PRESS RELEASE: Councilor Eric Zimmerman’s Consumers Opposed to Surveillance Technology (COST) Ordinance Advances Through Portland City Council’s City Life Committee

(PORTLAND, ORE.) - Today, the Consumers Opposed to Surveillance Technology (COST) ordinance introduced by Councilor Eric Zimmerman passed Portland City Council's City Life Committee, advancing legislation designed to establish consumer protections against surveillance-based pricing practices on retail goods.

The COST Ordinance prohibits retailers from using a consumer's personal data to set a different price for the same product and limits how frequently retail prices can increase. The ordinance preserves common consumer discounts, including loyalty and rewards programs, coupons, sales, and other price reductions that help Portlanders save money.

"It's about affordability and fairness," said Councilor Eric Zimmerman. "If two Portlanders walk into the same retail store in Portland and buy the same product, on the same day, at the same time, the price for that product should be the same for both individuals. Supply and demand makes sense, but when we start changing the price of a product based on the individual, I have an issue with that."

The ordinance is intended to establish these protections before surveillance-based pricing becomes common practice in Portland and before businesses make significant investments in technology that could enable those practices. While these pricing practices are not yet used by Portland retailers, new technology, including artificial intelligence, increasingly sophisticated data collection, and digital price labels, has made these practices possible.

Councilor Zimmerman's office looked to similar legislation introduced in Connecticut, Maryland, New Jersey, and New York as a starting point, then collaborated with United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 555 to shape the language so that it achieved the Councilor's policy goals while working for Portland consumers.

"We want to thank Councilor Zimmerman for moving this policy forward," said Mike Selvaggio, Political Director at UFCW Local 555. "It's best to be able to address these issues early before they become endemic. This policy will go a long way to protecting consumers from unfair pricing models as well as help protect their personal data."

Having passed the City Life Committee, Councilor Zimmerman's COST Ordinance will advance to the full Portland City Council for consideration in the coming weeks.

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