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Washington senators are debating a bill that puts online grocery coupons within reach of people who don鈥檛 have a smartphone or computer to access them.

would require larger grocery stores to honor posted electronic coupons even if consumers have not subscribed to the store鈥檚 app or website. (A PDF of a version of the bill can be viewed .)

The legislation mandates that certain larger grocery establishments, defined as retail stores with over 15,000 square feet, primarily selling household food items, must credit any coupons or charge the reduced sales prices that are found online or in the store.

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State Sen. Steve Conway, D-Tacoma, is the sponsor of the bill. He called a store鈥檚 refusal to honor a discount price available only online or on the store’s app discrimination.

“Food inflation is a reality, so it makes sense that the big grocers, who are requiring people to go online to get these discounts, should make these coupons available to people who cannot go online,” Conway said.

During the bill鈥檚 initial hearing before the , Chair Sen. Karen Kieser, D-Des Moines, quipped about her online coupon experiences.

“I will just say that in my local store, they have such poor Wi-Fi, that you can’t open the coupon in the store, even though you have the app,” Kieser said. “So there are frustrations for all kinds of consumers.”

Testimony against the coupon bill

Two lobbyists for the grocery industry testified against the bill. Brandon Housekeeper with the said online coupons target a different customer base.

“Most of our members have a policy, that if there’s a discount available or that you see advertised somewhere, you can bring it to the store’s attention and they’ll honor those discounts and work with the customer,” Housekeeper said.

“I’ve been in the store, and I haven鈥檛 seen any placards or anything at the check stand that tells people that they can access these coupons if you’ll just talk to us,” Conway fired back to Housekeeper. “It鈥檚 not there. I鈥檓 sorry. It just frustrates me.”

Housekeeper concluded his testimony by asking lawmakers to reject the bill.

“We just can’t support something that mandates how we particularly apply these marketing opportunities across all mediums — because they’re not all meant to be equal,” Housekeeper said.

Katie Beeson of the , representing smaller grocers that aren鈥檛 large corporate chains, also testified against the bill, citing the need to scan manufacturers’ coupons.

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“So it’s important that you scan that physical coupon versus just honoring the register per the customer’s request because that gives the store an opportunity to be reimbursed for those products by the manufacturer,” Beeson said.

The core requirement of Senate Bill 6265 is to ensure that larger grocery establishments honor posted prices and electronic coupons at the time of purchase, irrespective of whether consumers have subscribed to the relevant electronic mediums.

Violations of this obligation are deemed violations of the . The could seek action against the grocery chain that doesn’t follow the law.

Matt Markovich often covers the state legislature and public policy for 成人X站 Newsradio. You can read more of Matt鈥檚 stories聽here. Follow him on聽, or聽email him here.