Comment: State should drop its lawsuit to block grocery merger

By Sen. Mike Padden / For The Herald

Today’s business marketplace, including grocery shopping, is anything but traditional.

Families shop for groceries at several locations; from the big-box giants like Costco and Walmart to our local Kroger and Albertsons stores. Gone are the days when families make a weekly trip to the local food market. In fact, many people order groceries online from myriad stores through apps like Instacart.

That’s what makes our state Attorney General Bob Ferguson’s lawsuit to stop the Kroger-Albertsons merger so out-of-step with not just the legal standings — it’s a federal issue — but also with how today’s consumers purchase groceries.

As a ruling in Washington state court is set to come as soon as Dec. 10, it’s worth questioning whether a state-specific action costing taxpayers millions of dollars even has standing.

In fact, at the start of the Sept. 16 court proceedings, King County Superior Court Judge Michael Ferguson said, “I have serious doubts about my authority as a state court trial judge to issue an injunction that bars this transaction from going into effect nationwide.”

The judge has a point; millions of taxpayer dollars for a case that is already being considered by a federal judge in Portland, Ore.

What I find most troubling is that Ferguson, now the governor-elect, has not put forward the facts of the merger: No store closures and no layoffs have been promised and billions in investments in store upgrades and buying power if the merger proceeds will lower costs for consumers while protecting good union jobs.

Ferguson should take note of the Spirit Airlines-Jet Blue merger that was blocked. Just 10 months after the failed move to save both airlines in a competitive industry, much like grocery, Spirit Airlines recently filed for bankruptcy. That means lost jobs and a more narrow marketplace for consumers.

The airlines asked for the merger to put the companies in a better position to compete against the Big Four airlines, which are Delta, American, Southwest and United. Now both companies are laying off workers and canceling routes, leaving consumers with fewer options and workers without a paycheck.

Kroger and Albertsons are in the same position. They are competing with grocery giants like Walmart, Costco and Amazon that have the lion’s share of the marketplace, as well as the distribution capabilities that Kroger and Albertsons combined cannot match, but would make them more competitive.

Our attorney general isn’t a business expert and, quite frankly, actually could upend the effort to save grocery worker jobs — union jobs — and create an even less competitive grocery market. This would only serve to give the big-box grocery stores an even larger share of the marketplace. In fact, if the merger is stopped by a Washington court, stores in our state could close, leaving workers in uncertainty and creating food deserts, particularly in rural communities.

I urge Ferguson to let the free market work, as it always does, to boost competition, stabilize industry sectors in times of economic uncertainty, like now, and protect workers and consumers.

In January, we’ll have a new attorney general in our state. This presents an opportunity for that person to show independence and take a different path.

The Kroger-Albertsons merger is necessary to preserve competition, lower prices for consumers and protect union jobs. In this time of economic uncertainty and high inflation, every family could use a break, and I am sure the millions of dollars already spent and yet to be spent by the state on this unnecessary lawsuit could be put to better use helping families struggling under the weight of higher costs for the basics, like food, gas, electricity and insurance.

Sen. Mike Padden, R-Spokane Valley, serves the 4th Legislative District, which includes Colbert, Greenbluff, Liberty Lake, Millwood and Spokane Valley. Padden announced his retirement from the Senate earlier this year and did not run for reelection this fall.