NJBIA Vice President Althea D. Ford is seeking amendments to surveillance pricing legislation that is before a Senate committee on Wednesday because the bill in its current form could unintentionally harm both consumers and retailers.
In written testimony, Ford told lawmakers that amendments are needed to distinguish harmful, discriminatory surveillance pricing from programs allowing consumers to voluntarily share their data to take advantage of lower prices on products.
“At a time when affordability is of major concern to New Jersey residents, the legislation’s call to make it unlawful to use pricing strategies that are informed by personal data creates a major challenge for grocery and food stores to deliver the meaningful savings consumers need and have come to rely on,” Ford said.
“For loyalty programs, which are voluntary, personal data is used to provide consumers with savings opportunities tailored to their shopping experience and ensures the efficient delivery of coupons and other incentives, resulting in better deals for consumers,” Ford said.
“Additionally, this data is used to determine eligibility, calculate rewards, and process redemptions, as well as to communicate product safety recalls, and prevent fraud, abuse, and misuse,” Ford said. “Together, the data helps to ensure continued access to more valuable benefits, while reducing waste and fraud.”
NJBIA is asking lawmakers to:
- Define surveillance pricing as strategies to increase prices above a baseline price using personal data;
- Assert that the use of surveillance pricing, or any pricing strategy that increases above a baseline price, the sale price of groceries and other foodstuffs based, in whole or in part, on personal data shall be considered an unlawful practice and a violation of the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act;
- Establish a “cure period” for addressing violative actions.
Currently, the bill calls for all members of a loyalty program to receive a pricing benefit uniformly, effectively requiring retailers and manufacturers to offer every coupon to every consumer. This is counter to the marketing goal of a coupon, reduces the overall benefit of coupons, and deters the offering of any coupons or loyalty programs in New Jersey.
Ford also asked the committee to eliminate references in the bill that require the removal of electronic shelf labels, noting these labels are a useful tool to ensure accurate and timely displays of prices, and they free up retail workers for higher priority tasks.
Bill S-3612/S-3717, sponsored by Senators Joseph Cryan (D-20) and Joseph Lagana (D-38), will be heard by the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee Wednesday afternoon. To read Ford’s entire testimony, go here.
