Bill Text: NY S04617 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Adds telecommunications services to the energy services company consumers bill of rights, so as to establish the energy and telecommunications services company consumer bill of rights; authorizes cities to bring actions to or request that the attorney general enforce the provisions of such law.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-01-03 - REFERRED TO CITIES [S04617 Detail]
Download: New_York-2017-S04617-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4617 2017-2018 Regular Sessions IN SENATE February 22, 2017 ___________ Introduced by Sen. FELDER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Cities AN ACT to amend the general city law and the general business law, in relation to regulating the contracts of energy services companies and telecommunications services companies The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The general city law is amended by adding a new article 9-A 2 to read as follows: 3 ARTICLE 9-A 4 ENFORCEMENT POWERS OF STATE LAWS CONCERNING SERVICES DISTRIBUTION 5 COMPANIES 6 Section 135. Enforcement provisions of the energy and telecommunications 7 services company consumers bill of rights. 8 § 135. Enforcement of provisions of the energy and telecommunications 9 services company consumers bill of rights. 1. The corporation counsel or 10 city attorney of any city may, in accordance with subdivisions ten and 11 eleven of section three hundred forty-nine-d of the general business 12 law, bring a civil action to enforce the provisions of the energy and 13 telecommunications services company consumers bill of rights against any 14 services distribution company, its sales agent, and/or its third party 15 representative. Such action may be brought upon his or her own motion, 16 or upon referral from the attorney general, the public service commis- 17 sion, the Long Island power authority or the department of state. 18 2. The corporation counsel or city attorney of any city may further, 19 in lieu of bringing an action pursuant to subdivision one of this 20 section, request that a civil action be brought by the attorney general 21 to enforce the provisions of the energy and telecommunications services 22 company consumers bill of rights against a services distribution compa- 23 ny, its sales agent, and/or its third party representative. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD07695-01-7S. 4617 2 1 § 2. Section 349-d of the general business law, as added by chapter 2 416 of the laws of 2010, subdivision 9 as amended by section 34 of part 3 A of chapter 62 of the laws of 2011, is amended to read as follows: 4 § 349-d. Energy and telecommunications services company consumers bill 5 of rights. 1. For the purpose of this section: 6 (a) "Energy services" shall mean electricity and/or natural gas; 7 (b) "Energy services company" or "ESCO" shall mean an entity eligible 8 to sell energy services to end-use customers using the transmission or 9 distribution system of a utility; 10 (c) "Telecommunications services" shall mean land line telephone 11 services, including long distance land line telephone services; 12 (d) "Telecommunications services company" or "TSCO" shall mean an 13 entity eligible to sell telecommunication services to end-use customers 14 using a land line telephone network, including wires, switches and/or 15 other telephone network services; 16 (e) "Services distribution company" or "SDCO" shall mean an ESCO 17 and/or a TSCO; 18 (f) "Customer" shall mean any person who is sold or offered an energy 19 services contract by an [ESCO] SDCO (i) for residential energy utility 20 or telecommunication service, or (ii) through telephone sales, or (iii) 21 through door-to-door sales; and 22 (g) "Telephone sales" shall mean the sale of energy or telecommuni- 23 cation services in which the SDCO or the SDCO's representative 24 personally solicits the sale, and the buyer's agreement or offer to 25 purchase is made over the telephone; provided that such term shall not 26 include any sale which is conducted in writing and consummated entirely 27 by mail, or in writing by other electronic means, or during a scheduled 28 appointment at the premises of a buyer of nonresidential utility 29 service, or through solicitations of commercial accounts at trade or 30 business shows, conventions or expositions. 31 (h) "Door-to-door sales" shall mean the sale of energy or telecommuni- 32 cation services in which the [ESCO] SDCO or the [ESCO's] SDCO's repre- 33 sentative personally solicits the sale, and the buyer's agreement or 34 offer to purchase is made at a place other than the place of business of 35 the seller; provided that such term shall not include any sale which is 36 conducted in writing and consummated entirely by mail, telephone or in 37 writing by other electronic means, or during a scheduled appointment at 38 the premises of a buyer of nonresidential utility service, or through 39 solicitations of commercial accounts at trade or business shows, 40 conventions or expositions. 41 2. Any person who sells or offers for sale any energy services to a 42 customer for or on behalf of an [ESCO] SDCO shall (a) properly identify 43 himself or herself and the [energy] services distribution company or 44 companies which he or she represents; (b) explain that he or she does 45 not represent a distribution utility; (c) explain the purpose of the 46 solicitation; (d) provide each prospective customer with a copy of the 47 "[ESCO] SDCO consumers bill of rights" developed by the public service 48 commission, in consultation with the Long Island power authority, the 49 state consumer protection board and the department of law; and (e) 50 provide any written materials, including contracts and the "[ESCO] SDCO 51 consumers bill of rights", in the same language utilized to solicit the 52 prospective customer. 53 3. No person who sells or offers for sale any energy or telecommuni- 54 cation services for, or on behalf of, an [ESCO] SDCO shall: 55 (a) engage in any deceptive acts or practices in the marketing of 56 energy or telecommunications services[.] ;S. 4617 3 1 (b) be retained or compensated on a commission basis, or be provided 2 remuneration for the number of contracts for the provision of energy or 3 telecommunication services sold by such person; or 4 (c) complete a telephone sale for the provision of energy or telecom- 5 munication services, without first obtaining on behalf of the SDCO, a 6 signed, written contract from the customer agreeing to such sale, and 7 acknowledging receipt of the SDCO consumers bill of rights required to 8 be provided pursuant to this section. 