Long Beach Tried To Regulate Self-Checkout, Stores Shut Them Down Instead

LONG BEACH, CA — Nearly a year after Long Beach imposed new rules on self-checkout lanes in an effort to combat retail theft and improve public safety, a new city report shows most retailers surveyed responded by shutting the lanes down altogether.

Ten of 13 establishments contacted by the city reported fully closing their self-checkout lanes following implementation of the ordinance, while the remaining three severely or moderately restricted their use, according to an Aug. 21 memo from the city's Economic Development and Opportunity Department.

The ordinance, which took effect Sept. 11, 2025, requires grocery and drug stores offering self-checkout to assign at least one employee to supervise the area and maintain a ratio of at least one employee for every three self-checkout stations when two or more are operating.

The employee supervising self-checkout cannot have other responsibilities that interfere with directly monitoring the stations. Stores must also keep at least one staffed checkout lane available whenever self-checkout is offered.

Self-checkout purchases are limited to 15 items, and customers cannot use the stations to buy products requiring identification, including alcohol and tobacco. Merchandise requiring an employee to remove a theft-deterrent device or retrieve it from a locked cabinet is also excluded.

The City Council approved the ordinance in August 2025 with the stated goal of addressing retail theft and advancing public safety.

But retailers told city staff the requirements have also produced longer transaction times, fewer checkout options and increased congestion at staffed registers. Some businesses reported declining customer satisfaction metrics after changing their self-checkout operations.

The city cautioned that the customer complaints were anecdotal, based on information supplied by retailers and their internal feedback systems, rather than an independent city survey.

Retailers And Workers See Different Results

Businesses also reported shifting significant staff resources toward traditional checkout lanes and self-checkout oversight, particularly during busy periods. Several said the changes required increased labor deployment or reconfiguration of stores.

Labor organizations offered a sharply different assessment. Representatives of organizations covering approximately 22,000 grocery and retail workers across Southern California told city staff the ordinance has improved workplace safety, customer service, workloads and employee stress by reducing the number of self-checkout stations individual workers must monitor.

The consequences could extend beyond the checkout line. Some retailers told Long Beach officials that the city's requirements are being considered in future decisions about whether to open additional stores in Long Beach, according to the memo.

Businesses recommended that the city reconsider or clarify several provisions, including the 15-item limit, restrictions involving locked merchandise, fine structures and a provision allowing customers or employees to bring civil claims over alleged violations.

City staff said it will continue monitoring implementation of similar rules elsewhere and related state legislation. The city did not identify the 13 establishments that participated in its outreach. Patch has reached to the city, but at the time of publication had received no response.