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S07475 Summary:

S07475 Actions:

S07475 Committee Votes:

S07475 Floor Votes:

S07475 Text:

 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                         7475--B
 
                               2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                    IN SENATE
 
                                    October 27, 2021
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by Sens. BAILEY, BIAGGI, CLEARE, MYRIE, PARKER, RAMOS, SALA-
          ZAR, SEPULVEDA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed  to
          be committed to the Committee on Rules -- recommitted to the Committee
          on  Insurance  in  accordance  with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 -- committee
          discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
          to said committee  --  committee  discharged,  bill  amended,  ordered
          reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
 
        AN  ACT  to  amend the insurance law, in relation to an immigration bail
          business
 
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section  1.  The insurance law is amended by adding a new section 1123
     2  to read as follows:
     3    § 1123. Immigration bail business. (a)(1)  Any  person,  firm,  corpo-
     4  ration,  or other entity who shall for another deposit money or property
     5  as bail or execute as surety any  bond  in  any  immigration  action  or
     6  proceeding  who  within  a  period of one month prior thereto shall have
     7  made such a deposit or given such bail in more than two cases not  aris-
     8  ing  out  of  the  same transaction shall be deemed to be doing an immi-
     9  gration bail business.
    10    (2) Except for a corporation authorized to write fidelity  and  surety
    11  insurance  and  to  do  an  immigration  bail  business  pursuant to the
    12  provisions of this article and otherwise in compliance  with  all  other
    13  requirements  of  this  chapter  to  do  such business, no person, firm,
    14  corporation, or other entity shall engage in an immigration  bail  busi-
    15  ness in this state.
    16    (b)  (1)  No  person, firm, corporation, or other entity shall in this
    17  state do an insurance  business  or  an  immigration  bail  business  as
    18  defined in subsection (a) of this section unless authorized by a license
    19  issued and in force as provided under this article.
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD09647-10-2
        S. 7475--B                          2
 
     1    (2)  The  superintendent  may  authorize a property/casualty insurance
     2  company that is authorized to write fidelity and surety insurance to  do
     3  an  immigration  bail business in accordance with the provisions of this
     4  article, but no individual or entity shall be licensed to do such  busi-
     5  ness.
     6    (c)  Any person, firm, corporation, or other entity that violates this
     7  section shall be subject to the penalty set forth in subsection  (a)  of
     8  section one thousand one hundred two of this article.
     9    (d)  Any  agreement  entered into by an entity subject to this section
    10  that is not authorized to do an immigration bail business in  accordance
    11  with the provisions of this article shall be void and unenforceable.
    12    §  2.    The  insurance law is amended by adding a new section 2140 to
    13  read as follows:
    14    § 2140. Restrictions  on  insurance  producers  procuring  immigration
    15  bonds.  (a) No insurance producer shall require the use of an electronic
    16  monitoring device as a condition of immigration bail. For  the  purposes
    17  of  this  section, an "electronic monitoring device" includes any device
    18  that tracks or monitors location, any device  that  tracks  or  monitors
    19  biometric  data,  or any device that records or transmits video or audio
    20  surveillance data.
    21    (b) No insurance producer shall make a referral to or provide  contact
    22  information for a legal services provider without:
    23    (1)  disclosing  in writing, in a language understood by the consumer,
    24  whether the insurance producer or an entity that is an affiliate of  the
    25  insurance  producer:  (A)  has  a financial or ownership interest in the
    26  legal services provider;  (B)  is  receiving  any  compensation,  either
    27  directly  or  indirectly,  for making a referral to or providing contact
    28  information for the legal services provider;  or  (C)  is  compensating,
    29  either directly or indirectly, the legal services provider for the legal
    30  services rendered; and
    31    (2)  stating  that: "The payment of premiums to the insurance producer
    32  is not for and does not guarantee that you will receive legal  represen-
    33  tation.    Using  this  legal  services provider is not a requirement of
    34  bail. If you choose to hire this legal services provider, you  have  the
    35  right to fire the provider at any time and retain your own counsel."
    36    (c)  Any  agreement,  or  portion  thereof, entered into requiring the
    37  waiving of the requirements of this section or otherwise in violation of
    38  this section shall be void and unenforceable.
    39    § 3. The insurance law is amended by adding a new section 2312 to read
    40  as follows:
    41    § 2312. Immigration bond premium. (a) The premium for giving an  immi-
    42  gration  bond or depositing money or property as immigration bail in any
    43  court having immigration jurisdiction or in any  immigration  action  or
    44  proceeding shall not exceed ten per centum of the amount of such bond or
    45  deposit in actions where such bonds or deposits do not exceed the sum of
    46  three  thousand dollars.  Where such bonds or deposits exceed the sum of
    47  three thousand dollars, the premium shall not exceed ten per  centum  of
    48  the  first  three  thousand  dollars  and eight per centum of the excess
    49  amount over three thousand dollars up to ten thousand  dollars  and  six
    50  per centum of the excess amount over ten thousand dollars.
    51    (b) No person, firm, corporation, or other entity, including an insur-
    52  ance producer, shall:
    53    (1)  charge,  collect,  or receive, directly or indirectly, any fee or
    54  compensation in connection with an immigration  bail  deposit  or  immi-
    55  gration bond, other than the premium based on rates subject to the maxi-
    56  mum  specified  in  subsection  (a)  of  this section and filed with the
        S. 7475--B                          3
 
     1  superintendent by the insurer pursuant to this article,  notwithstanding
     2  subsection  (c)  of  section  two  thousand one hundred nineteen of this
     3  chapter; or
     4    (2)  accept  any  fee  or  compensation for obtaining a license or for
     5  obtaining an insurance producer or immigration  bond  or  for  an  immi-
     6  gration bail deposit.
     7    (c)  Any person, firm, corporation, or other entity that violates this
     8  section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.  An indemnitor may maintain  a
     9  cause of action in a court of competent jurisdiction against any person,
    10  firm, corporation, or other entity to recover any fee or compensation in
    11  excess  of  the  amount authorized pursuant to this section. The person,
    12  firm, corporation, or other entity shall, in any action  brought  by  an
    13  indemnitor to recover any such overcharge, be liable for treble damages.
    14    (d)  Any  agreement,  or  portion  thereof, entered into requiring the
    15  waiving of the requirements of this section or otherwise in violation of
    16  this section shall be void and unenforceable.
    17    §  4.  Severability  clause.  If  any  clause,  sentence,   paragraph,
    18  subsection,  section  or part of this act shall be adjudged by any court
    19  of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment shall not affect,
    20  impair, or invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall  be  confined  in
    21  its operation to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subsection, section or
    22  part thereof directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment
    23  shall  have been rendered. It is hereby declared to be the intent of the
    24  legislature that this act would have been enacted even if  such  invalid
    25  provisions had not been included herein.
    26    §  5.  This  act  shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall
    27  have become a law.    Effective  immediately,  the  addition,  amendment
    28  and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation
    29  of  this  act  on  its  effective  date  are  authorized  to be made and
    30  completed on or before such effective date.