In a fresh effort to combat organized retail crime, United States Senate Judiciary Committee chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) have reintroduced bipartisan legislation to crack down on flash mob robberies and intricate retail theft schemes.
The new bill — the Combating Organized Retail Crime Act of 2025 (.CORCA) — would establish a coordinated multi-agency response and create new tools to tackle evolving trends in organized retail theft. An Organized Retail and Supply Chain Crime Coordination Center within the Department of Homeland Security created by the act would combine expertise from state and local law enforcement agencies as well as retail industry representatives, according to an announcement by the judiciary committee. The bill would use the tools created to assist in federal investigation and prosecution of organized retail crime and help recapture lost goods and proceeds.
The new bill would follow on earlier passage of legislation to combat the use of retail marketplaces in criminal activity. The passage of the Integrity, Notification, and Fairness in Online Retail Marketplaces for Consumers Act, or INFORM act, by the U.S. Congress in 2023, a bill backed by the International Housewares Association and other trade organizations, was a move to shut down a means criminals used to move stolen goods.The INFORM Act requires marketplaces to verify the identities of high-volume third-party sellers, those making more than 200 transactions and grossing more than $5,000 a year.
In addition to Grassley and Cortez Masto, CORCA cosponsors include Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-TN.), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), James Risch (R-ID), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Ted Budd (R-NC), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Steve Daines (R-MT), Mark Kelly (D-AZ.), Katie Britt (R-AL) and Ted Cruz (R-TX).
The judiciary committee pointed out that, according to the National Retail Federation, more than 84% of retailers report that violence and aggression from criminal actors has become more of a concern since 2022, resulting in injuries and deaths among employees, customers, security officers and law enforcement personnel. NRF determined that larceny incidents increased by 93% in 2023 compared to 2019 as criminal organizations have increasingly turned to retail crime in generating illicit profits, using Internet-based tools to organize flash mobs, sell stolen goods and move money.
Similar bills recently introduced didn’t secure passage, but the challenge they address remains. NRF pointed out in its “The Impact of Retail Theft & Violence 2024” report, in which 73% of those retailers surveyed said that shoplifters are exhibiting more violence and aggression than they were a year ago. Some 94% of retailers surveyed view federal legislation as a necessity to effectively combat this problem.
David French, NRF executive vice president of government relations, commented on the introduction of the 2025 CORCA bill, stating: “ORC is a multibillion-dollar crisis impacting retailers, their associates and the customers they serve. ORC is occurring across the retail enterprise – supply chains, bricks-and-mortar stores, warehouses and online – with stolen products sold for a profit, oftentimes to fund other crimes. The Combating Organized Retail Crime Act of 2025 will align efforts within a new Organized Retail and Supply Chain Crime Coordination Center to ensure that resources and information-sharing will be available across local, state, federal and private-sector partners to bring cases and prosecutions against organized theft groups. This legislation is an important step to help prevent ORC from infiltrating local communities across the country. NRF applauds Chairman Grassley, Sen. Cortez Masto, Rep. Joyce and all of their bipartisan original co-sponsors for their continued leadership to address one of retail’s biggest challenges. We urge Congress to move quickly to approve this integral measure.”
