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Connecticut Senate Bill SB00003

Connecticut 2025 Regular Session

Connecticut Senate Bill SB00003 Compare Versions

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55 General Assembly Substitute Bill No. 3
66 January Session, 2025
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1212 AN ACT CONCERNING CONSUMER PROTECTION AND SAFETY.
1313 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
1414 Assembly convened:
1515
1616 Section 1. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2026) (a) For the purposes of this 1
1717 section: 2
1818 (1) "Business" has the same meaning as provided in section 42-158ff 3
1919 of the general statutes; and 4
2020 (2) "Person" has the same meaning as provided in section 1-79 of the 5
2121 general statutes. 6
2222 (b) (1) Except as provided in subdivision (2) of this subsection, no 7
2323 business that offers to sell, lease or otherwise provide any good or 8
2424 service shall: 9
2525 (A) Advertise, display or otherwise offer such good or service to any 10
2626 person at a price that excludes any fee, charge or cost that such person 11
2727 is required to pay in order to purchase, lease or otherwise receive such 12
2828 good or service; or 13
2929 (B) Require any person to pay any fee, charge or cost to purchase, 14
3030 lease or otherwise receive such good or service if such fee, charge or cost 15
3131 (i) is not advertised, displayed or otherwise offered in compliance with 16
3232 the provisions of subparagraph (A) of this subdivision, or (ii) is 17 Substitute Bill No. 3
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3737 intentionally obscured, unclear or misrepresented by such business. 18
3838 (2) The provisions of subdivision (1) of this subsection shall not be 19
3939 construed to: 20
4040 (A) Prohibit a business from omitting any applicable federal, state or 21
4141 local tax, or any mandatory fee imposed by any government, 22
4242 governmental subdivision, agency or instrumentality or quasi-23
4343 governmental instrumentality, from any advertised, displayed or 24
4444 otherwise offered price for a good or service if such tax or fee is 25
4545 disclosed to the person before such person purchases, leases or 26
4646 otherwise receives the good or service; 27
4747 (B) Prohibit a business from imposing any mandatory gratuity, or 28
4848 omitting any mandatory gratuity from any advertised or displayed 29
4949 price for a good or service, if the existence of such mandatory gratuity 30
5050 and the manner in which such mandatory gratuity is calculated are 31
5151 clearly and conspicuously disclosed to the person before the person 32
5252 selects the good or service for purchase, leasing or receipt; 33
5353 (C) Prohibit a business from imposing any fee, charge or cost for a 34
5454 good or service, or omitting the amount of any fee, charge or cost from 35
5555 any advertised or displayed price for a good or service, if (i) the amount 36
5656 of such fee, charge or cost is (I) dependent on the person's selections or 37
5757 cannot feasibly be calculated in full when the price for such good or 38
5858 service is first advertised or displayed, including, but not limited to, any 39
5959 fee, charge or cost imposed for shipping or delivery or that varies 40
6060 according to such person's location or the quantity or number of goods 41
6161 purchased, leased or otherwise received by such person, or (II) charged 42
6262 to the person for the purpose of confirming such person's identity or 43
6363 payment information, in an amount that does not exceed one dollar and 44
6464 is promptly refunded to the person, (ii) the existence of such fee, charge 45
6565 or cost is disclosed when the good or service is advertised or displayed 46
6666 to the person, and (iii) the amount of such fee, charge or cost is disclosed 47
6767 to the person before such person purchases, leases or otherwise receives 48
6868 such good or service; 49 Substitute Bill No. 3
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7373 (D) Apply to any transaction that is subject to the provisions of 50
7474 chapter 704 of the general statutes; 51
7575 (E) Apply to any transaction, action or act that qualifies for an 52
7676 exception set forth in section 42-110c of the general statutes; 53
7777 (F) Apply to, or permit, any surcharge prohibited under section 42-54
7878 133ff of the general statutes; or 55
7979 (G) Apply to any transaction unless such transaction involves (i) a 56
8080 person residing in this state, or (ii) the offer, sale, rental, lease or 57
8181 distribution of any good or service in this state. 58
8282 (c) Any violation of subdivision (1) of subsection (b) of this section 59
8383 shall be deemed an unfair or deceptive trade practice under subsection 60
8484 (a) of section 42-110b of the general statutes. 61
8585 Sec. 2. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2026) (a) For the purposes of this 62
8686 section: 63
8787 (1) "Connected device" means an Internet-connected device, 64
8888 including, but not limited to, a cellular telephone, computer, home 65
8989 appliance, motor vehicle, tablet, television, toy or video game console, 66
9090 that includes a camera or microphone; 67
9191 (2) "Connected device manufacturer" means a person doing business 68
9292 in this state who manufactures a connected device; 69
9393 (3) "Initial consumer" means an individual who is (A) a resident of 70
9494 this state, and (B) with respect to any connected device, the first 71
9595 individual to lease, purchase or assume ownership of such connected 72
9696 device; 73
9797 (4) "Person" means an individual, association, corporation, limited 74
9898 liability company, partnership, trust or other legal entity; 75
9999 (5) "Personally identifying information" has the same meaning as 76
100100 provided in section 42-284 of the general statutes; 77 Substitute Bill No. 3
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105105 (6) "Provider" means (A) a connected device manufacturer, and (B) 78
106106 any person who (i) enters into a contract with a connected device 79
107107 manufacturer, and (ii) receives access to (I) any camera or microphone 80
108108 included in a connected device manufactured by the connected device 81
109109 manufacturer, (II) any image or video collected, recorded, stored, 82
