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BATON ROUGE, La.-- Hurricane Gustav may hit Louisiana and as residents heed the warnings to fill up their cars with gasoline, in case of evacuation, Attorney General James D. “Buddy” Caldwell says he has gained business’ cooperation by assuring a tough stance against price gouging by anyone.
“We will not tolerate gouging of any kind,” says the Attorney General. “We have our investigators checking and documenting pre-storm prices at all types of businesses especially gas stations, to make sure their prices stay relatively the same as before the storm. Businesses have been very cooperative, welcome our involvement and are helping us police competitors. Caldwell says he has had his investigators combing the streets statewide the past couple of days, documenting prices and preparing for anyone who would take advantage of consumers during a time of emergency.
Local law enforcement, sheriffs and municipalities are assisting as well. Louisiana law states that once a state of emergency has been declared, merchants may not grossly raise the price of products without good reason. Unreasonable price increases are considered “price gouging” and subject to penalties. In an emergency situation, a merchant may increase the price only if they incur a “spike” in the price of doing business.
If you see a place of business you suspect is price gouging you can call our consumer protection hotline at 1-800-351-4889.
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