Bill Text: NY S01902 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Enacts "Charlemagne's Law"; authorizes a consumer to seek reimbursement for treatment for an unfit cat or dog within 30 days of the purchase of such animal from a pet dealer.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-06-20 - COMMITTED TO RULES [S01902 Detail]
Download: New_York-2017-S01902-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1902 2017-2018 Regular Sessions IN SENATE January 11, 2017 ___________ Introduced by Sen. COMRIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Consumer Protection AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to dogs and cats unfit for purchase due to illness, a congenital malformation, or symp- toms of a contagious or infectious disease The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as 2 "Charlemagne's law". 3 § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 753 of the general business law, as 4 amended by chapter 251 of the laws of 2013, is amended to read as 5 follows: 6 1. If, within [fourteen business days] thirty days following the sale 7 of an animal subject to this article or receipt of the written notice 8 required by section seven hundred fifty-four of this article, whichever 9 occurred last, a veterinarian of the consumer's choosing, licensed by a 10 state certifies such animal to be unfit for purchase due to illness or 11 the presence of symptoms of a contagious or infectious disease, or if, 12 within one hundred eighty calendar days following such sale or receipt, 13 whichever occurred last, a licensed veterinarian certifies such animal 14 to be unfit for purchase due to a congenital malformation which adverse- 15 ly affects the health of the animal, the pet dealer shall afford the 16 consumer the right to choose one of the following options: 17 (a) The right to return the animal and receive a refund of the 18 purchase price including sales tax and reasonable veterinary costs 19 directly related to the veterinarian's certification that the animal is 20 unfit for purchase pursuant to this section; 21 (b) The right to return the animal and to receive an exchange animal 22 of the consumer's choice of equivalent value and reasonable veterinary 23 costs directly related to the veterinarian's certification that the 24 animal is unfit for purchase pursuant to this section; or EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD00216-01-7S. 1902 2 1 (c) The right to retain the animal and to receive reimbursement from a 2 pet dealer for veterinary services from a licensed veterinarian of the 3 consumer's choosing, for the purpose of curing or attempting to cure the 4 animal during the lifetime of such animal. [The reasonable value of5reimbursable services rendered to cure or attempting to cure the animal6shall not exceed the purchase price of the animal.] The value of such 7 services is reasonable if comparable to the value of similar services 8 rendered by other licensed veterinarians in proximity to the treating 9 veterinarian. Such reimbursement shall not include the costs of initial 10 veterinary examination fees and diagnostic fees not directly related to 11 the veterinarian's certification that the animal is unfit for purchase 12 pursuant to this section. 13 The commissioner by regulations shall prescribe a form for, and the 14 content of, the certification that an animal is unfit for purchase, 15 which shall be provided by an examining veterinarian to a consumer upon 16 the examination of an animal which is subject to the provisions of this 17 section. Such form shall include, but not be limited to, information 18 which identifies the type of animal, the owner, the date and diagnosis 19 of the animal, the treatment recommended if any, and an estimate or the 20 actual cost of such treatment. Such form shall also include the notice 21 prescribed in section seven hundred fifty-four of this article. 22 The commissioner by regulations shall prescribe information which 23 shall be provided in writing by the pet dealer to the consumer upon the 24 sale of the animal. Such information shall include, but not be limited 25 to, a description, including breed of the animal, the date of purchase, 26 the name, address and telephone number of the consumer, and the amount 27 of the purchase. The pet dealer shall certify such information by sign- 28 ing the document in which it is contained. 29 § 3. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall 30 have become a law and shall apply to dogs and cats purchased from a pet 31 dealer on or after such effective date.