Schakowsky, Casten, and Beyer Introduce Legislation to Protect Consumers and Prevent Energy Market Manipulation

WASHINGTON - Today, Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (D-IL-09), Congressman Sean Casten (D-IL-06), and Congressman Don Beyer (D-VA-08) introduced bicameral legislation to provide the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) with additional authority to protect consumers from the harm caused by traders that repeatedly manipulate electricity and natural gas markets. The Energy Consumer Protection Act is being introduced in the Senate by U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) and U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA).

"As historic heat waves sweep the nation, American families face blackouts and rising energy prices. The blame for this rests squarely at the feet of energy companies who for years have manipulated markets and deceived regulators. It is time to protect consumers and reign in these companies to ensure this never happens again," said Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky. "The Energy Consumer Protection Act of 2022 will protect consumers by giving the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission additional authority to penalize companies and individuals that engage in energy market manipulation or who provide false information to the Commission."

"In the midst of heatwaves fueled by the climate crisis, we need to do everything we can to cut energy costs," said Congressman Sean Casten. "Providing FERC with the authority to protect consumers and prevent manipulation of the energy market will bring down costs for families across the country and help deliver cheaper, more reliable energy."

"At a time when American families are struggling with energy costs, we can't afford market manipulators that make those concerns worse," said Congressman. Beyer. "Our bill, the Energy Consumer Protection Act, would provide FERC with the ability to address those concerns. I want to thank my colleague Rep. Schakowsky for her leadership on this issue."

"We need an all-of-the-above strategy to make sure that energy prices are affordable for Nevadans," said Senator Cortez Masto, "and that includes my legislation to create new tools to prevent bad actors from manipulating energy markets and hiking up prices for consumers and businesses alike. I'm going to continue working to bring down costs for businesses and families in the Silver State."

"This legislation will add a key consumer protection arrow to FERC's quiver by blocking market manipulators from repeating their crimes and harming energy consumers," said Senator Cantwell. "The burden of today's elevated energy prices makes the quick passage of this bill more important than ever."

Current law bans market manipulation and false or misleading representations, but FERC's current enforcement mechanisms are not sufficient in deterring traders from violating the law. This legislation would give FERC additional tools to enforce existing law. The Energy Consumer Protection Act would allow FERC to temporarily or permanently ban companies from trading in energy markets if they 1) violate the Federal Power Act by manipulating those markets or 2) file false information regarding natural gas sales or transmission.

Full bill text can be found here.

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