The holiday shopping season is in full swing — a prime time for shoppers — and for shoplifters.

Large, organized retail smash and grabs have drawn massive media attention, and the attention of Congress: the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Counterterrorism, Law Enforcement and Intelligence held a hearing Tuesday to investigate options for addressing theft rings.

What You Need To Know

  • The House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Counterterrorism, Law Enforcement, and Intelligence held a hearing to address organized retail theft

  • The National Retail Federation says that retailers lost $112 billion in 2022, but data on "retail shrink" can be hard to come by

  • Sens. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev. have introduced the bipartisan Combating Organized Retail Crime Act, but it hasn't received a vote

“This is not the same thing as shoplifting or petty theft, both of which are also illegal. This type of organized activity involves multiple occurrences and may transpire across various stores and state jurisdictions, further complicating matters for law enforcement agencies to combat these crimes,” said Chairman August Pfluger, R-Texas.

“It has been said that organized retail crime is overblown,” he added. “That is false. We cannot remain oblivious to the surge in organized retail crime throughout the country impacting every one of our districts.”

According to the National Retail Federation, retailers lost $112 billion in inventory losses last year, up from nearly $94 billion in 2021. The NRF 2022 survey reported ​​external theft, including organized retail crime-related events, accounted for an average of 36% of total loss.

But data related to organized retail theft — and theft-related inventory shrink in general — is hard to come by.

Earlier this month, the NRF retracted a claim about how much “organized retail crime” contributed to such losses in 2021. “The lack of conclusive data to capture the scale of retail theft is a problem that virtually everyone involved readily acknowledges,” NRF spokesperson Mary McGinty told RetailDive, an industry news site, earlier this month. 

But lawmakers and witnesses at the hearing said that theft is a problem that should not be downplayed.

“Violence continues to escalate as several retailers are reporting upwards of 100% increase in assaults in violent acts for the past year. Employee injuries and deaths have occurred as recently as last week in the city of Philadelphia,” David Johnston, Vice President of Asset Protection and Retail Operations of the National Retail Federation, said in his testimony to the committee.

According to the local NBC affiliate, two security officers tried to stop a man who was stealing hats from the Macy’s in Center City, Philadelphia. One security guard was stabbed to death, and the other was seriously injured. Both guards were unarmed.

“The challenge is you can't stop them because you may put your employees in harm's way. The losses, the damages are substantial. So we've got to figure out when you have these big organizations really, that originate these, you know, criminal activities, how to stop them, and we start with good data, and we end with action,” said Rep. Lou Correa, D-Calif. 

Earlier this year, the state of California announced a grant program called the “Organized Retail Theft Program” that allocates over $267 million to 55 different cities in the Golden State to try and crack down on the issue. 

“In California, for example, $950, if you steal less than that it's a misdemeanor, it's above that it's a felony. But you can do that on a daily basis. And it's still a misdemeanor. So we've got a lot of work to do,” added Correa.

Both Democrats and Republicans seem interested in working toward a solution, but what that might be is unclear. Sens. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev. have introduced the bipartisan Combating Organized Retail Crime Act. The bill would give the federal government an expanded role in combating organized retail crime groups, but so far has not gotten a vote.

A spokesperson for Grassley told Spectrum News that the senator “remains committed to helping law enforcement crackdown on criminal activity, including organized retail crime.”