Rep. Nick Pisciottano Joins Fight Corporate Monopolies’ Task Force
Rep. Nick Pisciottano September 8, 2022 | 1:25 PM
Washington, D.C. — With growing momentum sweeping across the United States to rein in the power of dominant corporations, Fight Corporate Monopolies today launched a new coalition of state and local leaders leading the charge, which features Pennsylvania Rep. Nick Pisciottano.
“The movement to dismantle the power of corporate monopolies is being led at the state level. The task force provides a real time check on the same corporations that are price gouging working people, profiteering while workers suffer, and making backdoor deals on taxpayers’ dime,” said Helen Brosnan, Executive Director of Fight Corporate Monopolies. “Their efforts reflect constituents’ concerns about the control and power corporations have over our economy and democracy. We’re proud to work with a coalition of legislative champions who are taking on bold policy fights to challenge corruption and corporate power at the root. We hope other state and local leaders continue to join their efforts.”
“State governments have a long history of challenging corporations in order to protect their states’ workers, local businesses, and communities from the harms of consolidated economic power, and those efforts are continuing todays thanks to these great champions,” said Pat Garofalo, Director of State and Local Policy at Fight Corporate Monopolies. “The members of this task force have proven they’re willing to take on the toughest fights against the country’s largest corporations. They’re providing an example that elected leaders all across the country can and should follow.”
Rep. Pisciottano introduced the Stop Price Fixing Act, which is designed to give the attorney general the necessary tools to enforce existing price-fixing laws. Additionally, the bill would shield whistleblowers and encourage those with internal knowledge of price-fixing violations to come forward.
He is also a co-sponsor of the Pennsylvania Open Markets Act, which is aimed at reducing the number of price-gouging monopolies by giving the attorney general more power to investigate and prosecute antitrust violations.
“When a few corporations control the supply and demand of entire industries, it creates an unfair, anti-competitive marketplace, allowing the powerful few to control supply, demand, pricing, and more to pad their bottom line,” said Pennsylvania Representative Nick Pisciottano. “Across the nation, working families are taken advantage of every day by over-concentrated industries across the American economy, while the corporate monopolies are reporting record profits. We don't need to accept this status quo any longer and can pass legislation that fosters competition as the bedrock of our economy while protecting consumers and workers from corporate profiteering.”
Members of the task force currently include Delaware Rep. John Kowalko, Illinois Sen. Robert Peters, Pennsylvania Reps. Sara Innamorato and Nick Pisciottano, Pennsylvania Sen. Katie Muth, New York Deputy Senate Majority Leader Michael Gianaris, and New York Assembly members Emily Gallagher and Anna Kelles. Additional members will be added over time.
Learn more about the task force here.