Combating Organized Retail Crime Act of 2025

Floor Speech

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Ms. TITUS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2853, the Combating Organized Retail Crime Act legislation, which I am proud to co-lead and have been working on since 2021 with then-Representative Buck.

Organized retail crime is one of the most pressing concerns I hear about from businesses, workers, law enforcement, and community leaders, not just in Nevada, but across the country.

As we have heard, these sophisticated operations go far beyond just a kid stealing a candy bar. They require a strong Federal response to protect consumers, local businesses, and transportation networks.

As we have heard from our ranking member in detail about how this bill will work, I ask my colleagues to just think about it in personal terms. When a customer gets ready to go to a store, whether it is to buy razor blades from Target or an electric saw from Home Depot, what do they find? They find all of these things locked behind glass doors. They then have to call an assistant. The customer has to wait. They can't play with whatever it is or read the description or the specs because this is all locked away protecting it from organized retail crime.

Now, what has that done? That has made it more expensive and more inconvenient. It leads to people staying at home because they are reluctant to go shopping, and they will just do it online. This hurts local businesses, and also it cuts down tax revenue for local governments.

At the same time, it is putting people in danger from these people who engage in this type of crime. They use this money to fund trafficking of all types: humans, drugs, and guns.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join with me in supporting this legislation that will protect workers and customers, support our businesses, and strengthen public safety.

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