The House Republican Policy Committee heard from a variety of witnesses this week on the causes and steps to deal with the spike in motor fuel prices cased by Hurricane Katrina.

The Committee heard comments from representatives of Associated Petroleum Industries, service stations and distributors, Sheetz, the Motor Truck Association, Contractors and the Attorney General’s Office.

Among the issues and suggestions highlighted during the hearing were—

· Should there be one formulation of gasoline in the state rather than the three now required by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Environmental Protection to make gasoline distribution easier;

· Should only one price change per day be allowed by service stations like a New Jersey law requires;

· Should there be a single wholesale price for gasoline in the state;

· Should service stations/distributors pay for gasoline when it's sold rather than within 24 hours of being delivered;

· Hawaii just capped gasoline prices, should that be something Pennsylvania considers; and

· Should there be additional enforcement of weight/measures so a gallon is a gallon;

The Attorney General's Office recommended adopting a specific price gouging statute to give it additional tools to investigate and punish those who take advantage of shortages and emergencies. More than 1,000 complaints came into the Attorney General’s Office since prices began to increase sharply.

Chairman Civera said the Committee would be making recommendations to the Republican Caucus on legislative steps it can take to deal with this issue.

NewsClips: PA Fields 1,000+ Price Gouging Complaints

9/9/2005