S01475 Summary:
BILL NO | S01475A |
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SAME AS | SAME AS A03173-A |
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SPONSOR | HOYLMAN |
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COSPNSR | |
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MLTSPNSR | |
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Add Art 29-BB §§527 & 527-a, Gen Bus L | |
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Prohibits certain practices by businesses making an automatic renewal or continuous service offer to consumers in the state; provides exemptions. |
S01475 Actions:
BILL NO | S01475A | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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01/15/2019 | REFERRED TO CONSUMER PROTECTION | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
01/28/2019 | 1ST REPORT CAL.73 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
01/29/2019 | 2ND REPORT CAL. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
02/04/2019 | ADVANCED TO THIRD READING | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
05/06/2019 | AMENDED ON THIRD READING 1475A | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
06/03/2019 | PASSED SENATE | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
06/03/2019 | DELIVERED TO ASSEMBLY | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
06/03/2019 | referred to consumer affairs and protection | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
01/08/2020 | died in assembly | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
01/08/2020 | returned to senate | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
01/08/2020 | REFERRED TO CONSUMER PROTECTION | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
02/12/2020 | 1ST REPORT CAL.435 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
02/13/2020 | 2ND REPORT CAL. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
02/24/2020 | ADVANCED TO THIRD READING | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
02/27/2020 | PASSED SENATE | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
02/27/2020 | DELIVERED TO ASSEMBLY | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
02/27/2020 | referred to consumer affairs and protection | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
07/22/2020 | substituted for a3173a | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
07/22/2020 | ordered to third reading rules cal.285 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
07/22/2020 | passed assembly | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
07/22/2020 | returned to senate | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
10/30/2020 | DELIVERED TO GOVERNOR | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
11/11/2020 | SIGNED CHAP.267 |
S01475 Committee Votes:
Go to topS01475 Floor Votes:
Yes
Abbate
Yes
Crouch
Yes
Garbarino
Yes
Lupardo
Yes
Pheffer Amato
Yes
Solages
Yes
Abinanti
Yes
Cruz
Yes
Giglio
Yes
Magnarelli
Yes
Pichardo
Yes
Stec
Yes
Arroyo
Yes
Cusick
Yes
Glick
Yes
Malliotakis
Yes
Pretlow
Yes
Steck
Yes
Ashby
Yes
Cymbrowitz
Yes
Goodell
Yes
Manktelow
Yes
Quart
Yes
Stern
Yes
Aubry
Yes
Darling
Yes
Gottfried
Yes
McDonald
Yes
Ra
Yes
Stirpe
Yes
Barclay
Yes
Davila
Yes
Griffin
Yes
McDonough
Yes
Ramos
Yes
Tague
Yes
Barnwell
Yes
De La Rosa
Yes
Gunther
Yes
McMahon
Yes
Reilly
Yes
Taylor
Yes
Barrett
Yes
DenDekker
Yes
Hawley
Yes
Mikulin
Yes
Reyes
Yes
Thiele
Yes
Barron
Yes
DeStefano
Yes
Hevesi
Yes
Miller B
ER
Richardson
Yes
Vanel
Yes
Benedetto
Yes
Dickens
Yes
Hunter
Yes
Miller MG
Yes
Rivera
Yes
Walczyk
Yes
Bichotte
Yes
Dilan
Yes
Hyndman
Yes
Miller ML
Yes
Rodriguez
Yes
Walker
Yes
Blake
Yes
Dinowitz
Yes
Jacobson
Yes
Montesano
Yes
Rosenthal D
Yes
Wallace
Yes
Blankenbush
No
DiPietro
Yes
Jaffee
Yes
Morinello
Yes
Rosenthal L
Yes
Walsh
Yes
Brabenec
Yes
D'Urso
Yes
Jean-Pierre
Yes
Mosley
Yes
Rozic
Yes
Weinstein
Yes
Braunstein
Yes
Eichenstein
Yes
Johns
Yes
Niou
Yes
Ryan
Yes
Weprin
Yes
Bronson
Yes
Englebright
Yes
Jones
Yes
Nolan
Yes
Salka
Yes
Williams
Yes
Buchwald
Yes
Epstein
Yes
Joyner
Yes
Norris
Yes
Santabarbara
Yes
Woerner
Yes
Burke
Yes
Fahy
Yes
Kim
Yes
O'Donnell
Yes
Sayegh
Yes
Wright
Yes
Buttenschon
Yes
Fall
Yes
Kolb
Yes
Ortiz
ER
Schimminger
Yes
Zebrowski
Yes
Byrne
Yes
Fernandez
Yes
Lalor
Yes
Otis
Yes
Schmitt
Yes
Mr. Speaker
Yes
Byrnes
ER
Finch
Yes
Lavine
Yes
Palmesano
Yes
Seawright
Yes
Cahill
Yes
Fitzpatrick
Yes
Lawrence
Yes
Palumbo
Yes
Simon
Yes
Carroll
No
Friend
Yes
Lentol
Yes
Paulin
Yes
Simotas
Yes
Colton
Yes
Frontus
Yes
Lifton
Yes
Peoples-Stokes
Yes
Smith
Yes
Cook
Yes
Galef
Yes
LiPetri
Yes
Perry
Yes
Smullen
‡ Indicates voting via videoconference
S01475 Memo:
Memo not availableGo to top
S01475 Text:
Go to top STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1475--A Cal. No. 73 2019-2020 Regular Sessions IN SENATE January 15, 2019 ___________ Introduced by Sen. HOYLMAN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Consumer Protection -- reported favorably from said committee, ordered to first and second report, ordered to a third reading, amended and ordered reprinted, retaining its place in the order of third reading AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to prohibiting certain practices by businesses making an automatic renewal or contin- uous service offer to consumers in the state The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Legislative intent. It is the intent of the legislature to 2 end the practice of ongoing charging of consumer credit or debit cards 3 or third party payment accounts without the consumers' explicit consent 4 for ongoing shipments of a product or ongoing deliveries of service. 5 § 2. The general business law is amended by adding a new article 29-BB 6 to read as follows: 7 ARTICLE 29-BB 8 PROHIBITED SERVICE OFFER PRACTICES 9 Section 527. Definitions. 10 527-a. Unlawful practices. 11 § 527. Definitions. For the purposes of this article, the following 12 definitions shall apply: 13 1. "Automatic renewal" means a plan or arrangement in which a paid 14 subscription or purchasing agreement is automatically renewed at the end 15 of a definite term for a subsequent term. 16 2. "Automatic renewal offer terms" means the following clear and 17 conspicuous disclosures: 18 a. that the subscription or purchasing agreement will continue until 19 the consumer cancels; 20 b. the description of the cancellation policy that applies to the 21 offer; EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD01191-04-9S. 1475--A 2 1 c. the recurring charges that will be charged to the consumer's credit 2 or debit card or payment account with a third party as part of the auto- 3 matic renewal plan or arrangement, and that the amount of the charge may 4 change, if that is the case, and the amount to which the charge will 5 change, if known; 6 d. the length of the automatic renewal term or that the service is 7 continuous, unless the length of the term is chosen by the consumer; and 8 e. the minimum purchase obligation, if any. 9 3. "Clear and conspicuous" means in larger type than the surrounding 10 text, or in contrasting type, font, or color to the surrounding text of 11 the same size, or set off from the surrounding text of the same size by 12 symbols or other marks, in a manner that clearly calls attention to the 13 language. In the case of an audio disclosure, "clear and conspicuous" 14 means in a volume and cadence sufficient to be readily audible and 15 understandable. 16 4. "Consumer" means any individual who seeks or acquires, by purchase 17 or lease, any goods, services, money, or credit for personal, family, or 18 household purposes. 19 5. "Continuous service" means a plan or arrangement in which a 20 subscription or purchasing agreement continues until the consumer 21 cancels the service. 22 § 527-a. Unlawful practices. 1. It shall be unlawful for any business 23 making an automatic renewal or continuous service offer to a consumer in 24 this state to do any of the following: 25 a. fail to present the automatic renewal offer terms or continuous 26 service offer terms in a clear and conspicuous manner before the 27 subscription or purchasing agreement is fulfilled and in visual proximi- 28 ty, or in the case of an offer conveyed by voice, in temporal proximity, 29 to the request for consent to the offer. If the offer also includes a 30 free gift or trial, the offer shall include a clear and conspicuous 31 explanation of the price that will be charged after the trial ends or 32 the manner in which the subscription or purchasing agreement pricing 33 will change upon conclusion of the trial; 34 b. charge the consumer's credit or debit card or the consumer's 35 account with a third party for an automatic renewal or continuous 36 service without first obtaining the consumer's affirmative consent to 37 the agreement containing the automatic renewal offer terms or continuous 38 service offer terms, including the terms of an automatic renewal offer 39 or continuous service offer that is made at a promotional or discounted 40 price for a limited period of time; or 41 c. fail to provide an acknowledgment that includes the automatic 42 renewal or continuous service offer terms, cancellation policy, and 43 information regarding how to cancel in a manner that is capable of being 44 retained by the consumer. If the offer includes a free gift or trial, 45 the business shall also disclose in the acknowledgment how to cancel and 46 allow the consumer to cancel before the consumer pays for the goods or 47 services. 48 2. A business that makes an automatic renewal offer or continuous 49 service offer shall provide a toll-free telephone number, electronic 50 mail address, a postal address only when the seller directly bills the 51 consumer, or another cost-effective, timely, and easy-to-use mechanism 52 for cancellation that shall be described in the acknowledgment specified 53 in paragraph c of subdivision one of this section. 