Bill Text: CT HB05261 | 2014 | General Assembly | Introduced

Connecticut House Bill 5261 (Prior Session Legislation)

Introduced

Bill Title: An Act Concerning The Unfair Sales Practices Act And Counterfeit Commodities.

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-02-21 - Public Hearing 02/25 [HB05261 Detail]

Download: Connecticut-2014-HB05261-Introduced.html


General Assembly		*Raised Bill No. 5261*
*February Session, 2014*		LCO No. 1183
		01183_______GL_
Referred to Committee on GENERAL LAW
Introduced by:
(GL)

AN ACT CONCERNING THE UNFAIR SALES PRACTICES ACT AND COUNTERFEIT COMMODITIES.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:

Section 1. Section 42-115g of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2014):

As used in sections 42-115g to 42-115q, inclusive, "commodity in package form" means a commodity put up or packaged in any manner in advance of sale in units suitable for either wholesale or retail sale, exclusive of an auxiliary shipping container enclosing packages which individually conform to the requirements of said sections. An individual item or lot of any commodity not in package form but on which there is marked a selling price based on an established price per unit of weight or measure shall be construed to be a commodity in package form; "weight" means net weight; "commissioner" means the Commissioner of Consumer Protection; "consumer package" or "package of consumer commodity" means a commodity in package form, that is customarily produced or distributed for sale through retail sale agencies or instrumentalities for consumption or use by individuals for the purposes of personal care or in the performance of services ordinarily rendered in or about the household or in connection with personal possessions, and which usually is consumed or expended in the course of such consumption or use; "counterfeit commodity" means a commodity in package form, or the container or labeling of such commodity in package form, that, without authorization, bears the trademark, trade name or other identifying mark, imprint or device, or any likeness thereof, of a manufacturer, processor, packer, distributor or third-party food certification agency, other than the person who in fact manufactured, processed, packed, distributed or certified such commodity in package form, and which thereby falsely purports or falsely represents to be the product of, or to have been manufactured, processed, packed, distributed or certified by, such other manufacturer, processor, packer, distributor or third-party food certification agency; "nonconsumer package" or "package of nonconsumer commodity" means any commodity in package form other than consumer package, and particularly a package designed solely for industrial or institutional use or for wholesale distribution only; "intrastate commerce" means any and all commerce or trade, begun, carried on and wholly completed within the limits of the state; [and] "introduced into intrastate commerce" shall be construed to define the time and place at which the first sale and delivery of a commodity is made within the state, the delivery being made either directly to the purchaser or to a common carrier for shipment to the purchaser.

Sec. 2. Section 42-115h of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2014):

The commissioner shall, from time to time, weigh or measure and inspect packages or amounts of commodities kept, offered or exposed for sale, sold or in the process of delivery to determine whether the same contain the amounts represented and whether they are kept, offered or exposed for sale, or sold, in accordance with law. When such packages or amounts of commodities are found not to contain the amounts represented, or are found to be kept, offered or exposed for sale in violation of law, or are found to be a counterfeit commodity the commissioner may order them off sale and may so mark or tag them as to show them to be illegal. In carrying out the provisions of this section, the commissioner may employ recognized sampling procedures under which the compliance of a given lot of packages will be determined on the basis of the result obtained on a sample selected from and representative of such lot. No person shall (1) sell, or keep, offer or expose for sale, in intrastate commerce, any package or amount of commodity that has been ordered off sale or marked or tagged as provided in this section unless and until such package or amount of commodity has been brought into full compliance with all legal requirements, or (2) dispose of any package or amount of commodity that has been ordered off sale or marked or tagged as provided in this section and that has not been brought into compliance with legal requirements, in any manner except with the specific approval of the commissioner.


This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1	July 1, 2014	42-115g
Sec. 2	July 1, 2014	42-115h

Statement of Purpose:

To amend the Unfair Sales Practices Act to define "counterfeit commodity" and to grant the Commissioner of Consumer Protection authority to investigate alleged violators and remove counterfeit commodities from the marketplace.

[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not underlined.]