Bill Text: NY A01704 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relates to prohibiting consumer contract provisions waiving the consumer's right to make statements concerning goods or services.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 15-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - referred to consumer affairs and protection [A01704 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A01704-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          1704

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    January 17, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by M. of A. SIMON, HYNDMAN -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A.
          COLTON, COOK, DICKENS, DILAN, EPSTEIN, GLICK, JEAN-PIERRE, MAGNARELLI,
          SAYEGH, STECK, STIRPE -- read once and referred to  the  Committee  on
          Consumer Affairs and Protection

        AN  ACT  to  amend  the general business law, in relation to prohibiting
          consumer contract provisions waiving  the  consumer's  right  to  make
          statements concerning goods or services

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. The general business law is amended by adding a new section
     2  398-g to read as follows:
     3    § 398-g. Provisions waiving the consumer's right  to  make  statements
     4  concerning  goods or services in consumer contracts prohibited. 1. (a) A
     5  contract or proposed contract for the sale or lease of consumer goods or
     6  services shall not include a provision waiving the consumer's  right  to
     7  make  any  statement  regarding the seller or lessor or its employees or
     8  agents, or concerning the goods or services.
     9    (b) It shall be unlawful to threaten or to seek to enforce a provision
    10  made unlawful under this section, or to otherwise  penalize  a  consumer
    11  for making any statement protected under this section.
    12    2.  Any waiver of the provisions of this section is contrary to public
    13  policy, and is void and unenforceable.
    14    3. Any person who violates this section shall be subject  to  a  civil
    15  penalty  not  to  exceed two thousand five hundred dollars for the first
    16  violation, and five thousand dollars for the second and for each  subse-
    17  quent  violation, to be assessed and collected in a civil action brought
    18  by the consumer, by the attorney general, or by the district attorney or
    19  city attorney of the county or city in  which  the  violation  occurred.
    20  When  collected,  the civil penalty shall be payable, as appropriate, to
    21  the consumer or to the general fund  of  whichever  governmental  entity
    22  brought the action to assess the civil penalty.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD02636-01-3
        A. 1704                             2

     1    4.  In  addition, for a willful, intentional, or reckless violation of
     2  this section, a consumer, the attorney general, or the district attorney
     3  or city attorney of the county or city in which the  violation  occurred
     4  may recover a civil penalty not to exceed ten thousand dollars.
     5    5.  The  penalty  provided by this section is not an exclusive remedy,
     6  and does not affect any other relief or remedy  provided  by  law.  This
     7  section shall not be construed to prohibit or limit a person or business
     8  that hosts online consumer reviews or comments from removing a statement
     9  that is otherwise lawful to remove.
    10    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.