110110 analyzed, interpreted or transmitted by way of any camera included in 83
111111 any connected device manufactured by the connected device 84
112112 manufacturer, or (III) any spoken word or other sound collected, 85
113113 recorded, stored, analyzed, interpreted or transmitted by way of any 86
114114 microphone included in any connected device manufactured by the 87
115115 connected device manufacturer; and 88
116116 (7) "Toy" means a product that a manufacturer designs, or intends to 89
117117 be used, for amusement or play. 90
118118 (b) No provider shall allow any person to activate any connected 91
119119 device unless the provider: 92
120120 (1) Prominently displays to the initial consumer or any person whom 93
121121 the initial consumer designates to first install or set up the connected 94
122122 device, at the time that such initial consumer or person first installs or 95
123123 sets up such connected device: 96
124124 (A) A disclaimer in the following form: 97
125125 "This device transmits audio and/or video back to the manufacturer 98
126126 and/or a third party and which may be recorded."; and 99
127127 (B) A statement disclosing (i) that such connected device includes a 100
128128 camera or microphone, (ii) that the camera or microphone included in 101
129129 such connected device will be enabled or turned on, (iii) that such 102
130130 connected device might record such initial consumer, (iv) that the 103
131131 connected device manufacturer of such connected device or another 104
132132 provider might retain recordings of such initial consumer, (v) which 105
133133 command or action will activate or enable operation of the camera or 106
134134 microphone included in such connected device, (vi) the categories of 107
135135 images, videos or sounds that (I) the camera or microphone included in 108 Substitute Bill No. 3
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140140 such connected device will look for, listen for or record, or (II) might be 109
141141 disclosed to any person other than such initial consumer, (vii) the 110
142142 categories of persons described in subparagraph (B)(vi)(II) of this 111
143143 subdivision, and (viii) that such initial consumer shall not be 112
144144 discriminated against if such initial consumer or person declines to 113
145145 activate a camera or microphone included in the connected device 114
146146 unless (I) such connected device is provided to such initial consumer as 115
147147 a condition of employment, or (II) declining to activate such camera or 116
148148 microphone would render such connected device useless; and 117
149149 (2) Provides to the initial consumer or any person whom the initial 118
150150 consumer designates to first install or set up the connected device, at the 119
151151 time that such initial consumer or person first installs or sets up such 120
152152 connected device, the ability to decline to activate a camera or 121
153153 microphone included in the connected device. 122
154154 (c) Each provider shall implement and maintain reasonable security 123
155155 measures to protect any personally identifying information collected 124
156156 through a camera or microphone included in a connected device from 125
157157 any unauthorized access, acquisition, destruction, disclosure, 126
158158 modification or use thereof. 127
159159 (d) No provider shall use or sell any recording collected through 128
160160 operation of a camera or microphone included in a connected device for 129
161161 the purposes of targeted advertising, as defined in section 42-515 of the 130
162162 general statutes. 131
163163 (e) No person shall compel any provider to build specific features for 132
164164 the purpose of allowing a law enforcement agency or officer to monitor 133
165165 communications through a camera or microphone included in a 134
166166 connected device. 135
167167 (f) Nothing in this section shall be construed to: 136
168168 (1) Impose any liability on a provider for any functionality provided 137
169169 by an application that an initial consumer (A) downloads and installs, 138
170170 or (B) chooses to use on a network of remote servers hosted on the 139 Substitute Bill No. 3
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175175 Internet to store, manage and process data; 140
176176 (2) Authorize disclosure of any recording retained by a provider to 141
177177 another person, including, but not limited to, a law enforcement agency 142
178178 or officer, unless such disclosure is authorized by other applicable law 143
179179 or pursuant to an order issued by a court of competent jurisdiction; or 144
180180 (3) Modify, limit or supersede the operation of any other provision of 145
181181 the general statutes concerning privacy or security. 146
182182 (g) Any violation of subsections (b) to (d), inclusive, of this section 147
183183 shall be deemed an unfair or deceptive trade practice under subsection 148
184184 (a) of section 42-110b of the general statutes. 149
185185 Sec. 3. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2026) (a) For the purposes of this 150
186186 section, unless the context otherwise requires: 151
187187 (1) "Antenna" includes, but is not limited to, any resonant device that 152
188188 is designed especially for the purpose of capturing electromagnetic 153
189189 energy transmitted by direct satellite or commercial radio or television 154
190190 broadcasting facilities; 155
191191 (2) "Authorized repair provider" (A) means a person who (i) is 156
192192 unaffiliated with a manufacturer, and (ii) has an arrangement with a 157
193193 manufacturer (I) under which the manufacturer grants to the person a 158
194194 license to use a trade name, service mark or other proprietary identifier 159
195195 to offer diagnostic, maintenance or repair services for electronic or 160
196196 appliance products under the manufacturer's name, or (II) to offer 161
197197 diagnostic, maintenance or repair services for electronic or appliance 162
198198 products on behalf of the manufacturer, and (B) includes a 163
199199 manufacturer, with respect to any of such manufacturer's electronic or 164
200200 appliance products, if the manufacturer (i) offers diagnostic, 165
201201 maintenance or repair services for such product, and (ii) does not have 166