9 4. No contract for provision of energy services by an [ESCO] SDCO 10 shall require any customer prepayment for energy or telecommunication 11 services. However, an [ESCO] SDCO may offer a customer an option of 12 prepayment. Any contract providing for prepayment may be cancelled by 13 the customer, without any penalty or obligation, within ninety calendar 14 days. Any unused portion of the prepayment shall be returned to the 15 customer by the [ESCO] SDCO within thirty business days following 16 receipt of notice of cancellation. 17 5. No contract for provision of energy or telecommunication services 18 by an [ESCO] SDCO shall require the customer to pay any fee for termi- 19 nation or early cancellation of a contract in excess of either (a) one 20 hundred dollars for any contract with a remaining term of less than 21 twelve months; (b) two hundred dollars for any contract with a remaining 22 term of twelve months or more; or (c) twice the estimated bill for ener- 23 gy or telecommunication services for an average month. To charge a fee 24 based on the estimated bill for energy or telecommunications services 25 for an average month, an [ESCO] SDCO must have provided the customer, at 26 the time that the contract is offered, with an estimate of the average 27 monthly bill that customer would be charged for energy or telecommuni- 28 cation services and the fee that would be charged based on such esti- 29 mate. 30 6. No material change shall be made in the terms or duration of any 31 contract for the provision of energy or telecommunication services by an 32 [ESCO] SDCO without the express consent of the customer. This shall not 33 restrict an [ESCO] SDCO from renewing a contract by clearly informing 34 the customer in writing, not less than thirty days nor more than sixty 35 days prior to the renewal date, of the renewal terms and of his or her 36 option not to accept the renewal offer; provided, however, that no fee 37 pursuant to subdivision five of this section shall be charged to a 38 customer who objects to such renewal not later than three business days 39 after receiving the first billing statement from the [ESCO] SDCO under 40 the terms of the contract as renewed. The public service commission and 41 the Long Island power authority may adopt additional guidelines, prac- 42 tices, rules or regulations governing the renewal process. 43 7. In every contract for energy or telecommunication services and in 44 all marketing materials provided to prospective purchasers of such 45 contracts, all variable charges shall be clearly and conspicuously iden- 46 tified. 47 8. Any contract for energy or telecommunication services which does 48 not comply with the applicable provisions of this section shall be void 49 and unenforceable as contrary to public policy. Any waiver by a buyer of 50 energy or telecommunication services of the provisions of this section 51 shall be deemed void and unenforceable by the [ESCO] SDCO as contrary to 52 public policy. 53 9. The provisions of this section shall apply to all sales agents 54 and/or third party representatives of all SDCOs and the SDCO shall be 55 deemed responsible for all conduct and activities of such sales agents 56 and/or third party representatives.S. 4617 4 1 10. The attorney general and/or the counsel for any city pursuant to 2 article nine-A of the general city law, upon his or her own motion or 3 upon referral from the public service commission, the Long Island power 4 authority or the department of state, may bring a civil action against 5 any energy services company, any telecommunications services company, or 6 any sales agent and/or third party representative of any energy services 7 company or telecommunications services company that violates any 8 provision of this section and may recover (a) a civil penalty not to 9 exceed one thousand dollars per violation; and (b) costs and reasonable 10 attorney's fees. In any such proceeding the court may direct restitu- 11 tion. 12 [10] 11. In addition to the right of action granted to the attorney 13 general and/or the counsel for any city pursuant to this section, any 14 person who has been injured by reason of any violation of this section 15 may bring an action in his or her own name to enjoin such unlawful act 16 or practice, an action to recover his or her actual damages or five 17 hundred dollars, whichever is greater, or both such actions. The court 18 may, in its discretion, increase the award of damages to an amount not 19 to exceed three times the actual damages up to ten thousand dollars, if 20 the court finds the defendant willfully or knowingly violated this 21 section. The court may award reasonable attorney's fees to a prevailing 22 plaintiff. 23 [11] 12. Nothing in this section shall be deemed to limit any authori- 24 ty of the public service commission or the Long Island power authority, 25 which existed before the effective date of this section, to limit, 26 suspend or revoke the eligibility of an energy services company or tele- 27 communications services company to sell or offer for sale any energy 28 services or telecommunications services for violation of any provision 29 of law, rule, regulation or policy enforceable by such commission or 30 authority. 31 [12] 13. Nothing in this section shall be deemed to limit any authori- 32 ty of the public service commission or the Long Island power authority, 33 which existed before the effective date of this section, to adopt addi- 34 tional guidelines, practices, policies, rules or regulations relating to 35 the marketing practices of energy services companies or telecommuni- 36 cations services companies to residential and commercial customers, 37 whether in person (including by telephone or by door to door), or by 38 mail[, telephone] or other electronic means, that are not inconsistent 39 with the provisions of this section. 40 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
