GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2025
H 2
HOUSE BILL 315
Committee Substitute Favorable 3/18/25
Short Title: Gift Card Theft & Unlawful Business Entry. (Public)
Sponsors:
Referred to:
March 10, 2025
*H315 -v-2*
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
AN ACT TO ESTABLISH AN OFFENSE FOR ENTERING A PART OF A BUILDING NOT 2
OPEN TO THE PUBLIC WITH THE INTENT TO COMMIT AN UNLAWFUL ACT ; TO 3
ESTABLISH THE OFFENS E OF LARCENY OF GIFT CARDS; TO REVISE THE 4
ORGANIZED RETAIL THEFT OFFENSE TO INCLUDE OFFENSES INVOLVING GIFT 5
CARDS; AND TO PROVIDE CIVIL LIABILITY FOR LARCENY OF GIFT CARDS. 6
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 7
SECTION 1. G.S. 14-54 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 8
"(b1) Any person who, with the intent to commit an unlawful act, enters any area of a 9
building (i) that is commonly reserved for personnel of a commercial business where money or 10
other property is kept or (ii) clearly marked with a sign that indicates to the public that entry is 11
forbidden is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor for a first offense and a Class I felony for a second 12
or subsequent offense." 13
SECTION 2. Article 16 of Chapter 14 of the General Statutes is amended by adding 14
a new section to read: 15
"§ 14-72.12. Larceny of gift cards. 16
(a) Definitions. – For purposes of this section, the terms "gift card," "gift card issuer," 17
"gift card redemption information," and "gift card value" are as defined in G.S. 14-86.5. 18
(b) Offense. – A person commits the offense of larceny of gift cards if the person does 19
any of the following: 20
(1) Acquires or retains possession of a gift card or gift card redemption 21
information without the consent of the cardholder or card issuer. 22
(2) Obtains a gift card or gift card redemption information from a cardholder or 23
card issuer by means of false or fraudulent pretenses, representations, or 24
promises. 25
(3) Alters or tampers with a gift card or its packaging with intent to defraud 26
another. 27
(c) Punishment. – A violation of this section is a Class 1 misdemeanor if the value of the 28
gift card acquired, retained, or for which the card redemption information is obtained, or is altered 29
or tampered with, is not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000). Any other violation of this 30
section is a Class H felony." 31
SECTION 3. G.S. 14-86.5 reads as rewritten: 32
"§ 14-86.5. Definitions. 33
The following definitions apply in this Article: 34
(1) "Retail property." – Any article, product, commodity, item, or component 35
intended to be sold in retail commerce.Gift card. – A record evidencing a 36 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
Page 2 House Bill 315-Second Edition
promise, made for monetary consideration, by a seller or issuer that goods or 1
services will be provided to the owner of the record to the value shown in the 2
record. A gift card includes a record that contains a microprocessor chip, 3
magnetic strip, or other storage medium that is prefunded and for which the 4
value is adjusted upon each use, a gift certificate, a stored-value card or 5
certificate, a store card, or a prepaid long-distance telephone service that is 6
activated by a prepaid card that required dialing an access number or an access 7
code in addition to dialing the phone number to which the user of the prepaid 8
card seeks to connect. 9
(2) Repealed by Session Laws 2024-22, s. 2(a), effective December 1, 2024, and 10
applicable to offenses committed on or after that date. 11
(3) "Theft." – To take possession of, carry away, transfer, or cause to be carried 12
away the retail property of another with the intent to steal the retail 13
property.Gift card issuer. – Any person or entity that sells, distributes, or 14
supplies a gift card. 15
(4) "Value." – The retail value of an item as advertised by the affected retail 16
establishment, to include all applicable taxes.Gift card redemption 17
information. – Any information unique to a gift card that allows the cardholder 18
to access, transfer, or spend the funds on that gift card. 19
(5) Gift card value. – The maximum monetary value that can be applied to the 20
card. 21
(6) Retail property. – Any article, product, commodity, item, or component 22
intended to be sold in retail commerce. 23
(7) Theft. – To take possession of, carry away, transfer, or cause to be carried 24
away the retail property of another with the intent to steal the retail property. 25
(8) Value. – The retail value of an item as advertised by the affected retail 26
establishment, to include all applicable taxes." 27
SECTION 4. G.S. 14-86.6 reads as rewritten: 28
"§ 14-86.6. Organized retail theft. 29
(a) Offense. – A person commits the offense of organized retail theft if the person does 30
any of the following: 31
(1) Conspires with another person to commit theft of retail property from retail 32
establishments with the intent to sell, transfer, or possess that retail property 33
for monetary or other gain. 34
(2) Receives or possesses any retail property that has been taken or stolen in 35