202202 an arrangement with an unaffiliated person to diagnose, maintain or 167
203203 repair such product; 168
204204 (3) "Documentation" means any electronic or appliance product 169 Substitute Bill No. 3
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209209 diagram, manual, reporting output, schematic, service code description 170
210210 or similar information that a manufacturer provides to an authorized 171
211211 repair provider or, if the manufacturer does not have an authorized 172
212212 repair provider, the manufacturer uses for the purpose of diagnosing, 173
213213 maintaining or repairing an electronic or appliance product; 174
214214 (4) "Electronic or appliance product" or "product" (A) means any 175
215215 antenna, electronic set, major home appliance or rotator (i) that is 176
216216 manufactured for the first time, and first sold or used in this state, on or 177
217217 after July 1, 2026, and (ii) for which the manufacturer makes 178
218218 documentation, parts and tools available to an authorized repair 179
219219 provider, (B) includes, but is not limited to, any item set forth in 180
220220 subparagraph (A) of this subdivision that is sold through any method 181
221221 other than a direct retail sale, and (C) does not include any (i) alarm 182
222222 system, as defined in section 29-6c of the general statutes, (ii) motor 183
223223 vehicle, as defined in section 13b-387 of the general statutes, or any 184
224224 component used to maintain, manufacture or repair any motor vehicle, 185
225225 or (iii) video game console; 186
226226 (5) "Electronic set" includes, but is not limited to, any audio or video 187
227227 recorder or playback equipment, computer system, facsimile machine, 188
228228 photocopier, radio, television, video camera or video monitor that is 189
229229 normally used or sold for personal, family, household or home office 190
230230 use; 191
231231 (6) "Fair and reasonable terms" means terms that satisfy the 192
232232 requirements established in subdivision (3) of subsection (b) of this 193
233233 section; 194
234234 (7) "Manufacturer" means the person who manufactures an electronic 195
235235 or appliance product; 196
236236 (8) "Major home appliance" includes, but is not limited to, any 197
237237 dishwasher, dryer, freezer, microwave oven, range, refrigerator, room 198
238238 air conditioner, trash compactor or washer that is normally used or sold 199
239239 for personal, family, household or home office use; 200 Substitute Bill No. 3
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244244 (9) "Part" means any replacement component or assembly of 201
245245 components, either new or used, that the manufacturer of an electronic 202
246246 or appliance product makes available to an authorized repair provider 203
247247 to facilitate the maintenance or repair of such product; 204
248248 (10) "Person" means an individual, association, corporation, limited 205
249249 liability company, partnership, trust or other legal entity; 206
250250 (11) "Rotator" includes, but is not limited to, an electromechanical 207
251251 device, used in connection with an antenna installation or repair, that is 208
252252 operated from a remote location to rotate an antenna on a horizontal 209
253253 plane; 210
254254 (12) "Service dealer" means any person who (A) is not an authorized 211
255255 repair provider or manufacturer, and (B) for compensation, engages in 212
256256 the business of, or holds such person out to the public as engaging in 213
257257 the business of, installing, maintaining, repairing or servicing any 214
258258 electronic or appliance product; 215
259259 (13) "Tool" (A) means any hardware implement, software program or 216
260260 other apparatus that the manufacturer of an electronic or appliance 217
261261 product makes available to an authorized repair provider for the 218
262262 diagnosis, maintenance or repair of such product, and (B) includes, but 219
263263 is not limited to, (i) any software or other mechanism that provisions, 220
264264 programs, pairs a part, provides or calibrates functionality or performs 221
265265 any other function necessary to repair an electronic or appliance 222
266266 product, or a part thereof, and return such product or part to its fully 223
267267 functional condition, and (ii) any update to any software or mechanism 224
268268 described in subparagraph (B)(i) of this subdivision; 225
269269 (14) "Trade secret" has the same meaning as provided in section 35-226
270270 51 of the general statutes; and 227
271271 (15) "Video game console" (A) means any computing device, 228
272272 including, but not limited to, any console machine, handheld console 229
273273 device or similar device or system, that is primarily used by consumers 230
274274 to play video games, (B) includes, but is not limited to, the components 231 Substitute Bill No. 3
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279279 and peripherals of any computing device described in subparagraph (A) 232
280280 of this subdivision, and (C) does not include any (i) general or all-233
281281 purpose computing device, (ii) desktop, laptop or tablet computer, or 234
282282 (iii) hand-held mobile telephone, as defined in section 14-296aa of the 235
283283 general statutes. 236
284284 (b) (1) The manufacturer of an electronic or appliance product shall 237
285285 make available, on fair and reasonable terms, to the owners of such 238
286286 product, service and repair facilities and service dealers documentation 239
287287 and functional parts and tools, inclusive of any updates thereto, that are 240
288288 sufficient to affect the diagnosis, maintenance or repair of such product: 241
289289 (A) For at least three years after the last date on which such 242
290290 manufacturer manufactured an electronic or appliance product of the 243
291291 same model or type if such product has a wholesale price to a retailer, 244
292292 or to any other person in any sale other than a direct retail sale, of at 245
293293 least fifty dollars but less than one hundred dollars, which wholesale 246
294294 price shall not exceed the manufacturer's suggested retail price for such 247
295295 electronic or appliance product; or 248
296296 (B) For at least five years after the last date on which such 249
