Bill Text: NY S02432 | 2013-2014 | General Assembly | Amended

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Bill Title: Prohibits fee charges for payment of an account regardless of the method of payment.

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Republican 2-1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-06-20 - COMMITTED TO RULES [S02432 Detail]

Download: New_York-2013-S02432-Amended.html

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                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                        2432--A
           Cal. No. 445
                              2013-2014 Regular Sessions
                                   I N  S E N A T E
                                   January 17, 2013
                                      ___________
       Introduced  by  Sens.  KLEIN, MAZIARZ -- read twice and ordered printed,
         and when  printed  to  be  committed  to  the  Committee  on  Consumer
         Protection -- reported favorably from said committee, ordered to first
         and  second  report,  ordered  to a third reading, amended and ordered
         reprinted, retaining its place in the order of third reading
       AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to prohibiting fee
         charges for payment of an account regardless of the method of payment
         THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section  1.  Subdivision  1 of section 399-zzz of the general business
    2  law, as added by chapter 556 of the laws of 2010, is amended to read  as
    3  follows:
    4    1.  (A) Subject to federal law and regulation, no person, partnership,
    5  corporation, association or other business entity shall charge a consum-
    6  er an additional rate or fee or a differential in the rate or fee  asso-
    7  ciated with payment on an account:
    8    (I)  when  the  consumer  chooses  to  [pay  by United States mail or]
    9  receive a paper billing statement; OR
   10    (II) WHETHER SUCH PAYMENT IS MADE BY MAIL, ELECTRONIC TRANSFER, A LIVE
   11  CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE, TELEPHONE AUTHORIZATION BY MEANS  OF  A
   12  VOICE RESPONSE UNIT OR INTERACTIVE VOICE RESPONSE SYSTEM, OTHER MEANS OR
   13  A  COMBINATION THEREOF, UNLESS SUCH PAYMENT IS EXPEDITED BY SUCH PERSON,
   14  PARTNERSHIP, CORPORATION, ASSOCIATION OR OTHER BUSINESS ENTITY TO CREDIT
   15  SUCH PAYMENT THE SAME DAY OR, IF  THE  PAYMENT  IS  RECEIVED  AFTER  ANY
   16  ESTABLISHED  CUT-OFF  TIME,  THE  NEXT BUSINESS DAY. FOR THE PURPOSES OF
   17  THIS SUBPARAGRAPH, "EXPEDITED" MEANS A RUSH PAYMENT METHOD  OUTSIDE  THE
   18  NORMAL AND USUAL COURSE OF BUSINESS.
   19    (B)  This  subdivision  shall  not  be construed to prohibit a person,
   20  partnership, corporation, association  or  other  business  entity  from
   21  offering  consumers  a  credit  or  other  incentive to elect a specific
   22  payment or billing option.
   23    S 2. This act shall take effect on the first of January next  succeed-
   24  ing the date on which it shall have become a law.
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD03106-05-3