Governor Hochul, Retail Workers and Small Business Owners Celebrate New Landmark Protections Against Organized Retail Theft

 New Felony Penalties Created for Assaulting a Retail Worker

$5 Million Tax Credit Available to Business Owners for Security Cameras and Other Anti-Theft Expenses

$40.2 Million for Dedicated Retail Theft Teams for New York State Police and Local Law Enforcement

Governor Kathy Hochul today joined a coalition of frontline retail workers and small business owners to celebrate new protections against organized retail theft that were signed into law with the FY25 State Budget. This comprehensive approach puts more power in the hands of law enforcement, prosecutors and business owners – targeting every area of vulnerability. The new protections include increased criminal penalties for anyone who assaults a retail worker elevating it from a misdemeanor to a felony, and includes a $5 million tax credit to help small business owners invest in added security measures. Governor Hochul’s FY25 State Budget again makes historic investments in public safety and builds on three years of progress driving down crime statewide.

"I promised the retail workers and our small business owners that I would protect them - and we are doing just that," Governor Hochul said. "Here in New York, we are standing up to organized retail theft, backing our businesses and their workers with the full force of the law, and restoring that sense of security and peace of mind so they can focus on what they do best."

Governor Hochul's focus on organized retail theft comes as crime data shows a significant spike in these crimes over the past six years. Larceny offenses in New York City have spiked by 51 percent between 2017 and 2023. Robberies, grand larceny and petit larceny in New York City are up by 86 percent during that same time period.

The FY25 State Budget includes Governor Hochul’s five-point plan to fight organized retail theft:

• Increases criminal penalties for anyone who assaults a retail worker by elevating it from a misdemeanor to felony. Any person who causes physical injury to a retail worker performing their job will be subject to this new felony.
• Allowing prosecutors to combine the value of stolen goods when they file larceny charges. The Budget allows retail goods from different stores to be aggregated for the purposes of reaching a higher larceny threshold when stolen under the same criminal scheme.
• Making it illegal to foster the sale of stolen goods to go after third-party sellers. A person will be found guilty if they use any website or physical location to sell stolen goods.
• $40.2 million for dedicated Retail Theft Teams within State Police, District Attorneys’ offices and local law enforcement, including 100 New York State Police personnel dedicated to fighting organized retail theft.
• $5 million tax credit to help small businesses invest in added security measures such as cameras. To help alleviate the burden on small businesses for additional security measures, the Budget creates a $3,000 tax credit for any small businesses who spends the threshold amount of money on retail theft prevention measures.

Governor Hochul’s commitment to fighting retail theft in the FY25 Budget builds on core strategies that have driven violent crime to historic lows. As a result of programs like the Gun Involved Violence Elimination Initiative (GIVE), which provides funding to local law enforcement in 21 counties outside of New York City, gun crimes have seen dramatic drops. Last quarter, GIVE regions had the lowest number of shootings on record, and New York City had the lowest number of shootings in any quarter since the pandemic. Since 2021, murders statewide are down 30 percent.