Three Cheers for Price Gouging During Hurricane Florence: New at Reason

Officials in states hit by Hurricane Florence are on the lookout for “price gouging.”

People who engage in “excessive pricing” face up to 30 days jail time, said North Carolina’s attorney general. South Carolina passed a “Price Gouging During Emergency” law that imposes a $1,000 fine per violation. “Gouging” is an issue during every disaster because when supplies are short, some merchants raise prices.

These are “bad people,” said Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi angrily during a previous storm. Bad people?

“Gougers deserve a medal,” Nobel Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman once told John Stossel. That’s because higher prices are the best indicator of which goods people want most. Without rising prices indicating which materials are most sought-after, suppliers don’t know whether to rush in food, or bandages, or chainsaws.

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