Posted on 05/14/2007 6:56:54 PM PDT by Extremely Extreme Extremist
(CBS/AP) TRENTON, N.J. -- With gas prices increasing, New Jersey lawmakers moved on Monday toward toughening gas gouging penalties that haven't been changed since Franklin D. Roosevelt was finishing his first term as president.
An Assembly committee released a Senate-approved bill to boost the state's gas gouging penalty to as much as $3,000 per violation, compared to current law -- unchanged since 1938 -- that brings fines as low as $50.
The bill can now be considered by the full Assembly. It was approved 35-0 by the Senate in February.
Monday's activity comes as the average price for regular gas in New Jersey averaged $2.88 per gallon, up about 25 cents from a month ago, according to AAA.
The costliest region in the state was in the Trenton area, where regular gas averaged $2.92 per gallon, AAA reported.
Nationally, regular gas averaged $3.07 per gallon on Monday.
"This bill actually comes in at a perfect time," said Assemblyman Vincent Prieto, D-Hudson, a bill sponsor.
New Jersey law provides penalties ranging from $50 to $200 per violation for violating state gas pricing law.
The proposal released Monday would increase those fines to $1,500 to $3,000.
The state's gas gouging law makes it illegal to, among other things, display and charge different fuel prices and change the selling price more than once in any 24-hour period.
"New Jersey has strict laws governing the pricing and sale of gasoline, but the penalties for breaking those laws are weak," said another bill sponsor, Assemblyman Neil Cohen, D-Union. "As the price of gas continues to climb, we need to ensure that greedy and opportunistic individuals don't take it upon themselves to make a costly situation even worse."
Over the Labor Day weekend following Hurricane Katrina in 2005, when the New Jersey saw it's highest average price ever -- $3.18 per gallon -- state inspectors visited 400 stations and found 100 alleged violations.
The state also sued major oil companies for violating state fuel pricing laws. It reached settlements with Amerada Hess, BP Products North America and Sunoco in which the companies agreed to pay the state about $1 million total.
Eric DeGesero, executive vice president of the Fuel Merchants Association of New Jersey, said they didn't oppose the proposed law, but asked legislators to overhaul all state laws on fuel pricing, including how consolidation of major oil companies affects competition.
"It's getting to the point where maybe they won't be staying in business," he said of independent gas stations.
Maybe they plan to use the money collected to build a new refinery.
The only gouging going on is represented by the state tax added per gallon.
Does New Jersey have a statutory definition of “gouging?”
Of course the price of gasoline in NY was even more than we're playing in KC. But I was surprised that it was cheaper in NJ.
Mark
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