297297 manufacturer manufactured an electronic or appliance product of the 250
298298 same model or type if such product has a wholesale price to a retailer, 251
299299 or to any person in any sale other than a direct retail sale, of at least one 252
300300 hundred dollars, which wholesale price shall not exceed the 253
301301 manufacturer's suggested retail price for such electronic or appliance 254
302302 product. 255
303303 (2) The time periods set forth in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of 256
304304 subdivision (1) of this subsection shall apply regardless of whether such 257
305305 time periods exceed the term of any warranty period for the electronic 258
306306 or appliance product. 259
307307 (3) (A) For the purposes of subdivision (1) of this subsection and 260
308308 except as provided in subparagraph (B) of this subdivision, the 261
309309 manufacturer of an electronic or appliance product shall be deemed to 262
310310 have made documentation, functional parts and tools available on fair 263 Substitute Bill No. 3
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315315 and reasonable terms if: 264
316316 (i) Such manufacturer makes such documentation, parts and tools 265
317317 available at costs and on terms that are equivalent to the most favorable 266
318318 costs and terms under which such manufacturer offers such 267
319319 documentation, parts and tools to authorized repair providers, 268
320320 accounting for any discount, rebate, convenient and timely means of 269
321321 delivery, means of enabling fully restored and updated functionality, 270
322322 rights of use or other incentive or preference such manufacturer offers 271
323323 to authorized repair providers; 272
324324 (ii) For documentation, such manufacturer makes such 273
325325 documentation, including any relevant updates thereto, available at no 274
326326 charge, except such manufacturer may impose a charge for the 275
327327 reasonable actual costs incurred by such manufacturer in preparing and 276
328328 sending a physical printed version of such documentation to an owner, 277
329329 service and repair facility or service dealer if the owner, service and 278
330330 repair facility or service dealer requests a physical printed version of 279
331331 such documentation; and 280
332332 (iii) For tools, such manufacturer makes such tools available at no 281
333333 charge and without imposing any impediment to access or use such 282
334334 tools to diagnose, maintain or repair and enable full functionality of 283
335335 such product, or in a manner that does not impair the efficient and cost-284
336336 effective performance of any such diagnosis, maintenance or repair, 285
337337 except such manufacturer may impose a charge for the reasonable 286
338338 actual costs incurred by such manufacturer in preparing and sending 287
339339 such tools to an owner, service and repair facility or service dealer in 288
340340 physical form if the owner, service and repair facility or service dealer 289
341341 requests such tools in physical form. 290
342342 (B) If a manufacturer does not use an authorized repair provider, the 291
343343 manufacturer of an electronic or appliance product shall be deemed to 292
344344 have made documentation, functional parts and tools available on fair 293
345345 and reasonable terms if such manufacturer makes such documentation, 294
346346 parts and tools available at a price that reflects the actual costs incurred 295 Substitute Bill No. 3
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351351 by such manufacturer in preparing and delivering such documentation, 296
352352 parts and tools, excluding any research and development costs. 297
353353 (c) If a service dealer or service and repair facility is not an authorized 298
354354 repair provider for an electronic or appliance product, the service dealer 299
355355 or service and repair facility shall, before repairing any such product, 300
356356 provide to the customer who requests such repair a written notice 301
357357 disclosing: 302
358358 (1) That such service dealer or service and repair facility is not an 303
359359 authorized repair provider for such product; and 304
360360 (2) Whether such service dealer or service and repair facility uses any 305
361361 (A) used replacement parts, or (B) replacement parts provided by a 306
362362 supplier other than the manufacturer of such product. 307
363363 (d) (1) Except as provided in subdivision (2) of this subsection, no 308
364364 manufacturer or authorized repair provider shall be liable for any 309
365365 damage or injury caused to any electronic or appliance product, person 310
366366 or property that occurs as a result of any diagnosis, maintenance, 311
367367 modification or repair performed by an owner or a service dealer, 312
368368 including, but not limited to: 313
369369 (A) Any indirect, incidental, special or consequential damages; 314
370370 (B) Any loss of data, privacy or profits; or 315
371371 (C) Any inability to use, or reduced functionality of, such product. 316
372372 (2) The provisions of subdivision (1) of this subsection shall not apply 317
373373 to any design defect or manufacturing flaw that existed prior to, or 318
374374 independent of, any diagnosis, maintenance, modification or repair 319
375375 described in said subdivision. 320
376376 (e) No provision of this section shall be construed to: 321
377377 (1) Require the manufacturer of an electronic or appliance product to 322
378378 (A) disclose any trade secret, or license any intellectual property, 323 Substitute Bill No. 3
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383383 including, but not limited to, any copyright or patent, unless such 324
384384 disclosure or license is necessary for such manufacturer to comply with 325
385385 the provisions of this section, (B) make available any special 326
386386 documentation, tools or parts that would disable or override antitheft 327
387387 security measures set by the owner of any such product without such 328
388388 owner's authorization, or (C) sell any part if such manufacturer no 329
389389 longer (i) provides such part, or (ii) makes such part available to 330
390390 authorized repair providers; 331
391391 (2) Require any manufacturer of an electronic or appliance product 332
