HOUSE BILL NO. 6305
A bill to prohibit excessive pricing for certain energy products and services during a period of market disruption; to provide remedies and penalties; and to provide for the powers and duties of certain state and local governmental officers and entities.
the people of the state of michigan enact:
Sec. 1. This act may be cited as the "energy pricing protection act".
(a) "Energy product or service" means gasoline, propane, or home heating oil, or a service necessary to the provision of those products, that is vital and necessary for the health, safety, and welfare of the residents of this state. Energy product or service does not include a product or service regulated by the Michigan public service commission.
(b) "Excessively increased price" means a price that demonstrates an unjustified disparity between the price of an energy product or service sold or offered for sale, in the market where that product or service is sold, immediately before a market disruption and the price of the product or service sold or offered for sale in that market during or reasonably after a market disruption. As used in this subdivision, an unjustified disparity is a disparity of more than 20% unless the person selling or offering the energy product or service can demonstrate that the increase in price is attributable to an increase in the cost of bringing the product or service to market or an extraordinary discount in effect before the market disruption.
(c) "Market disruption" means a change in the market, whether actual or imminently threatened, resulting from weather or other force of nature, failure, shortage or disruption of energy production or distribution, strike, civil disorder, military action, act of war, threat of war, national or local emergency, or other abnormal market condition.
Sec. 3. A person conducting business in any chain of distribution for energy products or services shall not do any of the following during or reasonably after a market disruption:
(a) Charge a price for energy products or services that is grossly in excess of the price at which similar energy products or services are sold.
(b) Charge an excessively increased price for energy products or services.
(c) Offer for sale an energy product or service at an excessively increased price.
Sec. 4. (1) If the attorney general or a local prosecuting attorney has reasonable cause to believe that an individual has information or is in possession, custody, or control of any document or other tangible object relevant to an investigation for a violation of this act, the attorney general or prosecuting attorney may serve upon the individual a written demand to appear and be examined under oath, and to produce the documents or object for inspection and copying. The demand must meet all of the following:
(a) Be served upon the individual in the manner prescribed for service of process under the laws of this state.
(b) Describe the nature of the conduct constituting the violation under investigation.
(c) Describe the document or object with sufficient definiteness to permit it to be fairly identified.
(d) If requested, contain a copy of the written interrogatories.
(e) Prescribe a reasonable time at which the individual shall appear to testify and within which the individual shall answer the written interrogatories and the document or object must be produced.
(f) Advise the individual that objections to or reasons for not complying with the demand may be filed with the attorney general or prosecuting attorney on or before the time described in subdivision (e).
(g) Specify a place for the taking of testimony, or for production, and designate the individual who is to be the custodian of the document or object.
(h) Contain a copy of the language provided in subsection (2) with appropriate citation.
(2) If an individual fails to comply with the written demand served under subsection (1), the attorney general or a local prosecuting attorney may file an action to enforce the demand. Notice of hearing and a copy of the pleadings and other relevant papers must be served upon the individual, who may appear in opposition. If the court finds that the demand is proper, the court shall order the individual to comply with the demand, subject to modification as the court may prescribe. Upon motion by the individual and for good cause shown, the court may make any further order in the proceedings that justice requires to protect the individual from unreasonable burden or expense.
(3) An action filed under subsection (2) must be filed in the circuit court of the county in which the individual resides or in which the individual maintains a principal place of business within this state, or in the circuit court for the county of Ingham.
(4) The fact that an investigative demand has been issued is not confidential, but the testimony taken and material produced during the investigation must be kept confidential unless an enforcement action is brought against a person for violation of this act. Once the action is filed, the investigative material may be disclosed in the course of discovery, pursuant to a protective order if the court deems appropriate, and in support of or opposition to the claims and defenses raised in the action, but in all other respects remains confidential.
Sec. 5. (1) The attorney general may bring a class action on behalf of persons residing in or injured in this state for the actual damages caused by conduct prohibited under section 3 to recover actual damages or $100.00, whichever is greater.
(2) On motion of the attorney general and without bond in an action brought under this section, the court may make an appropriate order to do any of the following:
(a) Reimburse persons who have suffered damages.
(b) Carry out a transaction in accordance with the aggrieved persons' reasonable expectations.
(c) Strike or limit the application of unconscionable clause