PA House passes Pisciottano bill to establish state antitrust law

Open Markets Act would empower attorney general to enforce laws against unfair competition

Rep. Nick Pisciottano    July 2, 2024 | 5:09 PM

HARRISBURG, July 2 – Legislation designed to restrict monopolistic and collusive practices in PA marketplaces passed the state House today, announced the bill’s author, state Rep. Nick Pisciottano.

House Bill 2012 – the Open Markets Act – would allow the state Office of the Attorney General to prosecute and penalize companies attempting to monopolize, restrict trade, limit competition, and engage in other practices Pisciottano says are largely unchecked in PA.

“We’re the only state without an antitrust statue and that does a lot of economic damage to consumers, workers, and small business owners in PA. When companies collude or monopolize to dominate a market here, our current laws don’t allow us to hold them accountable,” said Pisciottano, D-Allegheny.

“This bill is centered around equipping PA’s attorney general with the necessary tools to prosecute these bad actors so that working families don’t have to bear the consequences of predatory practices like monopolization: lower wages, higher costs, price gouging, and fewer choices in the marketplace.

“Every other state in the country has a state antitrust law. PA’s lack of such a law costs us billions of dollars in recoverable relief as a result of successful multi-state lawsuits. In one such case, other states received 85 cents on the dollar in recovery while PA received a paltry 9 cents due to our lack of a state antitrust law.

“I urge the Senate to take up this important legislation quickly so that we can ensure that Pennsylvanians are treated fairly at the grocery store, gas station, and everywhere in between.”

Pisciottano’s bill passed the PA House by a bipartisan vote of 112-89 and is now heading to the state Senate.