392392 that is an authorized repair provider within the meaning of 333
393393 subparagraph (B) of subdivision (2) of subsection (a) of this section to 334
394394 make available any documentation or tools that (A) such manufacturer 335
395395 exclusively uses to perform, at no cost to customers, remote diagnostic 336
396396 services, including, but not limited to, remote diagnostic services 337
397397 performed by way of the Internet, electronic mail or any chat function 338
398398 or telephonic means, that do not require such manufacturer to 339
399399 physically handle a customer's electronic or appliance product, unless 340
400400 such manufacturer also makes such documentation or tools available to 341
401401 any person who is unaffiliated with such manufacturer, or (B) are 342
402402 exclusively used by machines that simultaneously repair several 343
403403 electronic or appliance products, provided such manufacturer makes 344
404404 available to the owners of such product, service and repair facilities and 345
405405 service dealers sufficient alternative documentation and tools to 346
406406 diagnose, maintain or repair such product; 347
407407 (3) Require distribution of the source code for an electronic or 348
408408 appliance product; or 349
409409 (4) Apply to (A) the manufacturer of an electronic or appliance 350
410410 product if such manufacturer provides to a customer, at no charge to the 351
411411 customer, a replacement electronic or appliance product that is readily 352
412412 available and equivalent to, or better than, the replaced electronic or 353
413413 appliance product, (B) any dealer, distributor, importer or manufacturer 354
414414 of any equipment designed and manufactured exclusively for off-road 355
415415 or nonroad use, including, but not limited to, any (i) all-terrain sports 356 Substitute Bill No. 3
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420420 vehicle, (ii) construction or compact construction equipment, (iii) 357
421421 electric vehicle charging infrastructure equipment, (iv) farm or utility 358
422422 tractor, (v) farm implement, (vi) farm machinery, (vii) forestry 359
423423 equipment, (viii) fuel cell, (ix) garden, turf or yard equipment, (x) 360
424424 generator set, (xi) industrial equipment, (xii) integrated, stand-alone, 361
425425 mobile or stationary internal combustion engine, (xiii) marine vehicle, 362
426426 (xiv) mining equipment, (xv) outdoor power equipment, (xvi) portable 363
427427 generator, (xvii) power tool, (xviii) racing vehicle, (xix) recreational 364
428428 vehicle, as defined in section 14-1 of the general statutes, (xx) road 365
429429 building equipment, or (xxi) utility equipment, or (C) any accessory, 366
430430 attachment, component, repair part, technology or tool for any 367
431431 equipment described in subparagraph (B) of this subdivision. 368
432432 (f) A violation of subsections (b) to (e), inclusive, of this section shall 369
433433 be deemed an unfair trade practice under subsection (a) of section 42-370
434434 110b of the general statutes and shall be enforced solely by the Attorney 371
435435 General. The provisions of section 42-110g of the general statutes shall 372
436436 not apply to any such violation. 373
437437 Sec. 4. (NEW) (Effective from passage) Notwithstanding the provisions 374
438438 of any municipal charter, special act or home rule ordinance, not later 375
439439 than July 1, 2027, each municipality shall (1) register a ".gov" Internet 376
440440 top-level domain for such municipality with the Cybersecurity and 377
441441 Infrastructure Security Agency within the United States Department of 378
442442 Homeland Security, and (2) redirect any existing Internet web site 379
443443 addresses maintained by such municipality to such domain or 380
444444 discontinue the use of such addresses. On and after July 1, 2027, each 381
445445 municipality shall maintain an Internet web site with a ".gov" Internet 382
446446 top-level domain. For the purposes of this section, "municipality" has 383
447447 the same meaning as provided in section 7-479a of the general statutes. 384
448448 Sec. 5. Section 42-230 of the general statutes is repealed and the 385
449449 following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2025): 386
450450 (a) As used in this section: 387
451451 (1) "Abnormal economic disruption" means a significant disruption 388 Substitute Bill No. 3
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456456 in the production, supply, distribution, wholesale, sale or availability of 389
457457 a consumer necessity that (A) is caused by a natural or man-made 390
458458 disaster or emergency, regardless of the location of such disaster or 391
459459 emergency, and (B) causes ordinary competitive market forces to cease 392
460460 functioning normally; 393
461461 (2) "Consumer necessity" (A) means an item purchased by or on 394
462462 behalf of a state agency, as defined in section 1-79, for the purpose of 395
463463 ensuring the public health or safety of the residents of this state, (B) 396
464464 includes, but is not limited to, food, diapers, baby formula, 397
465465 pharmaceutical products and prescription drugs, and (C) does not 398
466466 include any item that is subject to a continuous maximum price 399
467467 requirement established in any applicable federal or state law or 400
468468 regulation; 401
469469 (3) "Precipitating event" means (A) a civil preparedness emergency 402
470470 declaration issued by the Governor pursuant to chapter 517, (B) a 403
471471 transportation emergency declaration issued by the Governor pursuant 404
472472 to section 3-6b, (C) an abnormal economic disruption notice issued by 405
473473 the Attorney General pursuant to subsection (b) of this section, or (D) a 406
474474 major disaster or emergency declaration issued by the President of the 407
475475 United States; 408
476476 (4) "Unconscionably excessive price" means an increased price at 409
477477 which a vendor leases, rents or sells an item during a precipitating event 410
478478 if (A) the increased price is grossly disproportionate to the price at 411
479479 which the vendor leased, rented or sold such item (i) immediately before 412
480480 the precipitating event, or (ii) while the precipitating event was 413
481481 reasonably anticipated, and (B) the increased price is not attributable to 414
