I’m thankful to Mayor Gainey for bringing this issue to our attention and presenting us with a solution immediately.”
The proposed amendment would add language to the Pennsylvania Price Gouging Act of 2006 that explicitly includes local disaster emergencies as defined and declared by local governing bodies under Title 35, Part V: Emergency Management Services. The key provisions of the amendment are as follows:
Expansion of Coverage: Price gouging prohibitions will be updated to include both state- and local-declared emergencies.
Price Gouging Protections: Price gouging laws will apply to goods and services during local disaster emergencies in the same way they currently apply during state-declared emergencies.
Enforcement and Penalties: The Pennsylvania Attorney General will be empowered to investigate and enforce violations of price gouging protections during local emergencies, with the same penalties currently in place for state-declared emergencies:
- Civil penalty up to $10,000 for each violation
- Seek injunctive relief, restitution, and costs
This change is critical for the protection of our constituents who may face extraordinary hardships during local emergencies, not just emergencies declared by the State. In the aftermath of natural disasters, public health crises, and other community-wide emergencies, residents rely on essential goods and services to get back on their feet. When unscrupulous business operators artificially inflate prices during these difficult times, it further exacerbates the financial burdens on all our residents, especially our most vulnerable residents.
By making this commonsense adjustment to the Pennsylvania Price Gouging Act, we ensure that all Pennsylvanians are protected from predatory pricing practices during all declared emergencies.
Mayor Gainey will provide details and take questions on the action at his disaster response briefing at 4:30PM on Monday, May 5.
###