Category: COVID-19

Attorney general gets more than 100 complaints about price-gouging

More than 100 complaints alleging price gouging have been filed since the state’s anti-profiteering law was triggered by the governor’s declaration of a state of emergency related to COVID-19, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said today.


As of Thursday, the attorney general’s office had received 107 price gouging complaints since the law went into effect on March 12. Some of those complaints have been referred to local prosecutors and others have been assigned to investigators within the attorney general’s office for follow up.


“The price gouging law is designed to prohibit profiteering from a disaster by unjustifiably raising prices of goods and services needed by the public,” Schmidt said. “We are reviewing every complaint and investigating those that show a possible violation of the law.”


The anti-profiteering law, which is enforced by the attorney general and county and district attorneys, generally prohibits unjustifiably raising prices for goods and services for which consumer demand is likely to increase because of the virus outbreak. A price increase is presumed unjustified if it exceeds by 25 percent or more the price at which the goods or services were available on March 11 or the price for which the same goods or services are available from other sellers in the trade area.


Examples of consumer goods and services governed by the anti-profiteering law include, but are not limited to, food items, sanitary and cleaning supplies such as hand sanitizer and disinfecting wipes, emergency supplies, medical supplies and services, lodging, and any other property or service for which consumer demand may increase in response to the virus outbreak.


The law was enacted in response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and is codified at K.S A. 50-6,106. It carries a penalty of up to $10,000 per violation. It is only in effect during a disaster declaration.


Anyone with information about price-gouging in violation of the anti-profiteering law should file a complaint with the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division online on a newly designed form specifically covering COVID-19-related price gouging, available along with other resources about the state’s response to the outbreak, at www.ag.ks.gov.


Consumers may also call 800-432-2310 to request a paper complaint form be sent by mail.

Food pantries see increased need in Wyandotte County

Two food pantries in Wyandotte County are seeing an increased need, according to Denise Ogilvie, vice president of community engagement of Catholic Charities of Northeast Kansas.

The two food pantries are at 2220 Central Ave. and 1708 Steele Road in Kansas City, Kansas.

Ogilvie estimated that the number of people needing services has increased about 30 percent since the COVID-19 pandemic started here, although exact numbers are not yet available.

The food pantries have changed the days that they are open to Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, with more time to clean and restock, she said.

Catholic Charities completed its monthly mobile food distribution last Saturday at Harmon High School and saw a 30 percent increase there, she added.

They also are assisting in providing boxed or sack lunches in Wyandotte County to children ages 0 to 18, she said, and are distributing lunches out of the Central Avenue location. Currently Catholic Charities is working with the Housing Authority, discussing driving the organization’s bus to each Kansas City, Kansas, public housing site to hand out lunches from the bus.

While in the summertime, Catholic Charities also provides parent lunches, she said currently they don’t have that option, as they were not prepared for the emergency.

At the food pantries, clients formerly came into the pantry to choose their food, but at the recommendation of Harvesters and national experts, Catholic Charities has changed to a drive-up model, she said. They bag groceries and place them in people’s cars now.

Ogilvie said another big change because of COVID-19 might be that clients who need additional services, such as housing and utility, are now all handled over the phone, not in person. A client calls, and an appointment is made to call them on the phone and discuss their needs, instead of a face-to-face meeting.

“We expect once this stay-at-home order is finished we will be seeing more people,” Ogilvie said.

Currently, utilities are not being shut off in Wyandotte County and there is a restriction on evicting people from their residences in the state.

When some of the restrictions on eviction and utility assistance have been lifted, Ogilvie said she expected to see an increase in people needing help in those areas.

Some of the local food pantries, including some run by churches, have been closed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Part of the problem is that many volunteers are 65 and older, and they’re concerned for their own health, as they should be, Ogilvie said.

“We have a decreased number of volunteers and are hearing that across the board for the entire metro area,” she said. “Thankfully for us, we are still relying on volunteers who have continued to help us.”

Also, they are backfilling with staff members who usually have other roles in the agency, but are stepping up and helping keep the food pantry doors open, she said.

Catholic Charities typically relies on parishes for a lot of the donations, but since churches are under an order of no more than 10 people in a building, they have not had the same amount of donations as previously.

“Thankfully, a lot of people have stepped up,” Ogilvie said, “and want to give a donation to buy food. We are in need of donations and also are thankful to those who have stepped up to help us out.”

They need donations of food and money for the food pantries.

For more information on services, volunteering or donations, visit https://catholiccharitiesks.org/.

UG Commission approves small business grants

The Unified Government Commission on Thursday night approved small business grants for Wyandotte County.

The grants are for up to $5,000. According to UG Administrator Doug Bach, there is no effect on the current budget, since the funding for the program has already been approved.

Now, however, the grants can be expedited and can be made available quickly to local businesses, according to UG officials.

Katherine Carttar, director of economic development for the UG, said the small business grant fund is $50,000. The UG has been allotting grants annually for small businesses, and made some changes Thursday because of COVID-19, she said.

The UG will loosen the eligibility standards for what the funds may be used for, she said. The grants now may be used for capital access, workforce capacity, inventory and supply shortfalls, facility remediation and cleanup costs, and marketing.

The UG will remove all application deadlines for the 2020 year, and will accept ongoing applications, she said.

Also, the UG is removing the requirement for matching funds, she said.

The maximum amount a business could apply for has been reduced to $5,000, Carttar said. Previously it was $10,000. This will allow the UG to increase the number of businesses it may assist, she said.

The need for documentation will remain in place, but the UG no longer will require financial projections, as it is something that is currently difficult to come up with, she added.

It was unanimously approved Thursday night, and the UG started accepting applications on Friday.

Bach said if the program is successful, the UG could ask the commission at a later date for additional funding.

Commissioner Tom Burroughs, who voted for the program, said the governor also has put in place a $5 million program to help small businesses across the state.

For more information, call 913-573-5439, email [email protected] or visit
wycokck.org/economic and https://www.wycokck.org/WycoKCK/media/Health-Department/Documents/UG-Small-Business-Incentive-Program.pdf.