U.S. SENATE News:

WASHINGTON, D.C. — This month, U.S. Senators Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) introduced new legislation to investigate high gas prices and look into ways to lower costs for hardworking families.

The Fair and Transparent Gas Prices Act would provide the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) with the resources it needs to investigate markets for unfair practices and price gouging by big oil and gas companies.

“Back in November, I called on the FTC to investigate price gouging at the pump, even as the cost of refined fuel has fallen and industry profits have gone up. The average cost of a gallon of gas was $3.50 at the time. This month, we are paying $4.30 per gallon, and oil and gas stock buybacks have more than doubled. It’s commonsense to hold these companies accountable for unfair practices that harm consumers,” Sen. Luján said. “No corporation should be excessively profiting while New Mexican families suffer at the pump. I’m proud to join Senator Cortez Masto on the Fair and Transparent Gas Prices Act, which will increase accountability and prevent price gouging.”

Sen. Cortez Masto said, “Nevadans are facing rising costs at the pump, and we need to be taking an all-of-the-above approach to bring prices down. The legislation I’m introducing today will shine a light on oil and gas companies’ concerning practices, which are hurting consumers. I’ll continue working on commonsense solutions that lower costs for Nevada families and strengthen our economic recovery.”

The Fair and Transparent Gas Prices Act of 2022 would fund an expansive FTC investigation to bring transparency to the oil and gas markets, address concerns over price gouging by oil and gas companies, and recommend action to decrease behavior that harms consumers, such as companies buying back stocks from their shareholders instead of using their record profits to responsibly increase oil and gas drilling in the U.S.