54 3. In addition to the requirements of subdivision two of this section, 55 a consumer who accepts an automatic renewal or continuous service offer 56 online shall be allowed to terminate the automatic renewal or continuousS. 1475--A 3 1 service exclusively online, which may include a termination email 2 formatted and provided by the business that a consumer can send to the 3 business without additional information. 4 4. In the case of a material change in the terms of the automatic 5 renewal or continuous service offer that has been accepted by a consumer 6 in this state, the business shall provide the consumer with a clear and 7 conspicuous notice of the material change and provide information 8 regarding how to cancel in a manner that is capable of being retained by 9 the consumer. 10 5. The requirements of this article shall apply only prior to the 11 completion of the initial order for the automatic renewal or continuous 12 service, except as follows: 13 a. The requirement in paragraph c of subdivision one of this section 14 may be fulfilled after completion of the initial order. 15 b. The requirement in subdivision four of this section shall be 16 fulfilled prior to implementation of the material change. 17 6. In any case in which a business sends any goods, wares, merchan- 18 dise, or products to a consumer, under a continuous service agreement or 19 automatic renewal of a purchase, without first obtaining the consumer's 20 affirmative consent, the goods, wares, merchandise, or products shall 21 for all purposes be deemed an unconditional gift to the consumer, who 22 may use or dispose of the same in any manner he or she sees fit without 23 any obligation whatsoever on the consumer's part to the business, 24 including, but not limited to, bearing the cost of, or responsibility 25 for, shipping any goods, wares, merchandise, or products to the busi- 26 ness. 27 7. Whenever there shall be a violation of this section, an application 28 may be made by the attorney general in the name of the people of the 29 state of New York to a court or justice having jurisdiction to issue an 30 injunction, and upon notice to the defendant of not less than five days, 31 to enjoin and restrain the continuance of such violations; and if it 32 shall appear to the satisfaction of the court or justice that the 33 defendant has in fact, violated this section, an injunction may be 34 issued by such court or justice, enjoining and restraining any further 35 violation, without requiring proof that any person has, in fact, been 36 injured or damaged thereby. In any such proceeding the court may make 37 allowances to the attorney general as provided in section eighty-three 38 hundred three of the civil practice law and rules, and direct restitu- 39 tion. In connection with any such proposed application, the attorney 40 general is authorized to take proof and make a determination of the 41 relevant facts and to issue subpoenas in accordance with the civil prac- 42 tice law and rules. Whenever the court shall determine that a violation 43 of this section has occurred, the court may impose a civil penalty of 44 not more than one hundred dollars for a single violation and not more 45 than five hundred dollars for multiple violations resulting from a 46 single act or incident. A knowing violation of this section shall be 47 punishable by a civil penalty of not more than five hundred dollars for 48 a single violation and not more than one thousand dollars for multiple 49 violations resulting from a single act or incident. No business shall be 50 deemed to have violated the provisions of this section if such business 51 shows, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the violation was not 52 intentional and resulted from a bona fide error made notwithstanding the 53 maintenance of procedures reasonably adopted to avoid such error. 54 8. The following are exempt from the requirements of this article:S. 1475--A 4 1 a. any service provided by a business or its affiliate where either 2 the business or its affiliate is doing business pursuant to a franchise 3 issued by a political subdivision of the state; 4 b. any entity regulated by the department of financial services; 5 c. security system alarm operators; 6 d. banks, bank holding companies, or the subsidiary or affiliate of 7 either, or credit unions or other financial institutions, licensed under 8 state or federal law; and 9 e. sellers and administrators of a service contract, as defined pursu- 10 ant to section seven thousand nine hundred two of the insurance law. 11 § 3. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall 12 have become a law.
S01475 LFIN:
  | NO LFIN |