Attorney general pushes to ban gas price gouging, announces probe
By JR ROSS
Associated Press Writer
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Attorney General Peg Lautenschlager pushed Thursday for a new law to ban price gouging in Wisconsin and announced a multi-state investigation into what’s behind skyrocketing gas prices in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.
Gov. Jim Doyle announced a series of steps he was taking in response to the rising prices, while groups representing oil companies and retailers said the spiraling costs were the result of natural market forces and nothing more.
“With high demand and limited supply, prices tend to rise,” said Erin Roth, executive director of the Wisconsin Petroleum Council that represents major oil companies.
Prices in many parts of the state zoomed past $3 a gallon and showed few signs of easing. Wisconsin law prohibits retailers from increasing the price of gas more than once in a 24-hour period or charging motorists more than the advertised price when they pull into a station. But there is no limit on how much retailers can increase prices.
Lautenschlager said she was working with two Democratic lawmakers to change that. Republican legislative leaders did not return calls from The Associated Press Thursday seeking comment.
“Those who would prey on people in desperate times are among the lowest of the low and should be dealt with harshly,” said Lautenschlager, a Democrat.
She also announced a joint probe with attorneys general in Illinois and Iowa to determine if the rise of gas prices has been caused by artificial manipulation.
The three attorneys general, along with counterparts in Missouri and Michigan, also called upon the Federal Trade Commission to do its own investigation and monitor gas prices nationwide.
Bob Bartlett, president of the Wisconsin Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Association, said he was disappointed people would assume the rise in prices means retailers are gouging their customers.
He said retailers are at the mercy of the costs they see from their suppliers, and many are seeing a bigger jump in the price they pay to get the gas than what they’re passing on to consumers.
“I know of many retailers around the state that are selling the product they purchased for less than the purchase prices,” Bartlett said.
Roth said he’s already been in contact with the attorney general’s office and given her a list of more than 30 previous investigations by state and federal governments, all of which have cleared oil companies of any price gouging.
But Karen Suggs doesn’t think that’s possible this time. The certified nursing assistant was putting $15 worth of gas in her minivan Thursday afternoon in Madison – just enough to get her by.
“It jumped up too fast,” she said. “As soon as they had the hurricane, the prices went up.”
Doyle sent a letter to the Environmental Protection Administration asking for a waiver of federal requirements that seven southeastern counties sell specially formulated gas to cut air pollution. The blend is typically more expensive than regular gas.
Other steps announced by Doyle to address rising gas prices included:
-a bipartisan task force on energy to find long-term solutions to high costs.
-supporting legislation to require gasoline sold in Wisconsin to be 10 percent ethanol, which is normally cheaper than regular gas.
-directing the State Patrol to honor a federal waiver on how much truckers drive to help ensure there are no problems trucking gas into Wisconsin.
-directing state agencies to keep close watch on retailers to ensure no one violates state laws at the pump.
Doyle said he also would strongly consider the anti-gouging law Lautenschlager and Democratic lawmakers were proposing.
“The real issue we have to come to terms with quickly is who’s making this money, and I really don’t want to see people profiting off the misery of others,” said Doyle, a Democrat
