The Price-Gouging Ban Plan?

Vice President Kamala Harris says when she’s in charge, there will be a price-gouging ban. 

Say what? Her presidential administration would “set clear rules of the road to make clear that big corporations can’t unfairly exploit consumers to run up excessive profits on food and groceries.” 

But how? Harris says she will go after “the bad actors,” alluding to her stint as California’s attorney general where she prosecuted companies for illegal price hikes. Few other details were provided on how a ban of this nature would work.

“Don’t do it. Please don’t do it…” Liberal policymakers, including those who advised the Clinton and Obama administrations, are saying all this is easier said than done. 

Why? Because government restrictions on price increases could backfire. Think shortage of goods.

By the numbers: At-home food prices increased 11.4% from 2021 to 2022, before slowing down (up 5% in 2023, and up 1.1% from July 2023 to July 2024). 

There’s more: Harris would also plan to enhance USDA funding to expand meat processing capacity and increase competition in the food industry—which could also lead to lower prices. 

Soundbite: “Consumers have been impacted by high prices due to inflation on everything from services to rent to automobiles, not just at the grocery store. A federal ban on price gouging does not address the real causes of inflation.” — Julie Anna Potts, Meat Institute president and CEO