Washington, DC – U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) has joined Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) in introducing the Shrinkflation Prevention Act to crack down on corporations that deceive consumers by reducing product sizes without also reducing prices.
“Corporate profits are swelling as hardworking Rhode Islanders are getting squeezed, especially at the grocery store where products have shrunk and prices have soared,” said Whitehouse. “Our legislation would help put a stop to shrinkflation while lowering costs for families across our state.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic, big corporations took advantage of the crisis to prey on consumers through greedflation: raising prices by even more than necessary to cover increases in their costs, and hiding behind inflation and supply chain disruptions to do it. Now that the market shock of the pandemic has largely abated, corporations’ costs are coming down and profits are rising. But for American families, prices remain high.
The Shrinkflation Prevention Act would:
- Direct the FTC to promulgate regulations to establish shrinkflation as an unfair or deceptive act or practice, prohibiting manufacturers from engaging in the practice;
- Authorize the FTC to pursue civil actions against corporations that engage in shrinkflation; and
- Authorize state attorneys general to bring civil actions against corporations engaging in shrinkflation.
This legislation is also cosponsored by U.S. Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Patty Murray (D-WA), and Bernie Sanders (I-VT).
The bill is endorsed by Groundwork Collaborative, Public Citizen, Consumer Federation of America, and WorkMoney.
A one-page summary of the legislation is available here.
