A report recently released by the National Retail Federation found that organized retail crime (ORC) and return fraud continue to be on the rise across the country. This troubling news for the retail industry and honest consumers came just days after the Massachusetts House of Representatives agreed with the Senate to increase the felony threshold found in a number of the state’s property crimes which are commonly utilized by retailers, law enforcement and prosecutors to curtail such professional criminal behavior. In light of these findings during the holiday shopping season, the Legislature should strongly reconsider finalizing these changes to the felony thresholds.

At the current felony threshold level of $250, Massachusetts retailers already experience significant losses due to theft with an estimated $1 billion in merchandise stolen from their stores annually—a cost ultimately paid for by honest consumers. The majority of these losses are attributed to professional criminals who see theft as a low risk, high reward activity due to weak property crime laws. The proposed increases— $1,500 in the Senate and $1,000 in the House—would further weaken these criminal laws by removing the threat of meaningful criminal penalties from an expanded number of serious theft incidents.