The offense under the new law is a first-degree misdemeanor. The penalty for that, under city ordinances, is a fine up to $1,000, and up to 180 days in jail.
Under the new law, if a company raises prices by more than 10 percent during an emergency period from what the prices were before the crisis, the owners can be prosecuted for price gouging, There is a defense, however, if the company can show that the higher prices reflected actual increases in prices it had to pay for that same product, and it was simply passed along.
Moeller cited a newspaper article from this media outlet that reported the Ohio Attorney General received 90 complaints from the Miami Valley alleging price gouging between March 1 and April 1, including 17 in Butler County.
Moeller noted legislation is being created in Ohio, but in the meantime, Hamilton will have this tool to prevent high markups of prices.
“I’m glad that we did this,” said Council Member Carla Fiehrer. “I think that this is a good step, and we need to be paying more attention to things like this.”
Rather than considering the ordinance at the usual two council meetings, officials waived city rules and adopted the measure in one.
Officials hope to have a special place on Hamilton's MyHamilton (311) site, www.hamilton-oh.gov/myhamilton, but do not yet have that set up. In the meantime, people can call 513-785-7076 to report abuses.
The gouging situation takes effect when there is a state of emergency following such things as earthquakes, floods, storms, drought, animal infestations, disease or other natural or man-made disasters.
“I think this is just a good start to keep in our back pocket and hope we never, ever have to use it,” Moeller said.
“We support small business, but we don’t support these people,” said Council Member Eric Pohlman. “I’m glad it’s out there because Hamilton does not want that, and we don’t want that reputation here.”
About the Author