Support for House Bill 272 - Meijer (Chairman Stein, June 9, 2021)

Summary

A letter dated June 9, 2021, to Chairman Stein stating Meijer's support for House Bill 272, which the letter says would increase transparency and accountability for online marketplaces and address counterfeit and stolen goods sold online. The letter states that Ohio is home to 46 Meijer supercenters and over 12,000 Meijer team members. It says seller disclosure and verification requirements would inform and protect Ohio consumers and businesses and give law enforcement officials tools to end fraudulent sales. The closing names Andrew Martin, Government Affairs, Meijer, with a copy to Paul Jaeckle, Vice President, Asset Protection.

Summary drafted by a model from the document's text below and checked by script against that text before publication. It is a navigation aid, not a reading of what the document proves. Where AI is used

Full text

June 9, 2021


Dear Chairman Stein,

We write today to express Meijer’s support for House Bill 272, which would increase transparency and
accountability for online marketplaces and protect Ohio consumers and businesses by addressing the growing
number of counterfeit and stolen goods sold online.

Ohio is home to 46 Meijer supercenters including our two newest locations in Boardman and Seven Hills, our
growing Meijer distribution facility in Tipp City, and over 12,000 Meijer team members. Prior to the emergence
of COVID-19, Meijer was already experiencing an increase in customers utilizing our e-commerce platforms for
services such as grocery home delivery and curbside pickup. Over the course of the pandemic, e-commerce has
grown exponentially for Meijer and many other retailers, making it safer and more convenient for our customers
to shop.

Unfortunately, there is a dark side to e-commerce that is becoming all too common across the country. Stolen
goods – often taken from job creating, tax paying brick-and-mortar retailers – and counterfeit items are more
widely available than ever to customers through online marketplaces that are not held accountable for verifying
the identity or authenticity of their sellers. Counterfeit items are a safety risk to consumers, and stolen items
victimize businesses big and small, as goods are stolen and then often sold through online marketplaces for a
fraction of the retail prices.

We support House Bill 272 because we believe that the seller disclosure and verification requirements within the
legislation inform and protect Ohio consumers and businesses and give law enforcement officials the tools that
they need to put an end to these fraudulent sales. At the same time, this legislation allows law-abiding sellers to
continue running their legitimate businesses through online marketplaces, while giving consumers the peace of
mind that comes with knowing that the seller and product are authentic.

Ohioans should be able to shop online with confidence that the products they purchase are safe and legally
acquired. There should be no safe harbors for bad actors, and online marketplaces should be held accountable for
the products they sell – just as brick-and-mortar retailers stand behind the products that they sell in their stores.

We ask for your support for House Bill 272 and thank you for your consideration. Please do not hesitate to contact
us with any questions.

Sincerely,

Andrew Martin
Government Affairs, Meijer

cc: Paul Jaeckle
Vice President – Asset Protection, Meijer

               Meijer, Inc., Subsidiaries & Affiliates, 2929 Walker, N.W., Grand Rapids, MI 49544-9428
                                      Telephone (616) 453-6711 www.meijer.com


File and source

File

2021-06-09_commerce-labor_testimony_hb272promeijerwritten.pdf

Size

69,606 bytes

SHA-256

7fd6d8a880bd94dbb768e1af5c2244e44f2ffd94c90661528afaf6583ca78160

Our copy

2021-06-09_commerce-labor_testimony_hb272promeijerwritten.pdf

Original

No public link identified.