482482 additional costs incurred by the vendor in leasing, renting or selling the 415
483483 item during the precipitating event; and 416
484484 (5) "Vendor" means a person, corporation or firm, including, but not 417
485485 limited to, a distributor, manufacturer, retailer, supplier or wholesaler. 418
486486 (b) (1) If the Attorney General determines that an abnormal economic 419
487487 disruption exists or is substantially likely to be imminent, the Attorney 420 Substitute Bill No. 3
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492492 General may issue a notice for such existing or imminent abnormal 421
493493 economic disruption. The Attorney General shall make such 422
494494 determination (A) following a reasonable investigation and consultation 423
495495 with the Commissioner of Consumer Protection and the Commissioner 424
496496 of Economic and Community Development, and (B) with due 425
497497 consideration for whether issuing such notice will disrupt the supply of 426
498498 consumer necessities. 427
499499 (2) (A) A notice of an existing or imminent abnormal economic 428
500500 disruption issued by the Attorney General pursuant to subdivision (1) 429
501501 of this subsection shall: 430
502502 (i) Specify (I) the date on which the Attorney General issued such 431
503503 notice, (II) the anticipated end date of the period for which the Attorney 432
504504 General issued such notice, (III) the conditions that have caused, or are 433
505505 substantially likely to have caused, such abnormal economic disruption, 434
506506 (IV) the consumer necessity, consumer necessities or categories of 435
507507 consumer necessities affected by such abnormal economic disruption 436
508508 and therefore subject to the provisions of this section, and (V) the levels 437
509509 of trade or commerce affected by such abnormal economic disruption 438
510510 and therefore subject to the provisions of this section, which levels may 439
511511 include, but need not be limited to, production, supply, distribution, 440
512512 wholesale, sale or availability; 441
513513 (ii) Be posted by the Attorney General on the home page of the 442
514514 Internet web site of the office of the Attorney General; 443
515515 (iii) Be filed by the Attorney General (I) with the Secretary of the State, 444
516516 in a form and manner prescribed by the Secretary of the State, and (II) 445
517517 in writing with the joint legislative committee described in 446
518518 subparagraph (B)(i) of this subdivision; and 447
519519 (iv) Except as provided in subparagraph (B) of this subdivision or 448
520520 subdivision (3) of this subsection, expire sixty days after the Attorney 449
521521 General issued such notice or on an earlier date specified by the 450
522522 Attorney General in such notice, whichever occurs first. 451 Substitute Bill No. 3
523523
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525525 LCO 16 of 21
526526
527527 (B) (i) A notice of an existing or imminent abnormal economic 452
528528 disruption issued by the Attorney General pursuant to subdivision (1) 453
529529 of this subsection may be disapproved by a majority vote of a joint 454
530530 legislative committee consisting of the president pro tempore of the 455
531531 Senate, the speaker of the House of Representatives and the majority 456
532532 and minority leaders of both houses of the General Assembly, provided 457
533533 (I) at least one of the minority leaders votes for disapproval, and (II) 458
534534 notice of such disapproval is filed with the Secretary of the State, in a 459
535535 form and manner prescribed by the Secretary of the State, not later than 460
536536 seventy-two hours after the joint legislative committee receives written 461
537537 notice from the Attorney General pursuant to subparagraph (A)(iii)(II) 462
538538 of this subdivision. 463
539539 (ii) Any disapproval under subparagraph (B)(i) of this subdivision 464
540540 shall become effective when notice of such disapproval is filed with the 465
541541 Secretary of the State, in a form and manner prescribed by the Secretary 466
542542 of the State. 467
543543 (3) (A) The Attorney General may, at any time, modify a notice of an 468
544544 existing or imminent abnormal economic disruption issued pursuant to 469
545545 subdivision (1) of this subsection, or extend the term of any such notice 470
546546 for one or more additional sixty-day periods, provided the Attorney 471
547547 General issues a notice that: 472
548548 (i) Specifies (I) the information required under subparagraph (A)(i) 473
549549 of subdivision (2) of this subsection, and (II) the grounds for such 474
550550 modification or extension; 475
551551 (ii) Is posted by the Attorney General on the home page of the 476
552552 Internet web site of the office of the Attorney General; and 477
553553 (iii) Is filed by the Attorney General (I) with the Secretary of the State, 478
554554 in a form and manner prescribed by the Secretary of the State, and (II) 479
555555 in writing with the joint legislative committee described in 480
556556 subparagraph (B)(i) of subdivision (2) of this subsection. 481
557557 (B) (i) A modification or extension notice issued by the Attorney 482 Substitute Bill No. 3
558558
559559
560560 LCO 17 of 21
561561
562562 General pursuant to subparagraph (A) of this subdivision may be 483
563563 disapproved by a majority vote of the joint legislative committee 484
564564 described in subparagraph (B)(i) of subdivision (2) of this subsection, 485
565565 provided (I) at least one of the minority leaders votes for disapproval, 486
566566 and (II) notice of such disapproval is filed with the Secretary of the State, 487
567567 in a form and manner prescribed by the Secretary of the State, not later 488
568568 than seventy-two hours after the joint legislative committee receives 489
569569 written notice from the Attorney General pursuant to subparagraph 490
570570 (A)(iii)(II) of this subdivision. 491
571571 (ii) Any disapproval under subparagraph (B)(i) of this subdivision 492
572572 shall become effective when notice of such disapproval is filed with the 493
573573 Secretary of the State, in a form and manner prescribed by the Secretary 494
574574 of the State. 495
575575 (c) No [person, firm or corporation shall increase the price of any item 496
