HR4966-119

What This Bill Does

The Stop Price Gouging in Grocery Stores Act creates federal rules for retail food store pricing and surveillance technology. Retail food stores may not sell items at grossly excessive prices unless the increase is directly attributable to additional uncontrollable procurement, acquisition, distribution, or provision costs. FTC must issue regulations within 180 days defining markets, grossly excessive prices, and excessive prices, and must consider a 120 percent of average market price benchmark. Retail food stores also may not use surveillance-based price setting, including personal-information-based price adjustments or electronic shelf labels tied to personal information. The bill permits disclosed group discounts and voluntary biometric identity verification under strict notice, retention, sharing, and deletion conditions. Stores using facial recognition must post clear signage at the main entrance. FTC enforces violations as unfair or deceptive acts or practices and unfair methods of competition, states may bring parens patriae suits for injunctions, damages of at least $3,000 per violation, restitution, penalties, and equitable relief, and Congress authorizes $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2025 through September 30, 2032.

Who Benefits and How

Grocery consumers benefit from a federal ban on grossly excessive food prices and personalized surveillance-based price setting. State attorneys general benefit from parens patriae authority to sue retail food stores for violations affecting state residents. Privacy advocates benefit from limits on facial recognition, biometric data, electronic shelf labels, and personal-information-driven prices. FTC enforcement staff benefit from explicit authority and $5,000,000 in authorized implementation funding.

Who Bears the Burden and How

Retail food stores must justify price increases, avoid surveillance-based pricing, post facial-recognition signage, and follow FTC regulations. Grocery chains using electronic shelf labels must avoid personal-information-based price changes except for allowed uniform discounts. Biometric technology vendors face tighter conditions on grocery identity verification, disclosure, data sharing, and deletion. FTC rulemaking staff must define grossly excessive price, market, and excessive price metrics within 180 days.

Key Provisions

• Prohibits retail food stores from selling items at grossly excessive prices unless cost increases justify the price.
• Bars surveillance-based price setting using personal information, facial recognition, or electronic shelf labels.
• Requires clear entrance signage when a retail food store uses facial recognition technology.
• Provides FTC enforcement and state attorney general civil actions with damages, restitution, penalties, and equitable relief.
• Authorizes $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2025, available through September 30, 2032.