H.R. 2853 — Combating Organized Retail Crime Act of 2025

This section states the sense of Congress that organized retail and supply chain theft by sophisticated groups is escalating—with larceny incidents up 93% in 2023 compared to 2019 (90% rise in average dollar loss), cargo theft up 27% in 2024 (average value over $202,000 per incident), and violence concerns rising for 84% of retailers since 2022—and that Congress should amend title 18, U.S. Code, to provide law enforcement tools and direct the executive branch to establish a central coordination center aligning Federal, state, local, territorial, and Tribal efforts.

This section amends criminal statutes in title 18, United States Code, as follows: (1) expands criminal forfeiture under §982(a)(5) to property involved in offenses under §659 (theft from interstate or foreign shipments by carrier), §2314 (interstate transportation of stolen goods, securities, moneys, fraudulent State tax stamps, or articles used in counterfeiting), and §2315 (sale or receipt of stolen goods, securities, moneys, or fraudulent State tax stamps); (2) under the money laundering statute (§1956), expands the definition of monetary instruments in §1956(c)(5) to include general-use prepaid cards, gift certificates, and store gift cards (in addition to currency and money orders) and adds §§659, 2314, and 2315 as specified unlawful activities in §1956(c)(7)(D); (3) revises §2314 to cover goods, wares, merchandise, securities, or money that are stolen, embezzled, or obtained by fraud, false pretense, or other illegal means with a value of $5,000 or more or an aggregate value of $5,000 or more during any 12-month period; and (4) applies a similar aggregate value threshold of $5,000 or more during any 12-month period to §2315. (Thus, the changes facilitate federal prosecution of theft rings by aggregating small thefts and broadening covered property and predicate offenses for forfeiture and money laundering.)

This section establishes the Organized Retail and Supply Chain Crime Coordination Center within Homeland Security Investigations not later than 90 days after enactment. The Center coordinates federal investigations of organized retail and supply chain crime (i.e., crimes under 18 U.S.C. §§659, 2117, 2314, or 2315 committed by or with organizations, plus related aiding/abetting or conspiracy); fosters relationships and information sharing with state/local law enforcement, organized retail crime associations, cargo theft associations, and private sector companies (e.g., retail, transportation); assists state/local investigations; leverages existing systems for secure information sharing between DHS and DOJ; tracks trends and issues annual public reports; and supports training and technical assistance. The Center is led by a Director (a Senior Executive Service position appointed by the ICE Director) and a Deputy Director (appointed on a two-year rotational basis from the FBI, U.S. Secret Service, or U.S. Postal Inspection Service), with staff including special agents/analysts from HSI and detailees from CBP, Secret Service, Postal Inspection Service, ATF, DEA, FBI, and FMCSA, plus nonreimbursable state/local detailees as needed. The Center coordinates with other federal counter-organized crime entities (e.g., sharing resources with the National IPR Coordination Center); authorizes agreements with federal/state/local/tribal agencies and private entities; and permits sharing of information otherwise restricted under 18 U.S.C. §1905 (i.e., trade secrets, confidential business data) if operationally necessary and approved by the non-delegable authority of the Director. (Thus, this creates a targeted exception to federal confidentiality protections for Center operations.) The Center must submit an initial report to Congress not later than one year after enactment.