576576 which such person, firm or corporation sells or offers for sale at retail] 497
577577 vendor shall lease, rent or sell, or offer to lease, rent or sell, any item in 498
578578 the chain of distribution at an unconscionably excessive price at any 499
579579 location in an area which is the subject of any [disaster emergency 500
580580 declaration issued by the Governor pursuant to chapter 517, any 501
581581 transportation emergency declaration issued by the Governor pursuant 502
582582 to section 3-6b or any major disaster or emergency declaration issued by 503
583583 the President of the United States, until the period of emergency or 504
584584 disaster is declared by the Governor or the President] precipitating 505
585585 event until the Governor, the Attorney General or the President, as 506
586586 applicable, declares such precipitating event to be at an end. [Nothing 507
587587 in this section shall prohibit the fluctuation in the price of items sold at 508
588588 retail which occurs during the normal course of business. Any person, 509
589589 firm or corporation which violates any provision of this section shall be 510
590590 fined not more than ninety-nine dollars.] 511
591591 (d) Any violation of the provisions of this section shall be deemed an 512
592592 unfair or deceptive trade practice under subsection (a) of section 42-513
593593 110b. The Attorney General shall have (1) exclusive authority to enforce 514
594594 the provisions of this section on behalf of the state, and (2) for the 515 Substitute Bill No. 3
595595
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597597 LCO 18 of 21
598598
599599 purposes of this section, the authority to (A) order an investigation or 516
600600 examination pursuant to section 42-110d, or (B) take such other 517
601601 enforcement action under sections 42-110e to 42-110q, inclusive, as the 518
602602 Attorney General deems necessary. 519
603603 Sec. 6. Subsection (b) of section 51-164n of the general statutes is 520
604604 repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 521
605605 2025): 522
606606 (b) Notwithstanding any provision of the general statutes, any person 523
607607 who is alleged to have committed (1) a violation under the provisions of 524
608608 section 1-9, 1-10, 1-11, 2-71h, 4b-13, 7-13, 7-14, 7-35 or 7-41, subsection (c) 525
609609 of section 7-66, section 7-83, 7-147h, 7-148, 7-283, 7-325, 7-393, 8-12, 8-25, 526
610610 8-27, 9-63, 9-322, 9-350, 10-185, 10-193, 10-197, 10-198, 10-230, 10-251, 10-527
611611 254, 10a-35, 12-52, 12-54, 12-129b or 12-170aa, subdivision (3) of 528
612612 subsection (e) of section 12-286, section 12-286a, 12-292, 12-314b or 12-529
613613 326g, subdivision (4) of section 12-408, subdivision (3), (5) or (6) of 530
614614 section 12-411, section 12-435c, 12-476a, 12-476b, 12-476c, 12-487,13a-531
615615 26b, 13a-71, 13a-107, 13a-113, 13a-114, 13a-115, 13a-117b, 13a-123, 13a-532
616616 124, 13a-139, 13a-140, 13a-143b, 13a-253, 13a-263 or 13b-39f, subsection 533
617617 (f) of section 13b-42, section 13b-90 or 13b-100, subsection (a) of section 534
618618 13b-108, section 13b-221 or 13b-292, subsection (a) or (b) of section 13b-535
619619 324, section 13b-336, 13b-337, 13b-338, 13b-410a, 13b-410b or 13b-410c, 536
620620 subsection (a), (b) or (c) of section 13b-412, section 13b-414 or 14-4, 537
621621 subdivision (2) of subsection (a) of section 14-12, subsection (d) of 538
622622 section 14-12, subsection (f) of section 14-12a, subsection (a) of section 539
623623 14-15a, section 14-16c, 14-20a or 14-27a, subsection (f) of section 14-34a, 540
624624 subsection (d) of section 14-35, section 14-43, 14-44j, 14-49, 14-50a, 14-58 541
625625 or 14-62a, subsection (b) of section 14-66, section 14-66a or 14-67a, 542
626626 subsection (g) of section 14-80, subsection (f) or (i) of section 14-80h, 543
627627 section 14-97a or 14-98, subsection (a), (b) or (d) of section 14-100a, 544
628628 section 14-100b, 14-103a, 14-106a, 14-106c, 14-145a, 14-146, 14-152, 14-545
629629 153, 14-161 or 14-163b, subsection (f) of section 14-164i, section 14-213b 546
630630 or 14-219, subdivision (1) of section 14-223a, subsection (d) of section 14-547
631631 224, section 14-240, 14-250, 14-253a, 14-261a, 14-262, 14-264, 14-266, 14-548
632632 267a, 14-269, 14-270, 14-272b, 14-274, 14-275 or 14-275a, subsection (c) of 549 Substitute Bill No. 3
633633
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635635 LCO 19 of 21
636636
637637 section 14-275c, section 14-276, subsection (a) or (b) of section 14-277, 550
638638 section 14-278, 14-279 or 14-280, subsection (b), (e) or (h) of section 14-551
639639 283, section 14-283d, 14-283e, 14-283f, 14-283g, 14-291, 14-293b, 14-296aa, 552
640640 14-298a, 14-300, 14-300d, 14-300f, 14-319, 14-320, 14-321, 14-325a, 14-326, 553
641641 14-330 or 14-332a, subdivision (1), (2) or (3) of section 14-386a, section 554
642642 15-15e, 15-25 or 15-33, subdivision (1) of section 15-97, subsection (a) of 555
643643 section 15-115, section 16-15, 16-16, 16-44, 16-256e, 16-278 or 16a-15, 556
644644 subsection (a) of section 16a-21, section 16a-22, subsection (a) or (b) of 557
645645 section 16a-22h, section 16a-106, 17a-24, 17a-145, 17a-149 or 17a-152, 558
646646 subsection (b) of section 17a-227, section 17a-465, subsection (c) of 559
647647 section 17a-488, section 17b-124, 17b-131, 17b-137, 19a-33, 19a-39 or 19a-560
648648 87, subsection (b) of section 19a-87a, section 19a-91, 19a-102a, 19a-102b, 561
649649 19a-105, 19a-107, 19a-113, 19a-215, 19a-216a, 19a-219, 19a-222, 19a-224, 562
650650 19a-286, 19a-287, 19a-297, 19a-301, 19a-309, 19a-335, 19a-336, 19a-338, 563
651651 19a-339, 19a-340, 19a-425, 19a-442, 19a-502, 19a-565, 20-7a, 20-14, 20-564
652652 153a, 20-158, 20-231, 20-233, 20-249, 20-257, 20-265, 20-324e, 20-329c or 565
653653 20-329g, subsection (b) of section 20-334, section 20-341l, 20-366, 20-482, 566
654654 20-597, 20-608, 20-610, 20-623, 21-1, 21-38, 21-39, 21-43, 21-47, 21-48 or 567
655655 21-63, subsection (d) of section 21-71, section 21-76a or 21-100, 568
656656 subsection (c) of section 21a-2, subdivision (1) of section 21a-19, section 569
657657 21a-20 or 21a-21, subdivision (1) of subsection (b) of section 21a-25, 570
658658 section 21a-26, subsection (a) of section 21a-37, section 21a-46, 21a-61, 571
