Why It Matters
Albertsons Cos. Inc., one of the largest food and drug retailers within the U.S., is lobbying on H.R. 2853, the Combating Organized Retail Crime Act of 2025. The bill, which was introduced in April 2025, has passed the House and now awaits Senate action. The bill would expand federal enforcement against organized retail and supply chain theft, concerning "criminal offenses involving the interstate transportation of stolen property, the sale or receipt of stolen goods, or theft from an interstate or foreign shipment that is committed by, in coordination with, or at the instruction of an organization."
By the Numbers
Cogent Strategies LLC reported $130,000 for its third-quarter 2026 lobbying disclosure on behalf of Albertsons. That figure is unchanged from the second quarter of 2026 and from the same quarter a year earlier.
Across all three registrants in the third quarter of 2026, Albertsons reported a combined $540,000: $360,000 from its in-house team, $130,000 from Cogent Strategies LLC, and $50,000 from Ballard Spahr LLP. That total is down $440,000 from the fourth quarter of 2025 and down $380,000 from the third quarter of 2025.
The Cogent Strategies LLC filing lists seven lobbyists, including:
- Dave Oxner, managing director; former House Financial Services Committee staff
- Taylor Hoover, senior vice president; former House Agriculture Committee communications director
- Gina Mahony, managing director; former staff to Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD-5)
- Andrew Kauders, managing director
- Claudia James, managing director
- Kimberley Fritts, founder and CEO
- Randall Gerard, managing director
Broader Context
Sponsored by Rep. David P. Joyce (R-OH-14), H.R. 2853 passed the House, was placed on the Union Calendar on Jan. 30, and carries 206 cosponsors. Retail and law enforcement groups, including the National Retail Federation, Kroger, Walmart, and Target, back the bill, arguing organized theft endangers workers and warrants coordinated federal enforcement. The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the NAACP, and allied civil rights organizations have opposed the bill, arguing that its definition could sweep low-level shoplifting into federal prosecution and that it could expand Department of Homeland Security surveillance and disproportionately harm Black and Brown people and immigrants.
Competitive Landscape
Among the organizations also lobbying H.R. 2853 are the National Retail Federation, Retail Industry Leaders Association, Kroger Co., Walmart Inc., and CVS Health, among more than 40 others listed on the bill record.
The Bottom Line
Cogent Strategies LLC's retainer has held steady for four consecutive quarters while the in-house component has declined from its fourth-quarter 2025 peak, pulling the client-wide total lower. Although the Combating Organized Retail Crime Act of 2025 has passed the House, bills not enacted before the 119th Congress ends will need to be reintroduced in a later Congress, so the effective lobbying of Albertsons Cos. Inc. on this bill remains to be seen as the midterms approach and the end of the 119th Congress looms.
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