General Law Committee
JOINT FAVORABLE REPORT
Bill No.: HB-5307
Title: AN ACT CONCERNING PRICE GOUGING.
Vote Date: 2/2/2021
Vote Action: Joint Favorable Substitute
PH Date: 1/28/2021
File No.: 3
Disclaimer: The following JOINT FAVORABLE Report is prepared for the benefit of the
members of the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and
explanation and does not represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber
thereof for any purpose.
SPONSORS OF BILL:
General Law
REASONS FOR BILL:
This bill will modify Section 42-230 of the General Statues. The changes address the
excessive price increases that may occur during a declared emergency.
Price gouging is defined as a retailer changing the price of an item during a declaration of
emergency. This bill extends further the enforcement of price gouging by fining violators.
Currently this law only applies to retailers, but with the changes in this bill, it will apply for
manufacturers, suppliers, wholesalers, and distributors as well. Also due to the law currently
only applying to sellers, this bill will also apply for any rental transactions as well.
RESPONSE FROM ADMINISTRATION/AGENCY:
Attorney General William Tong submitted testimony in support of the bill. The recent
pandemic revealed three short comings that limit the statue's effectiveness. The present
statue only covers retail sales and does not adequately define price gouging in wholesale,
leases and rental items. Amending the statues to apply up and down the supply chain will
better protect our consumers.
State of Connecticut Judicial Branch sent testimony with two clarifications to the bill. The
language in lines 34-36 should clarify that the Attorney General shall bring enforcement
action and in line 31 the language should be amended to read "Any seller which violates" to
reflect the amended language in line 18.
NATURE AND SOURCES OF SUPPORT:
Community Health Center Association of Connecticut supports the bill. Community
health centers serve everyone that walks thru our doors. On a daily basis we use N95
masks, surgical/procedure masks, gowns, gloves, disinfectant and hand sanitizer in caring for
our patients. We purchase large quantities and noticed because of the high demand the
prices for these were inflated and there was not adequate enforcement of price controls. The
quality of these produces was not sufficient and though we paid inflated prices some products
were counterfeit and unusable for our health centers. This bill gives us the opportunity to
protect our workforce and Connecticut residents from unscrupulous vendors.
Connecticut Hospital Association submitted testimony in support of the bill. As the center
of the global public health emergency in the states response to COVID-19 CHA continues to
provide high-quality care for everyone regardless of their ability to pay. The bill clarify and
improves Connecticut statues on price gouging. Price gouging on personal protective
equipment and other types of medical goods and services during this public health
emergency threaten the health and safety of providers and their patients. CHA and
Connecticut hospitals support every effort to protect our medical providers.
Tracey Wodatch, President and CEO, The Connecticut Association for Healthcare at
Home supports the bill. The changes to improve the statues are timely and necessary
especially given the global COVID-19 pandemic. We were not part of the initial statewide
PPE distribution and were desperate due to pricing and supply. We had to resort to
desperate alternatives. Our providers are struggling to stay in business due to the lack of
supplies and the exorbitant pricing of what was available.
Collaborations Group submitted testimony in support of the bill.
Connecticut Hospital Association
American Medical Response
Association of Connecticut Ambulance Providers
Community Health Center Association
Connecticut Assisted Living Association
Connecticut Association of Ambulatory Surgery Centers
Connecticut Association for Healthcare at Home
Connecticut Association of Health Care
Facilities/Connecticut Center for Assisted Living
Connecticut Optometric Society
Connecticut Psychological Association
Connecticut Radiological Society
LeadingAge Connecticut
New Britain Emergency Medical Services
NATURE AND SOURCES OF OPPOSITION:
Brian Moran, Government Affairs Director, New England Convenience Store & Energy
Marketers Association opposes the bill. The bill as written precludes any justifiable price
increases throughout the entire supply chain during an emergency. This sets a dangerous
precedent and largely ignores supply and demand economic principles.
Page 2 of 3 HB-5307
Reported by: Pamela Bianca Date: 2/22/2021
Page 3 of 3 HB-5307


Statutes affected:
Raised Bill: 42-230
GL Joint Favorable Substitute: 42-230
File No. 3: 42-230
JUD Joint Favorable Substitute: 42-230
File No. 628: 42-230
APP Joint Favorable: 42-230
File No. 697: 42-230