What Happened?

If you’ve noticed more of your groceries and toiletries locked behind plastic, the fight over how to stop organized theft rings has reached Congress, and Albertsons is lobbying on it. The grocery chain, which runs stores like Safeway and Vons, and two outside firms reported $540,000 in lobbying costs for July through September, according to their federal lobbying reports and a Legis1 review of the company’s disclosures. ​

That’s down from $570,000 in the spring and $970,000 a year earlier, when four firms were working for the company. Albertsons’ own staff reported $360,000, Cogent Strategies $130,000 and Ballard Spahr $50,000, and federal rules round these figures to the nearest $10,000. Besides retail crime, the reports list issues such as food stamps, the farm bill, artificial intelligence, tariffs and “surveillance pricing,” the practice of using shoppers’ data to set prices.

Why Does it Matter to Me?

The Combating Organized Retail Crime Act, from Rep. David Joyce (R-OH), would make organized retail theft a federal crime, toughen money laundering rules aimed at theft networks and create a Homeland Security center to share tips across police agencies. The House passed it 348 to 60 on May 12, according to Legis1’s coverage of the vote.

Rep. Susie Lee (D-NV), the bill’s lead Democratic backer, said these theft rings drive up costs for shoppers and pull police away from other work. Civil rights groups that oppose it say it could also reach ordinary shoplifting, since it would let prosecutors add up thefts worth $5,000 over 12 months.

Both Sides, Now

Retailers and police groups back the bill. “Organized retail crime is a serious issue,” Fraternal Order of Police President Patrick Yoes wrote in a December letter of support, and the National Retail Federation has urged the Senate to move quickly.

Nine civil rights groups, including the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, the American Civil Liberties Union and the NAACP, urged Senate leaders to reject it in a joint letter. They say it doesn’t clearly define organized retail crime, would expand Homeland Security surveillance tools like facial recognition and license plate readers, and would fall hardest on Black and Brown communities and immigrants.

What Happens Next?

The Senate version, from Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), has sat in the Senate Judiciary Committee since April 2025, according to Legis1. It would need to clear that committee and pass the full Senate before Jan. 3, 2027, when this Congress ends, or the bill would have to start over next year.

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