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Who cares
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Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Substituted by A4365A
- Ordered to third reading cal.1319
- Print number 7595a
- Amend and recommit to rules
- Committee discharged and committed to rules
- Referred to consumer protection
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Restricts pay-per-call prize schemes
Signed by Governor · Sponsor N. Nick Perry
Full text
The text isn't available here yet. Check nysenate.gov.
Sponsor's memo
BILL NUMBER:S7595A
Title of bill
An act to amend the general business law, in relation to restricting pay-per-call services
Purpose
To prohibit the practice of holding a contest in which the pay-per-call service, which is needed to claim the prize, charges a higher fee for the transmission of the call as assessed by a telephone corporation regulated by the public service commission.
Summary of provisions
Amends Section 369-ee of the General Business law bay adding a new subdivision 2-a to make it unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to offer a consumer a prize, if in order to claim the prize, the consumer must call a pay-per-call service where the charge for such service is greater than the charge for the transmission of the call as assessed by a telephone corporation regulated by the public service commission.
Justification
Every year, thousands of misleading phone calls are automatically placed to consumers, by a person, firm, or corporation leading them to believe, they had won a contest. In order to claim their prize, which could be anything from "new watch" to a "35mm camera", they are told that they have to place a return phone call to a given number. In most cases, the cost of the return phone call costs up to $9.95 a minute resulting in an excessive phone bill, which ends up being more expensive than the prize itself.
Legislative history
New Bill.
Fiscal implications
None.
Effective date
This act shall take effect 30 days after the date on which it shall have become law.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.