GOP, Dems propose retail crime task force, slam spike in smash-and-grab looting
Democratic co-sponsor Susie Lee said crime syndicates cannot 'continue to threaten American livelihoods'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}EXCLUSIVE: A bipartisan group of House lawmakers led by Colorado Republican Ken Buck will introduce legislation this week that would form a new task force aimed at combating the nationwide surge in mob retail theft.
Buck told Fox News his bill, which he will introduce Friday, is a companion to Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley's Combating Organized Retail Crime Act, and characterized it as a strong, bipartisan response to the nationwide crime wave.
Buck blamed President Biden and the administration for failing to get a handle on the chaos.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"The explosion of organized, smash-and-grab looting of retail stores is a symptom of the underlying collapse of law and order in America under the Biden administration," Buck told Fox News, disputing Biden's 2021 claim that crime is "down."
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A group of about 100 juveniles looted a Wawa in Philadelphia's Mayfair section, Sept. 24, 2022. (Philadelphia Police)
Buck said the bipartisan and bicameral legislation will help police and federal law enforcement stop future "attacks" on businesses by improving bureaucratic coordination and ensuring proper punishment for culprits.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The task force bill will cite figures stating that for every $1 billion in 2019 U.S. retail sales, $720,000 of that consists of embezzled or purloined goods. Buck suggested that statistic has only increased since then, given the recent spate of high-profile retail thefts.
The legislation creates a new Organized Retail Crime Coordination Center that would fall under the purview of the Department of Homeland Security, and directs the center to "establish relationships with" state, local and tribal law enforcement and corporate loss prevention agencies to share information and "leverage" existing data to get a handle on the current crisis.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Rep. Ken Buck (House Judiciary Committee screenshot)
The center's director would be appointed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and would require qualifications as an "experienced law enforcement officer."
Buck's bill features co-sponsorship from Democrats, including Reps. Susie Lee and Dina Titus of Nevada, who called the nationwide retail theft epidemic intolerable. Lee told Fox News Tuesday that retail crime poses a "serious threat" both to her district and the nation, as it inflicts "great costs to consumers and retailers."
"Transnational criminal groups not only hit hard-working Americans’ wallets through retail theft, but they also threaten our public safety with bolder, more violent attacks on American retailers," she said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Lee added the proceeds from stolen property help support criminal organizations' money laundering and human or weapons trafficking, and in some cases terrorism financing.
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Rep. Susie Lee listens to doctors at a roundtable in her Nevada House district. (Reuters/Tim Reid)
"We cannot allow crime syndicates to continue to threaten American livelihoods and lives," Lee said, adding that the bipartisan task force bill she is co-sponsoring will crack down on such criminal schemes and better protect all Nevadans.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Lee noted her work on a similar bill, which would provide Justice Department grants to smaller municipalities' police departments to strengthen recruiting, retention and training.
"I’ll keep fighting to ensure that we’re getting law enforcement the resources and support they need to protect themselves and our families," Lee said.
Lee said she has long been a proponent of supporting law enforcement, citing a 2021 bipartisan event she and Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo held to promote how the American Rescue Plan helped Las Vegas law enforcement navigate the COVID-19 pandemic. Lombardo is currently the GOP nominee for governor in the Silver State.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Titus told Fox News in a statement that the federal task force "will improve our federal response to these crimes and establish new tools to recover goods and illicit proceeds, deterring future attacks on U.S. retailers."
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Rep. Dina Titus speaks at the Nevada Democrats' election results watch party in 2018 in Las Vegas. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
"[O]rganized retail theft causes economic harm to businesses and puts consumers at risk while funding transnational criminal organizations worldwide," Titus said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Several Democrats have separated themselves from the progressive wing of their party that continues to oppose substantive funding of law enforcement and prosecution of suspects. On Friday, the mayor of President Biden's hometown told Fox News he does not support that progressive stance.
"The trouble is, it ignores the reality that these officers face every day when they go into the streets," Wilmington Mayor Michael Purzycki said. "[For] example, we're taking 20% more guns off the street this year than we had last year."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The issue has also become front-and-center in key midterm election battles. Pennsylvania Republicans lambasted their Democratic opponents after dozens of young people stormed a Wawa in Philadelphia's working-class Mayfair section and ransacked it.