659659 21a-63, 21a-70b or 21a-77, subsection (b) or (c) of section 21a-79, section 572
660660 21a-85 or 21a-154, subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of section 21a-159, 573
661661 section 21a-278b, subsection (c), (d) or (e) of section 21a-279a, section 574
662662 21a-415a, 21a-421eee, 21a-421fff or 21a-421hhh, subsection (a) of section 575
663663 21a-430, section 22-12b, 22-13, 22-14, 22-15, 22-16, 22-26g, 22-30, 22-34, 576
664664 22-35, 22-36, 22-38, 22-39, 22-39f, 22-49, 22-54, 22-61j or 22-61l, 577
665665 subdivision (1) of subsection (n) of section 22-61l, subsection (f) of 578
666666 section 22-61m, subdivision (1) of subsection (f) of section 22-61m, 579
667667 section 22-84, 22-89, 22-90, 22-96, 22-98, 22-99, 22-100 or 22-111o, 580
668668 subsection (d) of section 22-118l, section 22-167, subsection (c) of section 581
669669 22-277, section 22-278, 22-279, 22-280a, 22-318a, 22-320h, 22-324a or 22-582
670670 326, subsection (b), subdivision (1) or (2) of subsection (e) or subsection 583
671671 (g) of section 22-344, subsection (a) or (b) of section 22-344b, subsection 584 Substitute Bill No. 3
672672
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674674 LCO 20 of 21
675675
676676 (d) of section 22-344d, section 22-344f, 22-350a, 22-354, 22-359, 22-366, 585
677677 22-391, 22-413, 22-414, 22-415, 22-415c, 22a-66a or 22a-246, subsection (a) 586
678678 of section 22a-250, section 22a-256g, subsection (e) of section 22a-256h, 587
679679 section 22a-363 or 22a-381d, subsections (c) and (d) of section 22a-381e, 588
680680 section 22a-449, 22a-450, 22a-461, 23-4b, 23-38, 23-45, 23-46 or 23-61b, 589
681681 subsection (a) or subdivision (1) of subsection (c) of section 23-65, section 590
682682 25-37 or 25-40, subsection (a) of section 25-43, section 25-43d, 25-135, 26-591
683683 18, 26-19, 26-21, 26-31, 26-40, 26-40a, 26-42, 26-43, 26-49, 26-54, 26-55, 26-592
684684 56, 26-58 or 26-59, subdivision (1) of subsection (d) of section 26-61, 593
685685 section 26-64, subdivision (1) of section 26-76, section 26-79, 26-87, 26-89, 594
686686 26-91, 26-94, 26-97, 26-98, 26-104, 26-105, 26-107, 26-114a, 26-117, 595
687687 subsection (b) of section 26-127, 26-128, 26-128a, 26-131, 26-132, 26-138, 596
688688 26-139 or 26-141, subdivision (1) of section 26-186, section 26-207, 26-215, 597
689689 26-217 or 26-224a, subdivision (1) of section 26-226, section 26-227, 26-598
690690 230, 26-231, 26-232, 26-244, 26-257a, 26-260, 26-276, 26-280, 26-284, 26-599
691691 285, 26-286, 26-287, 26-288, 26-290, 26-291a, 26-292, 26-294, 27-107, 28-13, 600
692692 29-6a, 29-16, 29-17, 29-25, 29-143o, 29-143z or 29-156a, subsection (b), (d), 601
693693 (e), (g) or (h) of section 29-161q, section 29-161y or 29-161z, subdivision 602
694694 (1) of section 29-198, section 29-210, 29-243 or 29-277, subsection (c) of 603
695695 section 29-291c, section 29-316 or 29-318, subsection (b) of section 29-604
696696 335a, section 29-381, 30-19f, 30-48a or 30-86a, subsection (b) of section 605
697697 30-89, subsection (c) or (d) of section 30-117, section 31-3, 31-10, 31-11, 606
698698 31-12, 31-13, 31-14, 31-15, 31-16, 31-18, 31-23, 31-24, 31-25, 31-32, 31-36, 607
699699 31-47 or 31-48, subsection (b) of section 31-48b, section 31-51, 31-51g, 31-608
700700 52, 31-52a, 31-53 or 31-54, subsection (a) or (c) of section 31-69, section 609
701701 31-70, 31-74, 31-75, 31-76, 31-76a, 31-89b or 31-134, subsection (i) of 610
702702 section 31-273, section 31-288, 31-348, 33-624, 33-1017, 34-13d or 34-412, 611
703703 subdivision (1) of section 35-20, subsection (a) of section 36a-57, 612
704704 subsection (b) of section 36a-665, section 36a-699, 36a-739, 36a-787, 38a-613
705705 2 or 38a-140, subsection (a) or (b) of section 38a-278, section 38a-479qq, 614
706706 38a-479rr, 38a-506, 38a-548, 38a-626, 38a-680, 38a-713, 38a-733, 38a-764, 615
707707 38a-786, 38a-828, 38a-829, 38a-885, 42-133hh, [42-230,] 42-470 or 42-480, 616
708708 subsection (a) or (c) of section 43-16q, section 45a-283, 45a-450, 45a-634 617
709709 or 45a-658, subdivision (13) or (14) of section 46a-54, section 46a-59, 46a-618
710710 81b, 46b-22, 46b-24, 46b-34, 46b-38d, 47-34a, 47-47 or 47-53, subsection 619 Substitute Bill No. 3
711711
712712
713713 LCO 21 of 21
714714
715715 (i) of section 47a-21, subdivision (1) of subsection (k) of section 47a-21, 620
716716 section 49-2a, 49-8a, 49-16, 52-143 or 52-289, subsection (j) of section 52-621
717717 362, section 53-133, 53-199, 53-212a, 53-249a, 53-252, 53-264, 53-280, 53-622
718718 290a, 53-302a, 53-303e, 53-311a, 53-314, 53-321, 53-322, 53-323 or 53-331, 623
719719 subsection (b) of section 53-343a, section 53-344, subsection (b) or (c) of 624
720720 section 53-344b, subsection (b) of section 53-345a, section 53-377, 53-422 625
721721 or 53-450 or subsection (i) of section 54-36a, or (2) a violation under the 626
722722 provisions of chapter 268, or (3) a violation of any regulation adopted in 627
723723 accordance with the provisions of section 12-484, 12-487 or 13b-410, or 628
724724 (4) a violation of any ordinance, regulation or bylaw of any town, city or 629
725725 borough, except violations of building codes and the health code, for 630
726726 which the penalty exceeds ninety dollars but does not exceed two 631
727727 hundred fifty dollars, unless such town, city or borough has established 632
728728 a payment and hearing procedure for such violation pursuant to section 633
729729 7-152c, shall follow the procedures set forth in this section. 634
730730 This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
731731 sections:
732732
733733 Section 1 July 1, 2026 New section
734734 Sec. 2 July 1, 2026 New section
735735 Sec. 3 July 1, 2026 New section
736736 Sec. 4 from passage New section
737737 Sec. 5 July 1, 2025 42-230
738738 Sec. 6 July 1, 2025 51-164n(b)
739739
740+Statement of Legislative Commissioners:
741+In Section 2(b)(1)(A), "which" was added before "may be recorded" for
742+clarity; in Section 3(f), "subsections (b) to (e), inclusive, of" was added
743+before "this section" for consistency with standard drafting conventions;
744+and in Section 5(b)(2)(B)(i)(I) and (b)(3)(B)(i)(I), "minority members of
745+the committee" was changed to "minority leaders" for internal
746+consistency.
740747
741748 GL Joint Favorable Subst.
742-JUD Joint Favorable
743749