PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 'May 3, 2006
CONTACT: 308-238-0375

Scott Kleeb Calls for Congress to Pass Anti-price-gouging Legislation

KEARNEY, NE – Third district congressional candidate Scott Kleeb called on members of Congress to pass a pending bill that would specifically prohibit price gouging and give the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) a clear mandate to investigate and prosecute violators.

“The soaring prices at the pump are causing real and prolonged hardship for American families,” Kleeb said. “Nebraskans want to know that any unscrupulous business owners who have taken advantage of a national emergency to boost their profits will be dealt with appropriately.”

In the wake of hurricane Katrina, gas prices jumped by as much as a dollar a gallon in 48 hours. Subsequently, investigations in New York found that 15 gas stations took advantage of the emergency to raise prices beyond what was justified by market forces. But, last fall, when Congress attempted to give the federal government the power to prosecute price gougers, Republicans voted the legislation down.

Kleeb noted that an Energy Department hot line set up to record reports of suspected price gouging has received more than 26,000 calls since August 28. But with no federal price-gouging law on the books, not a single one of these complaints is likely to be investigated, he said.

Kleeb called anti-price-gouging legislation “a simple matter of right and wrong,” but said Congress must also pass a “serious alternative energy bill” if it wants to impact America’s energy crisis. He called on Congress to move quickly to pass a proposed Senate bill that would extend for five years tax credits that provide incentives for investment in solar, wind, geothermal, and biomass technologies.

“Economists will tell you that it is the existence of monopolies that allows price-gouging to take place,” Kleeb said. “Today, the oil industry has a near monopoly on energy. The last thing we need is politicians in Washington voting $15 billion in tax cuts for big oil. We’ve got to get Congress looking toward places like Nebraska, where investments in ethanol, biodiesel and wind power offer a real long-term solution to the energy crisis.”