I love grocery shopping. I love “The Price Is Right.”
But unlike, say, peanut butter and chocolate, combining two things I love rarely works out. (The pumpkin + polenta tasted, my daughter said, “just a tiny bit like puke.”)
Back on track: I don’t want to play “The Price Is Right” when I’m doing my grocery shopping, meaning I don’t want to guess how much the oatmeal costs, and I certainly don’t want to have to guess whether or not the item is rung up correctly.
Right now, I don’t have to – Michigan’s item pricing law ensures that I can grab the oatmeal off the shelf, look at the pricetag, and decide whether it goes into my cart or not. And I can easily check the price on the item against the price on the receipt to make sure I wasn’t overcharged.
But what if there were no pricetags? Sure, you could look at the shelf tag, but when it comes to making sure the price is right at the register, you may as well be guessing. That’s because without individual item pricing, there’s no way for consumers like you and me to make sure the price on the shelf is the same as the price on the register.
Michigan’s item pricing law is the reason we can be sure the price is right. But Republicans in the state Legislature are ready to repeal the law, which will only hit hard-working Michiganders where it hurts most: in the wallet.
Tomorrow, Rep. Wayne Schmidt will take testimony on HB 4158, which would repeal Michigan’s item pricing law. If you don’t want to have a Showcase Showdown every time you’re low on milk, send Wayne an email and tell him the price of repealing the law is wrong.
Knowing how much everything costs is the only way we can know with confidence that we’re not being overcharged. Currently, if a customer overcharged, they’ll be compensated according to the law. But if state Republicans succeed in repealing this consumer protection, not only will it be difficult to know when we’re paying too much, we’ll have no recourse.
And it won’t just cost us at the register. Between one and three employees at every grocery store across the state would lose their jobs if Michigan’s item pricing law is repealed. Cutting jobs and nickel-and-diming consumers? That’s not reinvention.
Tell Rep. Wayne Schmidt that repealing the item pricing law is wrong. It’s wrong for consumers, it’s wrong for working families, and it’s wrong for Michigan.