A shipping container with a hanging, open lock. The bipartisan and bicameral Combating Organized Retail Crime Act would facilitate the creation of a multi-agency division with the mission of eliminating retail theft operations. (shironosov/Getty Images)
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Legislation designed to respond to industry concerns associated with an increase in cargo theft was recently introduced on Capitol Hill.
The bipartisan and bicameral Combating Organized Retail Crime Act would facilitate the creation of a multi-agency division equipped with a road map for eliminating retail theft operations.
The bill’s sponsors include Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), who explained the legislation is meant to reduce robberies as well as complex retail theft schemes. A companion bill was introduced in the House.
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“Retail crime has cost Iowa billions, and it’s even worse across the nation,” Grassley said April 10. “Organized theft rings deploy innovative tactics to pilfer goods, and it’s causing financial harm to businesses, putting employees and consumers at risk and funding transnational criminal organizations throughout the world. It’s time for the law to catch up and prevent criminals from exploiting the internet and online marketplaces. Our bill improves the federal response to organized retail crime and establishes new tools to recover stolen goods and illicit proceeds and deter future attacks on American retailers.”
“Large criminal organizations are constantly evolving their tactics to steal goods from retailers and the supply chain in communities across the Silver State,” Cortez Masto said. “The rise in organized retail crime has left businesses scrambling, and it is time for Congress to pass this bipartisan legislation to help law enforcement agencies keep our communities safe.”
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Specifically, the bill would establish an Organized Retail and Supply Chain Crime Coordination Center at the Department of Homeland Security. According to the measure, the center would be tasked with “coordinating federal law enforcement activities related to organized retail and supply chain crime, including investigations of national and transnational criminal organizations that are engaged in organized retail and supply chain crime.” The bill, versions of which were introduced during previous sessions of Congress, was referred to a committee of jurisdiction. Its consideration has yet to be scheduled.
House policymakers called on colleagues to support the companion bill. “Businesses throughout my district are facing the burdens of a rise in organized retail crimes and fraud schemes that are sweeping the nation,” Rep. Dave Joyce (R-Ohio) explained, adding, “These criminal organizations are not only harming small businesses and retailers in our communities but are also putting American consumers at risk of violence and fraud. These crimes also have more widespread consequences for public safety, as these organized groups often resell stolen goods to finance other illicit activities, including drug and human trafficking operations. Our bipartisan, bicameral legislation will give law enforcement the tools they need to put a stop to these rampant crimes.”
Stakeholders, such as American Trucking Associations, applauded the bill’s introduction. Per background information from ATA, cargo theft is often linked to supply chain disruptions and has the potential for endangering the workforce.
“The trucking industry takes great pride in delivering America’s freight safely and on time; however, the billions of tons of goods transported by trucks from coast to coast have increasingly become a prime target for organized crime rings, including transnational organizations, putting truck drivers at risk and raising costs for consumers,” ATA President Chris Spear said. “ATA commends this bipartisan group of leaders for addressing this alarming trend and safeguarding our supply chain. By empowering federal agencies to improve cooperation across jurisdictions and ramp up enforcement actions, this bill would strike an effective blow against organized crime.”
UPS Global Government Affairs President Michael Kiely said in a statement accompanying the bill’s introduction: “UPS supports the Combating Organized Retail Crime Act, as it provides the necessary resources and coordination to protect the movement of American goods throughout our country while safeguarding the integrity of our national supply chain from rail to road, to retail.”
UPS ranks No. 1 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest for-hire carriers in North America and No. 3 on the TT Top 50 global freight companies list. UPS Supply Chain Solutions ranks No. 5 on the TT Top 100 list of the largest logistics companies.
“Organized cargo theft and fraud disrupt intermodal freight supply chains, risk the safety of our workforce and harm the U.S. economy,” Intermodal Association of North America President and CEO Anne Reinke said. “The bipartisan Combating Organized Retail Crime Act will provide important resources to detect and fight organized crime throughout the supply chain, ensuring that our industry can continue delivering goods to American consumers safely and efficiently.”
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