Georgia lawmakers push for change to address organized retail crime
State lawmakers work to curb organized retail crime
More retailers report they have been the victims of organized retail crime and some Georgia state lawmakers want to put a stop to it. According to the National Retail Federation, on average, organized theft cost retailers $700,000 for every billion in sales in 2020.
ATLANTA - A group of state lawmakers wants to make it harder for thieves to resell stolen merchandise online.
State Sen. John Albers, R-Roswell, and several other legislators held a news conference at the state Capitol Tuesday about the "Inform Consumers Act." The bill would require online marketplaces like Amazon, eBay and Facebook to suspend high-volume sellers who do not provide important information like their name, address, telephone number, email address and tax ID.
"Georgia's the number one place to do business, as we all well know, but we want to make it clear that we're going to be the last place when it comes to organized retail crime," said Sen. Albers.
ATLANTA POLICE WARN 'SHOPLIFTING IS A CRIME IN OUR CITY' AS IT CLARIFIES RESPONSE POLICY
Organized retail crime (ORC) is when criminals steal goods from stores or even trucks and trains and then resell the stolen merchandise.
According to the National Retail Federation, the problem has only grown during the pandemic. In a 2020 survey, retailers reported that ORC cost them an average of $700,000 per $1 billion in sales. That results in higher prices for consumers.
"Our cases are getting larger in dollar amounts and the quantity of cases that we're making are getting larger as well," said Mike Combs, the director of asset protection for The Home Depot.
Combs said in December his staff worked a case where a group of thieves stole hundreds of thousands of dollars' worth of large, rental equipment from several The Home Depot stores.
"This rental equipment was stolen and resold within a few hours on online marketplaces," Combs explained. "It's a perfect example of how brazen and how aggressive this problem is, but also how the criminals will stop at nothing and they will sell virtually anything on the marketplaces."
Officials said criminals involved in ORC often use that money to fund other criminal enterprises including drugs and human trafficking.
The state Senate already approved the legislation and it is expected to have a hearing in the House Judiciary Committee soon.
WATCH: FOX 5 NEWS LIVE COVERAGE
_____