Ernie Fletcher and Greg Stumbo find themselves on the same side of a legal struggle today. Both have been named as defendants by Marathon Oil in a federal lawsuit.
The suit attacks Kentucky's price gouging law on three fronts. First, it says the law unconstitutionally affords the Attorney General power to attack businesses and write his own standards on the fly. Second, Marathon claims Governor Fletcher's August 31, 2005 Executive Order 2005-943 putting the gouging law into effect failed to specify the length of time the price-fixing regulation would be in effect in violation of Section 2 of the Kentucky Constitution. Third, the suit states that the price gouging law violates the U.S. Constitution's Commmerce Clause and unfairly inhibits competition.
The suit claims the Governor's issuance of Executive Order 2005-943 declaring a state of emergency was illegally applied in 2005 and has never been terminated. The suit also claims Stumbo lied when he said Speedway violated the Kentucky Consumer Protection Act and includes a transcript of Stumbo's August 8, 2006 press conference as evidence.
The suit asks for the law to be declared unconstitutional and for the defendants to be ordered to pay costs, attorney fees, and "all other relief to which the plaintiffs may be entitled."
