SIMI VALLEY : Council Approves Anti-Gouging Law
Hoping to discourage merchants from boosting prices during disasters, the Simi Valley City Council has approved an anti-gouging law that prohibits raising prices more than 25% in emergencies.
Although no reports of price gouging were verified in Simi Valley after the Jan. 17 earthquake, council members on Monday agreed to pass the ordinance to discourage the practice.
Under the new law, merchants would not be allowed to increase prices more than 25% when a local emergency has been declared.
Items covered by the ordinance include food, water, flashlights, batteries, radios, candles, blankets, soap, diapers, drugs and bandages.
“The point in having a 25% limit rather than something lower is so that you can go to court and definitely convict somebody who is doing this,” Mayor Greg Stratton said.
“This way it is absolutely clear,” she said.
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