Forbes reports that the House of Representatives has passed a bill that jails and fines price gougers in the petroleum markets.

In a landslide 389-to-34 vote, the House passed a bill that would impose jail time and million-dollar fines on wholesalers, refiners and retailers for gouging consumers in the gas, diesel fuel, crude oil and heating fuel markets.

But they punted on defining exactly what price gouging is, assigning the Federal Trade Commission to do it for them. If the bill ever gets passed into law—a doubtful prospect as long as President George W. Bush sits in the White House—that agency would presumably come up with some percentage over costs, which if exceeded would be deemed extortionary.

So the Legislative Branch is giving the Executive Branch the ability to make the rules on price gouging. Some separation of powers. Selective enforcement of a law by the same entity who makes the law is tyrannical. The FTC is legislated to be almost evenly split between the two parties, but that makes little difference when both parties are big government.