® April 2011 Vol. 36 No. 2
The official publication of the Michigan Retailers Association
www.retailers.com
VICTORY AT LAST! New Legislature Reforms Costly Item Pricing Law On September 1, after more than 30 years of being required by state law to put a price tag or sticker on almost every product they sell, Michigan retailers will have the flexibility to communicate prices to customers in less expensive and more consumerfriendly ways. The MRA-backed Shopping Reform and Modernization Act cleared both chambers of the Michigan Legislature on March 17 and was awaiting Governor Rick Snyder’s signature into law as Michigan Retailer went to press. The governor is a strong supporter of reforming the antiquated and burdensome item pricing law, which was enacted in 1976 and took effect in 1978. He made it a priority for his administration and the legislature, calling for reform in his January 19 State of the State Address to lawmakers. “It’s victory at long last,” said a triumphant James P. Hallan, MRA president and CEO. “This is a historic accomplishment for the retail industry and is the product of a lot of hard work by Michigan Retailers Association, our individual members, and supporters throughout Michigan’s business community.” Long-term goal “Reform of item pricing was a longterm goal for the retail industry, and we never gave up,” Hallan added. “This time we had the right facts, the right message and the right leadership in the governor’s office and the legislature to finally move this issue over the finish line.” Michigan is the only state that requires item pricing on both general merchandise and groceries. The Coalition for Retail Pricing Modernization, which MRA organized Continued in column 4
“A historic victory for retailers in Michigan.”
James P. Hallan
State Rep. Lisa Posthumus Lyons sponsored the Shopping Reform and Modernization Act and worked energetically for its passage. Photo by David Trumpie
her husband, Brad, a Kent County sheriff’s deputy and their four young children. “Mom would send me to the fields to work with Dad when I misbehaved. I’d help him when I could, riding the tractor. “Sometimes she would send me to work with him in Lansing, but I never understood what he did there. I only knew him to be a farmer.” Lyons was only a toddler when her father was first elected to the Michigan Senate and began a career in public service that would take him from the legislature to the office of lieutenant governor and, most recently, an appointment as senior advisor to Governor Rick Snyder. She was in grade school when she first understood there was something about her dad, Dick Posthumus, that stood out from all
Improved shopping W h i l e o p p o n e n t s o f re f o r m claimed eliminating price stickers would result in lost retail jobs, the Anderson study found otherwise. It said Michigan store employment levels are not greater than those in neighboring states without item pricing, and that it was likely retailers in Michigan would redeploy existing personnel to higher-value jobs that would improve the shopping experience for customers. The Coalition also pointed out that the sticker mandate prevents Michigan consumers from enjoying new technologies that retailers in other states are or will be using to help their customers save time and money. It said modernizing the law would be a benefit to retailers, their customers and the state’s economy. The Shopping Reform and Modernization Act, House Bill 4158, to repeal the current law and replace it with more flexible pricing requirements — without weakening consumer protections Michigan consumers are used to
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‘Troublemaker’ took on item pricing status quo She’s been challenging authority for as long as she can remember. These days, Lisa Posthumus Lyons fights the power as one of the more driven freshman members of the Michigan House of Representatives, but that’s hardly the first place she questioned the status quo or the place where she developed her drive. That all started on the farm. “I’m the second of four kids and I always managed to get in trouble,” Lyons says from the Alto farmhouse she shares with
to push for reform, made the case to legislators that Michigan was out of step with the rest of the country. Standing out like a sore thumb hurt Michigan when businesses evaluated where to invest capital and open new stores, said Eric Rule, MRA vice president government affairs. According to an economic study conducted by Michigan-based Anderson Economic Group and commissioned by MRA, item pricing results conservatively in a $2.2 billion “hidden tax” on Michigan’s economy each year. Repealing the sticker mandate would make Michigan more attractive to retail business investment and jobs, the study said.