violation of subdivision (1) of this subsection while knowing or having 36
reasonable grounds to believe the property is stolen. 37
(3) Conspires with two or more other persons as an organizer, supervisor, 38
financier, leader, or manager to engage for profit in a scheme or course of 39
conduct to effectuate or intend to effectuate the transfer or sale of property 40
stolen from a merchant in violation of this section. 41
(4) Conspires with another person to acquire or retain possession of a gift card or 42
gift card redemption information without the consent of the cardholder or card 43
issuer. 44
(5) Devises a scheme with one or more persons to obtain a gift card or gift card 45
redemption information from a cardholder or card issuer by means of false or 46
fraudulent pretenses, representations, or promises. 47
(6) Conspires with another person to alter or tamper with a gift card or its 48
packaging with intent to defraud another. 49
… 50 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
House Bill 315-Second Edition Page 3
(a2) Punishments. – The following classifications apply to the offense of organized retail 1
theft: 2
(1) An offense when the gift card value or the retail property has a value 3
exceeding one thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500) aggregated over a 4
90-day period is a Class H felony. 5
(2) An offense when the gift card value or the retail property has a value 6
exceeding twenty thousand dollars ($20,000) aggregated over a 90-day period 7
is a Class G felony. 8
(3) An offense when the gift card value or the retail property has a value 9
exceeding fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) aggregated over a 90-day period is 10
a Class F felony. 11
(4) An offense when the gift card value or the retail property has a value 12
exceeding one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) aggregated over a 90-day 13
period is a Class C felony. 14
… 15
(c) Multiple Thefts. – Thefts of gift cards, gift card redemption information, or retail 16
property occurring in more than one county may be aggregated into an alleged violation of this 17
section. Each county where a part of the charged offense occurs has concurrent venue as 18
described in G.S. 15A-132." 19
SECTION 5. G.S. 1-538.2 reads as rewritten: 20
"§ 1-538.2. Civil liability for larceny, shoplifting, theft by employee, organized retail theft, 21
embezzlement, obtaining property by false pretense, and other offenses. 22
(a) Any person, other than an unemancipated minor, who commits an act that is 23
punishable under G.S. 14-72, 14-72.1, 14-72.11, 14-72.12, 14-74, 14-86.6, 14-86.7, 14-90, or 24
14-100 is liable for civil damages to the owner of the property. In any action brought by the 25
owner of the property, the owner is entitled to recover the value of the goods or merchandise, if 26
the goods or merchandise have been destroyed, or any loss of value to the goods or merchandise, 27
if the goods or merchandise were recovered, or the amount of any money lost by reason of the 28
theft or embezzlement or fraud of an employee. The owner of the property is also entitled to 29
recover for loss to real or personal property caused in the commission of the act. In addition to 30
the above, the owner of the property is entitled to recover any consequential damages, and 31
punitive damages, together with reasonable attorneys' fees. The total consequential damages 32
awarded to a plaintiff against a defendant under this section shall not be less than one hundred 33
fifty dollars ($150.00) and shall not exceed three thousand dollars ($3,000) except an act 34
punishable under G.S. 14-74, 14-86.6, 14-86.7, or 14-90 shall have no maximum limit under this 35
section. 36
(b) The parent or legal guardian, having the care, custody and control of an 37
unemancipated minor who commits an act punishable under G.S. 14-72, 14-72.1, 14-72.11, 38
14-72.12, 14-74, 14-86.6, 14-86.7, 14-90, or 14-100, is civilly liable to the owner of the property 39
obtained by the act if such parent or legal guardian knew or should have known of the propensity 40
of the child to commit such an act; and had the opportunity and ability to control the child, and 41
made no reasonable effort to correct or restrain the child. In an action brought against the parent 42
or legal guardian by the owner, the owner is entitled to recover the amounts specified in 43
subsection (a) except punitive damages. The total consequential damages awarded to a plaintiff 44
against the parent or legal guardian shall not be less than one hundred fifty dollars ($150.00) and 45
shall not exceed three thousand dollars ($3,000). 46
…." 47
SECTION 6. Prosecutions for offenses committed before the effective date of this 48
act are not abated or affected by this act, and the statutes that would be applicable but for this act 49
remain applicable to those prosecutions. 50 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
Page 4 House Bill 315-Second Edition
SECTION 7. This act becomes effective December 1, 2025, and applies to offenses 1
committed on or after that date. 2