Amy Drumm, senior vice president of government affairs with the Michigan Retailers Association, spoke with Loss Prevention Magazine on the work that went on behind the scenes to get ORC legislation enacted in Michigan.

“MRA took the lead in coordinating the legislative efforts of having the three legislative pieces drafted, introduced, and moved through the legislative process. Our role is to speak for the retail industry at large. After talking with our members, we provided testimony before the House and Senate committees in support of the INFORM Act and real penalties for ORC crimes.”

“We built a coalition with likeminded associations to highlight the impact ORC has on not just retailers but also manufacturers in perpetuating other crimes. We worked in partnership with some of our more engaged members to educate lawmakers on the INFORM Act and the need for a statewide ORC unit within the Attorney General’s office. MRA was able to connect the dots on the three efforts and convey the message that all three pieces were needed to crack down on ORC in the state.”

“Taking a single legislative solution approach to ORC likely won’t achieve the needed results. We were successful because we pitched the three pieces together and built a strong coalition in support of the legislative changes. Gaining USA-IT’s support on our legislative changes was also extremely helpful to leverage the additional coalition and network of support focused on stopping illicit trade. [EDITOR’S NOTE: United to Safeguard America from Illegal Trade (USA-IT) is a public private sector partnership protecting Americans’ security and prosperity from black market criminals.]”

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