The Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office is encouraging community members to report any incident of price gouging, which is illegal under the current State of Emergency stemming from the novel coronavirus, or COVID-19, pandemic.
California’s anti-price gouging statute prohibits raising the price of many consumer goods and services by more than 10 percent after an emergency has been declared, the DA’s Office said. Violators face up to one-year imprisonment in county jail and/or a fine of up to $10,000 and additional civil enforcement action.
Any incidents of hiking the prices on high-demand products like hand sanitizer, toilet paper and over-the-counter medications can be reported to the Consumer Protection Unit by emailing [email protected]. Individuals can also fill out a consumer complaint form on the DA’s website.
