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Senators Introduce Bill to Ban Surveillance Pricing in Grocery Stores Nationwide

By  |  February 16, 2026
Grocery Stores

As states seek to regulate merchants’ use of so-called “surveillance,” or “dynamic” pricing powered by AI, two U.S. Senators want to establish a national policy on its use. Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-MN) and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) last week introduced the Stop Price Gouging in Grocery Stores Act of 2026 aimed at banning the use of new technologies to raise grocery prices in the United States. A similar bill was introduced in the House last year.

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    “In New Mexico and across the country, Americans are struggling to put food on the table,” Luján said in a statement. “With rising costs driven by President Trump’s trade war and Republican cuts to SNAP, Congress must act to ensure that technologies are being used to improve the lives of Americans, not increase their grocery bills.”

    Added Merkely, “We must protect Americans from price gouging and from billionaire corporations abusing folks’ personal information just to charge higher prices. The Stop Price Gouging in Grocery Stores Act cracks down on this corporate greed—in the store and online—putting people over profits.”

    Specifically, the bill would prohibit surveillance in grocery stores; require grocery stores to disclose the use of facial recognition technology; ban electronic shelf labels that can be changed remotely in large stores; and establish enforcement mechanisms against violators.

    While it’s unclear how many grocery stores are actually using in-store surveillance pricing, at least six states have introduced legislation to ban or limit the practice, according to the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW). “Every single American will be affected by these predatory pricing practices, including the more than 800,000 grocery workers that UFCW represents, who are on the frontlines of this war on consumers,” UFCW International President Milton Jones said in endorsing the federal measure. “Families deserve to shop without worrying that they’ll be targeted with a higher price because of their income level or zip code.”

    Read more: Bill Introduced to Ban Use of AI For ‘Surveillance-Based Pricing and Wages’

    The Biden-era Federal Trade Commission had initiated an investigation into the use of surveillance pricing in 2024, but the probe was dropped by the Trump administration.

    A 2025 study by Consumer Reports and others found that Instacart was charging different prices to different customers for the same basket of groceries, with price differentials of up to 23% on some items.

    The UFCW has emerged as a vocal critic of the practice. “Americans are hurting under the affordability crisis, and UFCW members see the pain in their faces every time they enter the grocery store,” UFCW International President Milton Jones said in a statement to Gizmodo. “Our members also feel it themselves when they shop for their families.”

    The union is planning a national campaign to get the issue on the political agenda. “We are starting this national campaign to stop corporations from being able to change prices in front of their eyes just because they live in the wrong zipcode or are a new parent, Jones said. “We are proud to work with elected officials in every part of the country to lead the fight for affordable groceries and good jobs because that is what our members want.”