Maryland moves to ban surveillance pricing in grocery stores

Maryland is set to become the first U.S. state to ban surveillance pricing in grocery stores through the Protection from Predatory Pricing Act, effective October 1, 2026. The law prohibits retailers from using data like shopping history, income, or ethnicity to set variable prices for different customers. Governor Wes Moore supports the measure, which aims to prevent retailers like Walmart and Kroger from leveraging dynamic pricing algorithms to charge higher prices based on individual data.