Requires any person or entity operating telephone numbers, the use of which causes the caller to be billed a fee on his or her telephone bill, to provide the caller with notice of the fee to be imposed for such call and advise the caller to hang up if he or she does not want to pay the fee; imposes civil penalties for violations.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
5308
2009-2010 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 11, 2009
___________
Introduced by M. of A. P. RIVERA, COLTON, ORTIZ -- Multi-Sponsored by --
M. of A. ALFANO, BARRA, BENJAMIN, CANESTRARI, CLARK, DelMONTE, DIAZ,
FARRELL, GOTTFRIED, JOHN, LIFTON, MAGEE, PHEFFER, ROBINSON, TITUS,
TOWNS, WEISENBERG -- read once and referred to the Committee on Corpo-
rations, Authorities and Commissions
AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to requiring
persons or entities operating a telecommunications services system,
access to which causes the caller to be charged a fee on his or her
telephone service bill, to provide notice of the imposition of such
fee
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The general business law is amended by adding a new section
2 395-c to read as follows:
3 § 395-c. Notice of the imposition of charges or fees for calling
4 certain telephone numbers. 1. Every person or entity operating telecom-
5 munications equipment, other than a telephone corporation as defined in
6 the public service law, access to which causes the caller thereto to
7 incur the imposition of a charge or fee billed to his or her telephone
8 service provider bill, shall upon the answering of such call, cause the
9 following message or words to the effect of the following to be provided
10 to the caller, in the language in which information during such call
11 will be provided:
12 "The call you are placing will cost (rate at which fees or charges are
13 incurred). In order for you to receive the information you are calling
14 for, that fee will be charged to your telephone bill. If you do not want
15 to pay this amount, please hang up."
16 2. No fee for placing a call to telecommunications equipment, operated
17 as provided in subdivision one of this section, shall be imposed until
18 ten seconds after the provision of notice of fees charged pursuant to
19 such subdivision.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD06641-01-9
A. 5308 2
1 3. Any person or entity who violates the provisions of this section
2 shall, upon the first violation thereof, be liable for a civil fine of
3 two hundred fifty dollars and, upon a second or subsequent violation
4 thereof, be liable for a civil fine of five hundred dollars for each
5 such violation.
6 § 2. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall
7 have become a law.
