Gov. Mike Pence’s decision today to declare an energy emergency in response to the propane shortage authorizes the Indiana Attorney General’s Office to use certain investigative and enforcement powers.

Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller said an energy emergency allows his office to investigate consumer claims of price gouging and if violations are found, seek injunctive relief, consumer restitution and civil penalties.

“In the majority of instances, propane prices are being driven by substantial market forces. However, this emergency authority allows my office to thoroughly investigate price gouging complaints to determine if any violations exist,” Zoeller said. “If there is any evidence of consumers being taken advantage of during these already difficult times, my office will take action. Hoosiers should also know that we will continue to closely monitor the price of propane sold at all levels of the market.”

Under Indiana law (IC 4-6-9.1), price gouging occurs when a consumer is charged an “unconscionable amount” for the sale of fuel. For example, if the amount charged grossly exceeds the average price of fuel during the seven days before the emergency was declared or if the amount is not attributable to cost factors to the retailer.

Since Dec. 16, the Attorney General’s office has received 23 consumer complaints related to the propane shortage and 21 of those are concerning the high prices.

Hoosiers who want to report suspected price gouging can do so by calling the Attorney General’s Office hotline toll-free at 1-866-241-9753 or visiting www.IndianaConsumer.com.

INDIANAPOLIS – Amidst economic instability and hardship for Indiana’s working families, State Rep. Gail Riecken (D-Evansville) has authored a bill offering powerful and safe incentives to get more Hoosier families saving.

The Indiana House unanimously passed House Bill 1235 Tuesday (Jan. 28) in an effort to encourage saving among Hoosier families. The bill allows state charter credit unions to offer savings promotional raffles.

“The point of these raffles is to encourage people to build a savings account so that, in an emergency, people can use their own money instead of high interest commercial products like pay-day loans,” said Riecken.

In these raffles, individuals would be rewarded for making minimum deposits into a savings account or participating in financial literacy programs. With that deposit comes an entry into a raffle, in which participants can earn cash prizes.

“It’s a win-win situation,” Riecken explained. “People will never lose their balance or the interest they’ve accrued, they only have the opportunity to win more money while learning how to save.”

Prompted by numerous committee meetings concerning Hoosiers who have lost their homes due to default mortgages, Riecken said the goal of this bill is to encourage people to save for unpredictable emergencies including job loss or illnesses.

“We have seen a marked decrease in savings over the last four years and this leaves Indiana families with nothing to fall back on when they experience a drop in income or an unexpected expense,” said Riecken. “The intent of this bill is to build saving habits in people who are not used to saving.”

Riecken said the end goal of the bill is to provide an incentive for people to save more in order to help financially vulnerable families become more financially secure.

The bill now moves to the Indiana Senate for further consideration.

by Dave Stafford for www.theindianalawyer.com

Owners who leased properties in Michigan and Indiana that were used as Marathon gas stations – some of which were neglected, abandoned and condemned while Marathon leased them – will be paid more than the $269,000 a District judge in Fort Wayne awarded.

The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals opened the door for a greater judgment against Marathon for claims that began with its environmental cleanup of underground gas storage tanks at fewer than a dozen locations where it did business. Contract terms called for Marathon to remove underground tanks and return the properties as near as possible to their prior condition.

But Circuit Judge Richard Posner wrote for the panel that locations in Adrian and Michigan Center, Mich., were abandoned and ordered condemned while Marathon was still paying the lease. District Judge Theresa Springmann of the Northern District of Indiana wrongly denied double damages permitted under Michigan law governing the doctrine of waste and erred in dismissing other claims, the panel ruled.

The “contract and waste claims concerning these buildings should not
have been dismissed,” Posner wrote for the panel in Bitler Investment Venture II, LLC, et al. v. Marathon Petroleum Company LP, et al., 12-3722.

“So the judgment awarding damages for waste regarding the four Michigan properties is vacated with directions to the district court to double those damages,” Posner wrote, which would result in an award of $538,000. “(T)he dismissal of the contract and waste claims relating to the buildings on the properties in Adrian and Michigan Center is reversed and that aspect of the case is remanded for trial.”

The plaintiffs argued Marathon’s breach of lease and committing waste on the properties were guided by anti-competitive motives. Plaintiffs sought damages in excess of $9 million in litigation that also included a commercial property in Angola, Ind.

By Danielle Faczan

TheStatehouseFile.com

INDIANAPOLIS – A bill to end employment discrimination against veterans unanimously passed the House on Tuesday.

House Bill 1242 would make it illegal to refuse a person employment based on veteran status, either because they are a U.S. Armed Forces veteran, a member of the Indiana National Guard or of a reserve component.

Rep. Martin Carbaugh, R-Fort Wayne, said the bill was personal because he has a friend who served on the frontlines in Iraq in 2003. While his friend was able to obtain a job eventually, he did experience some discrimination for being a veteran, Carbaugh said.

“A lot of companies are looking for veterans to hire, and rightfully so,” Carbaugh said. “But there are some – and I don’t know why, I can’t figure it out – they are discriminating against our (veterans), against our reserves that are willing and able to serve us right now. I think that’s wrong.”

Rep. Karlee Macer, D-Indianapolis, one of the bill’s co-authors, said she was “shocked and saddened” during her research into how many veterans have been discriminated against.

“These men and women fight for our freedom and it’s ridiculous that anyone would not want them to be employed at their business or company,” Macer said. “I want to thank all the veterans, men and women, who have done their jobs for us and I would like us to do our jobs for them.”

Danielle Faczan is a reporter for TheStatehouseFile.com, a news website powered by Franklin College journalism students.