House advances measure to limit price increases after declared disasters amid heated debate

The Colorado House debated and adopted a version of House Bill 10-10 on March 7, a proposal to expand state price-gouging protections to market disruptions and to allow the governor to trigger a 10% cap on price increases during a declared disaster.

Supporters framed the bill as consumer protection. Representative Shamaine Zokai, the bill’s sponsor, told colleagues that families are struggling with higher costs and that some companies raise prices far beyond what rising costs would justify. Co-prime sponsor Representative Matt Brown said the amendment at the center of debate had been negotiated with business groups and that the 10% cap is a standard used in other states.

Opponents pressed several concerns. Representative DeGraaf and others said the bill’s proposed definition of “disaster” — which included “market disruption” and “trade disruption” — was so broad it could let a governor declare a disaster for ordinary economic changes and thereby impose long-running controls. Representative DeGraaf argued the language could turn routine market swings into grounds for emergency action and “give absolute control to the governor,” while Representative Bottoms said the legislature should avoid ceding more power to the executive.

Lawmakers also debated how the bill would interact with existing law. Representative Luck asked whether the measure creates two overlapping standards — the current disaster-zone standard and the new statewide governor-declared standard — and whether the bill leaves confusion if both could apply. Sponsors said the governor would make it clear which standard applied by declaring a disaster under the amendment’s criteria and that the bill includes an affirmative defense allowing sellers to show increased supplier costs.

After hours of debate and several proposed changes, the House adopted the floor amendment that tied the new protections to a governor-declared disaster and added the 10% cap with an affirmative defense for documented additional costs. The amended bill was moved forward by the chamber.

Why it matters: Proponents said the measure stops opportunistic price increases on necessities in emergencies and market disruptions that leave consumers with no choice. Opponents said the proposed disaster definition and the governor-triggered mechanism risk overreach and could discourage supplies from entering crisis areas.

What’s next: The amended bill advances for further consideration. Sponsors and critics said they expect continued negotiation on specific definitions and implementation details.