O F F I C E O F L E G I S L A T I V E R E S E A R C H
P U B L I C A C T S U M M A R Y
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PA 21-17—SB 835
Public Health Committee
AN ACT CONCERNING DE CEPTIVE ADVERTISING PRACTICES OF
LIMITED SERVICES PREGNANCY CENTERS
SUMMARY: This act prohibits deceptive advertising by limited services
pregnancy centers, which it defines as pregnancy services centers (see below) that
do not directly provide, or provide referrals for, abortions or emergency
contraception. Specifically, it prohibits these centers intending to perform a
pregnancy-related service from publicly making or disseminating a deceptive
statement about the provision of these services, or the services themselves, that
the center knows or reasonably should know is deceptive.
This prohibition includes public statements made in advertisements, print
publications, online, or any other manner. It also applies regardless of whether the
(1) centers make these statements themselves or cause others to do so and (2)
statement itself is deceptive or is deceptive by omission.
The act allows the attorney general to bring a court action for injunctive relief
against a center for a violation, so long as he notifies the center in advance and
allows 10 days for it to comply before doing so. Among other things, the court
can order the center to pay for and disseminate appropriate corrective advertising.
If the court finds that the center violated the above prohibition, the state is entitled
to civil penalties ($50 to $500) and reasonable attorney’s fees.
The act specifies that it does not prohibit the state or municipalities from
seeking any administrative, legal, or equitable relief permitted by law, including
relief allowed under the unfair trade practices act (see BACKGROUND).
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2021
DEFINITIONS
Under the act, a “limited services pregnancy center” is a pregnancy services
center that does not directly provide, or provide referrals for, abortions or
emergency contraception. A “pregnancy services center” is a facility, including a
mobile facility, that primarily serves clients who are pregnant or believe they may
be pregnant, and that either (1) offers obstetric ultrasounds or sonograms,
pregnancy testing or diagnosis, or prenatal care or (2) appears to be a medical
facility by having at least two of the following five factors present:
1. staff or volunteers who wear medical attire and uniforms;
2. one or more examination tables;
3. a private or semiprivate room or area with medical supplies or
instruments;
4. staff or volunteers who collect health information from clients; or
5. the facility (a) is on the same premises as a licensed health care facility or O L R P U B L I C A C T S U M M A R Y
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provider or (b) shares facility space with a licensed provider.
The act applies to statements about a “pregnancy-related service,” which is
any medical or health counseling service related to pregnancy or pregnancy
prevention, including contraception and contraceptive counseling; pregnancy
testing or diagnosis; pregnancy options counseling; obstetric ultrasound or
sonogram; and prenatal care.
ATTORNEY GENERAL ENF ORCEMENT AND COURT A UTHORITY
Under the act, before the attorney general may apply to court for injunctive
relief in response to such deceptive advertising, he must notify the limited
services pregnancy center in writing of the violation. If the center does not
respond or refuses to correct the advertising within 10 days, the attorney general
may apply to court for injunctive relief to compel compliance and correct the
advertising’s effects.
The court may order the center to:
1. pay for and disseminate appropriate corrective advertising in the same
form and using the same advertising device as the deceptive advertising,
2. post a remedial notice that corrects the deceptive advertising’s effects, or
3. provide other narrowly-tailored relief as the court deems necessary to
remedy the deceptive advertising’s adverse effects on any clients seeking
pregnancy-related services.
If the court finds that a center violated the act’s prohibition, the state is
entitled to recover from the center (1) civil penalties of $50 to $500 per violation
and (2) reasonable attorney’s fees and costs.
BACKGROUND
Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act (CUTPA)
The law prohibits businesses from engaging in unfair and deceptive acts or
practices. CUTPA allows the consumer protection commissioner to issue
regulations defining what constitutes an unfair trade practice, investigate
complaints, issue cease and desist orders, order restitution in cases involving less
than $10,000, enter into consent agreements, ask the attorney general to seek
injunctive relief, and accept voluntary statements of compliance. It also allows
individuals to sue. Courts may issue restraining orders; award actual and punitive
damages, costs, and reasonable attorney’s fees; and impose civil penalties of up to
$5,000 for willful violations and $25,000 for a violation of a restraining order.