Portable Sanitation Association International

ASSOCIATIONINSIGHT Portable Sanitation Association International News B e t t e r w o r k s i t e s . B e t t e r w e e k e n d s . B e t t e r w o r l d . BIWEEKLY EDITION JANUARY, 2020 Page 1 ASSOCIATIONINSIGHT Portable Sanitation Association International News B e t t e r w o r k s i t e s . B e t t e r w e e k e n d s . B e t t e r w o r l d . BIWEEKLY EDITION APRIL 1, 2020 News Flash: OSHA Standards Have ALWAYS Required Hand Washing Stations By Karleen Kos, PSAI Executive Director Now that hand washing is "a thing," changes are afoot on the job site. In some parts of the country, inspectors are entering job sites and requiring general contractors to provide hand washing facilities for their workers. This new awareness of hand washing during the COVID-19 pandemic is contributing to the current shortage of hand wash units available. It is frustrating for everyone. The latest information available to the PSAI is that suppliers are ramping up hand wash unit production and expect deliveries of new units in three to five weeks. Meanwhile, portable sanitation operators have gotten creative about building temporary stations and modifying existing equipment, and they are finding all sorts of ways to meet their customers' needs. On the Inside Catching Up with Andy Gump Awardees…page 4 Key Provisions of the CARES Act…page 6 2019 PSAI Achievements…page 8 Convention and Trade Show Retrospective… page 21 Continued on page 3 Is It Price Gouging? By Karleen Kos, PSAI Executive Director In the past two weeks, many instances of real or perceived price gouging have complicated the process of obtaining critical supplies. In particular, spikes in prices for personal protective equipment— especially masks/face shields, hand sanitizer, and hand wash unit rentals—have led to concerns that sellers are raising prices unfairly during the COVID-19 crisis. The Varying Definitions of Price Gouging Generally, when a state's governor declares a state of emergency, this automatically puts the state's "price gouging" law into place. These laws vary from state to state, and a few states do not even have specific price gouging laws. Instead, they rely on the consumer protection statutes in place in those states. Most areas, though, explicitly prohibit unreasonable profiteering during times of crisis either as a consequence of existing laws governing states of emergency or through executive orders put in place by the governor. Some states define price gouging or profiteering very specifically, such as a 10 percent or a 25 percent deviation from the regular price. Continued on page 2

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