Over the last few years frauds have consistently been one of the top three crimes reported in the community.  The fraudulent procurement of third party gift cards at retail establishments in the city has become a widespread problem. These incidents affect numerous victims and require considerable law enforcement resources to investigate. In an effort to prevent and limit the opportunities for fraud to occur in our city, the police department is proposing an Ordinance to address our biggest issue.

This has been a thorough and comprehensive process. Department staff have engaged local retailers, the Shakopee Chamber, and the Minnesota Retailers Association to assist in the drafting of this Ordinance. After several months and multiple drafts, staff is ready to present the current version to council.

The Ordinance is specific to third party gift cards from American Express, MasterCard, or Visa and only when purchased using a credit card. Under this proposed Ordinance, retailers will not be able to sell third party gift cards at self-checkout stands. This will eliminate the vast majority of the problems we face. The Ordinance will also require retailers to ask for identification from anyone purchasing a loadable gift card from either American Express, MasterCard, or Visa. The identification must match the name on the credit card being used to purchase the card. Identification is not required for any other gift card or gift cards purchased with cash or check.

Since discussions over this proposal began we've seen retailers proactively implementing the changes. Early results appear to be successful. By eliminating the self-checkout option and requiring identification for credit card purchases of American Express, MasterCard, and Visa gift cards we feel we can have a significant impact in the number of fraudulent gift cards purchased in our city.