Senators Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) introduced the INFORM Consumers Act as amendment number 5511 in the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).
If included on to the NDAA, online marketplaces would be required to take steps to verify the identity of high-volume sellers, and to provide some of that information to customers.
The INFORM Consumers Act, which has been championed by retail groups as a much-needed solution to the proliferation of organized retail crime, was included in an earlier version of the economic competitiveness legislation, but the language was dropped when the package was drastically scaled back to become the CHIPS and Science Act.
“The INFORM Consumers Act is a bipartisan, common sense solution to a growing problem impacting consumers, businesses, and communities across the US,” said Michael Hanson, Buy Safe America Coalition spokesperson. “The flood of stolen and counterfeit goods being sold anonymously on third-party marketplaces harms American consumers, hinders economic growth, and hurts US businesses large and small.
“Including this legislation within the 2023 NDAA is a win for transparency and accountability and is a crucial step in curbing the growth of organized retail crime. We appreciate Senators Dick Durbin and Bill Cassidy for their bipartisan commitment to tackling this problem and we encourage lawmakers to use this opportunity to make INFORM a reality.”
Last week, members from the Buy Safe America Coalition, as well as other companies and organizations, sent a letter to congressional leadership urging for the INFORM Act to be included in the 2023 defense bill.