Congress moves to ban algorithmic price gouging at grocery stores
H.R. 8895 — No Rigged Grocery Prices Act · Filed by Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) · 1 cosponsor · Introduced May 19, 2026 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill prohibits large grocery retailers and food delivery services from using personal data to charge different customers different prices for the same item (dynamic pricing). It requires online grocery sellers to disclose when items are out of stock or weighed for pricing, and mandates that delivery services get explicit customer approval before substituting ordered items. The FTC enforces violations as unfair trade practices.
Why we flagged it
The bill's core mechanism is straightforward: it bans algorithmic price discrimination in grocery retail and delivery services, with FTC enforcement. This is a direct consumer-protection measure, not a subsidy, deregulation, or narrow carve-out.
- Section 3 requires the Department of Labor to report on employment effects of electronic shelf labels—substantively unrelated to dynamic pricing prohibition.
What the text implies
- The bill defines 'covered entity' to include only food retailers of at least 15,000 sq ft, potentially exempting small grocers and farmers markets from the dynamic pricing ban—creating a competitive advantage for large chains that comply.
- The 'personal data' definition is broad ('any information linked or reasonably linked to an identified consumer'), which may capture location data, purchase history, and device identifiers—expanding the scope of what retailers cannot use for pricing.
The full analysis lists 5 implications of this text.
Who stands to gain
consumers (reduced price discrimination); smaller retailers (potential competitive relief if large chains face compliance costs)