Bill Text: MS SB2297 | 2018 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Secondhand mattress; must be clearly labeled as such.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Failed) 2018-01-30 - Died In Committee [SB2297 Detail]
Download: Mississippi-2018-SB2297-Introduced.html
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2018 Regular Session
To: Judiciary, Division A; Accountability, Efficiency, Transparency
By: Senator(s) Kirby
Senate Bill 2297
AN ACT TO CREATE NEW SECTION 75-24-401, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REQUIRE SECONDHAND MATTRESSES TO BE CLEARLY LABELED WHEN SOLD TO A CONSUMER; TO DEFINE TERMS; TO CREATE EXCEPTIONS; TO ENACT PENALTIES; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. The following shall be codified as Section 75-24-401, Mississippi Code of 1972:
75-24-401. (1) (a) "Comfort exchange policy" means a policy offered by a mattress manufacturer, wholesaler or retailer to a mattress buyer authorizing the buyer to exchange the mattress for a different firmness or for other reasons, within a certain period.
(b) "Mattress" means any quilted pad, mattress, mattress pad, bunk quilt or cushion, stuffed and filled with wool, hair, or other soft material, to be used on a couch or other bed for sleeping or reclining purposes.
(c) "Secondhand" means any article of bedding or material, or part of bedding or material, of which prior use of any kind has been made, including, but not limited to, a mattress that has been returned by a buyer to a manufacturer, wholesaler, or retailer pursuant to a comfort exchange policy.
(2) (a) To be sold in this state, a secondhand mattress must have securely and permanently attached to it a securely and permanently attached substantial yellow cloth tag upon which is stamped or printed a statement or statements indicating that the article of bedding is secondhand.
(b) A mattress manufacturer, wholesaler or retailer who offers a secondhand mattress for sale must have displayed at the point of sale a clearly readable notice that a mattress offered for sale is a secondhand mattress. The notice shall be in black letters, with each letter to be a minimum of one (1) inch in height, on a white or light background.
(3) This section does not apply to:
(a) The sale by a householder of a mattress that was owned and used by the householder or the householder's family and was not acquired for the purpose of resale;
(b) The repair or renovation of any mattress by or for the owner for the owner's own use;
(c) Any mattress sold under court order.
(4) A first offense for selling a secondhand mattress in
violation of this section is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of Fifty Dollars ($50.00); a second offense is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00); and a third or subsequent offense is a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of Two Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($2,500.00).
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2018.
