New York State Assembly

 
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A03548 Summary:

A03548 Actions:

A03548 Committee Votes:

Committee:JUDICIARY   Chair:Dinowitz      
DATE:03/05/2019AYE/NAY:19/0  Action: Favorable refer to committee Codes        
Dinowitz
Aye
Palumbo
Aye
Titus
Excused
Montesano
Aye
Lavine
Aye
Goodell
Aye
Zebrowski
Aye
Norris
Aye
Weprin
Aye
Walsh
Aye
Braunstein
Aye
Byrnes
Aye
Simotas
Aye
Quart
Excused
Buchwald
Aye
Steck
Aye
Seawright
Aye
Joyner
Aye
Abinanti
Aye
Wright
Aye
Wallace
Aye

Committee:CODES   Chair:Lentol      
DATE:06/04/2019AYE/NAY:22/0  Action: Favorable refer to committee Rules        
Lentol
Aye
Ra
Aye
Schimminger
Aye
Giglio
Aye
Pretlow
Aye
Montesano
Aye
Cook
Aye
Morinello
Aye
Cymbrowitz
Aye
Palumbo
Aye
O'Donnell
Aye
Garbarino
Aye
Lavine
Aye
Perry
Aye
Zebrowski
Aye
Abinanti
Aye
Weprin
Aye
Mosley
Aye
Hevesi
Aye
Fahy
Aye
Seawright
Aye
Rosenthal
Aye

Committee:RULES   Chair:Gottfried      
DATE:06/11/2019AYE/NAY:25/0  Action: Favorable         
Heastie
Excused
Kolb
Aye
Gottfried
Aye
Crouch
Aye
Lentol
Aye
Finch
Aye
Gantt
Excused
Barclay
Aye
Nolan
Aye
Raia
Aye
Weinstein
Aye
Hawley
Aye
Ortiz
Aye
Giglio
Aye
Pretlow
Aye
Malliotakis
Aye
Cook
Aye
Glick
Aye
Aubry
Aye
Englebright
Aye
Dinowitz
Aye
Colton
Aye
Magnarelli
Aye
Perry
Aye
Paulin
Aye
Titus
Excused
Peoples-Stokes
Excused
Benedetto
Aye
Lavine
Excused
Lupardo
Aye
Zebrowski
Excused

A03548 Floor Votes:

A03548 Memo:

NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY
MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION
 submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)



 
BILL NUMBER: A3548
 
SPONSOR: Dinowitz

 
TITLE OF BILL:
 
An act to amend the general obligations law, in relation to requiring
contractees to waive their rights relating to the making of certain
statements about contractors
 
 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
 
This bill would prohibit a contract or proposed contract for the sale or
lease of consumer goods or services from including a provision waiving
the consumer's right to make any statement regarding the seller or
lessor or its employees or agents, or concerning the good or services.
 
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
 
Section 1 amends the general obligations law by adding a new section
5-336 that prohibits a contract or proposed contract for the sale or
lease of consumer goods or services from including a provision waiving
the consumer's right to make any statement regarding the seller or
lessor or its employees or agents, or concerning the good or services.
 
Section 1 also adds penalties for violations under the new section
5-336. Section 2 sets the effective date.
 
 
JUSTIFICATION:
 
Today's consumer has been empowered both by a growing availability of
information about the marketplace as well as an ability to contribute to
this body of knowledge with public reviews of products or services that
they have received. While many businesses have accepted that the consum-
er will play an increasingly important role in providing information
about the marketplace, there are those who wish to suppress the voices
of their customers. Some businesses have included contract provisions
that limit or prohibit a consumer from voicing their opinions about the
business's products or services, provisions that are may not be obvious
or fully understood by the consumer.  While this practice has previously
been prohibited by a New York Court (People v. Network Assoc., INC) it
has not been placed into statute. This legislation would protect the
rights of consumers to freely and publicly voice their opinions on
products or services they have received prohibiting these restrictive
clauses in contracts.
 
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
 
2017-18- A.1859A - Referred to Rules
2015-16- A.2027 - Referred to Judiciary
 
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
 
None to the State.
 
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

A03548 Text:

 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                          3548
 
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                   IN ASSEMBLY
 
                                    January 29, 2019
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced by M. of A. DINOWITZ, GOTTFRIED, GALEF, BRAUNSTEIN, MAGNAREL-
          LI, ABINANTI, OTIS -- read once and referred to the Committee on Judi-
          ciary
 
        AN  ACT  to  amend the general obligations law, in relation to requiring
          contractees to waive their rights relating to the  making  of  certain
          statements about contractors

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section 1. The general obligations law is  amended  by  adding  a  new
     2  section 5-337 to read as follows:
     3    §  5-337.  Agreements  requiring  contractees to waive their rights in
     4  relation to expressing certain opinions about contractors void and unen-
     5  forceable. 1. (a) A contract or proposed contract for the sale or  lease
     6  of  consumer  goods  or services may not include a provision waiving the
     7  consumer's right to make any statement regarding the seller or lessor or
     8  its employees or agents, or concerning the goods or services.
     9    (b) It shall be unlawful to threaten or to seek to enforce a provision
    10  made unlawful under this section, or to otherwise  penalize  a  consumer
    11  for making any statement protected under this section.
    12    2.  Any waiver of the provisions of this section is contrary to public
    13  policy, and is void and unenforceable.
    14    3. Any person or entity that violates this section shall be subject to
    15  a civil penalty not to exceed two thousand five hundred dollars for  the
    16  first  violation,  and five thousand dollars for the second and for each
    17  subsequent violation, to be assessed and collected  in  a  civil  action
    18  brought  by the consumer or by the attorney general.  In addition, for a
    19  willful or intentional violation of this  section,  a  consumer  or  the
    20  attorney  general may recover a civil penalty not to exceed ten thousand
    21  dollars.  Under this section, when the civil action is  brought  by  the
    22  consumer,  the  civil  penalty shall be payable to the consumer and when
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD00731-01-9
        A. 3548                             2
 
     1  the civil action is brought by the attorney general, such civil  penalty
     2  shall be payable to the state.
     3    4.  The  penalty  provided by this section is not an exclusive remedy,
     4  and does not affect any other relief or remedy  provided  by  law.  This
     5  section shall not be construed to prohibit or limit a person or business
     6  that hosts online consumer reviews or comments from removing a statement
     7  that is otherwise lawful to remove.
     8    §  2.  This  act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
     9  have become a law.

A03548 LFIN:

 
NO LFIN

A03548 Chamber Video/Transcript: