HAGÅTÑA (The Guam Daily Post) — Three senators have co-sponsored two bills designed to address concerns of price gouging raised by Attorney General Douglas Moylan.
Last month, Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero wrote a letter alerting Moylan to look into reports of price gouging by electricians.
Moylan told The Guam Daily Post in response, he would need more specific facts about the reports before he can look into it.
However, Moylan suggested the 37th Guam Legislature should look at changing the price gouging laws, which currently freezes items for 72 hours after the island returns to Condition of Readiness 4 after a natural disaster such as Typhoon Mawar.
Moylan explained that after the 72-hour time period, his office operates under the Consumer Protection Law, which prohibits unconscionable pricing that does not relate to a disaster.
Moylan later sent a letter to Speaker Therese Terlaje with proposed changes to the law.
On July 3, Bill 146-37 was introduced by Sen. William Parkinson and co-sponsored by Sens. Tina Muña Barnes and Dwayne San Nicolas. It revises the law to allow prices to continue to be frozen for “90 days after Guam returns to Condition of Readiness 4, or its equivalent.”
Bill 146 also adds that the Legislature may suspend the freeze by adopting a resolution before the end of the 90 day period.
Weather heads
Leon Guerrero’s initial letter to Moylan was about reports of price gouging by potentially non-certified electricians repairing weather heads damaged by Typhoon Mawar.
In Moylan’s conversation with the Post, he suggested the Guam Power Authority do the inspections and certifications of the weather heads rather than having electricians be required to obtain certifications.
Bill 147-37, also introduced by Parkinson, Muña Barnes and San Nicolas, requires GPA personnel to conduct the inspection free of charge to the resident.
The findings and intent of the bill state that GPA removes homes from the power grid during the restoration period and leaves residents having to find a licensed and certified electrical company or electrician to do repair work.
Due to how difficult in can be to find electricians, allegations of profiteering or price gouging arise.
The bill states the “problem has existed for decades, including back during Super Typhoon Pongsona in December 2002” and if passed will provide “immediate and effective” relief for individuals facing electrical damage from natural disasters.
A residential weather head is seen June 26, 2023, in Tamuning.