S.B. 49
- *SB49*
SENATE BILL NO. 49–COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE AND LABOR
(ON BEHALF OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL)
PREFILED NOVEMBER 19, 2024
____________
Referred to Committee on Commerce and Labor
SUMMARY—Revises provisions relating to consumer protection.
(BDR 52-439)
FISCAL NOTE: Effect on Local Government: No.
Effect on the State: Yes.
~
EXPLANATION – Matter in bolded italics is new; matter between brackets [omitted material] is material to be omitted.
AN ACT relating to consumer protection; clarifying the authority of
the Attorney General with respect to bringing certain
actions relating to deceptive trade practices; authorizing
the Consumer’s Advocate of the Bureau of Consumer
Protection in the Office of the Attorney General to
conduct certain administrative hearings and impose
certain civil penalties relating to deceptive trade practices;
eliminating certain sanctions that may be imposed by a
court relating to deceptive trade practices; eliminating the
statute of limitations for civil actions involving unfair
trade practices which are brought by the Attorney
General; revising the authorized uses of money in the
Consumer Protection Legal Account in the Office of the
Attorney General; clarifying when the Consumer’s
Advocate has custody or control of certain records;
making various other changes relating to deceptive trade
practices; and providing other matters properly relating
thereto.
Legislative Counsel’s Digest:
Existing law defines activities that constitute deceptive trade practices and 1
provides for the imposition of civil and criminal penalties against persons who 2
engage in deceptive trade practices. (Chapter 598 of NRS) Existing law authorizes 3
the Attorney General to obtain a temporary restraining order, a preliminary or 4
permanent injunction or other relief, including, without limitation, the recovery of a 5
civil penalty, disgorgement, restitution or the recovery of damages by bringing an 6
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action in the name of the State against a person the Attorney General has reason to 7
believe has engaged or is engaging in a deceptive trade practice. (NRS 598.0963) 8
Section 3 of this bill clarifies that such an action may be brought by the Attorney 9
General on behalf of: (1) the State or its agencies, political subdivisions, districts or 10
municipal corporations; or (2) the people of the State. 11
Existing law: (1) creates the Bureau of Consumer Protection within the Office 12
of the Attorney General; and (2) provides that the executive head of the Bureau of 13
Consumer Protection is the Consumer’s Advocate, who may generally exercise the 14
power of the Attorney General in areas of consumer protection and enforcement. 15
(NRS 228.310, 228.380) Existing law further authorizes the Director of the 16
Department of Business and Industry to impose certain penalties, including an 17
administrative fine, upon a person who has engaged in a deceptive trade practice 18
after a hearing that is initiated by the Commissioner of Consumer Affairs or 19
Attorney General serving an order upon such person. (NRS 598.0971) Section 4 of 20
this bill: (1) authorizes the Consumer’s Advocate or his or her designee to also 21
conduct such a hearing and impose certain penalties; and (2) increases the 22
administrative fine from $1,000 or treble the amount of restitution ordered, 23
whichever is greater, to $15,000 for each violation or treble the amount of 24
restitution ordered, whichever is greater. Sections 5 and 6 of this bill make 25
conforming changes to authorize the Consumer’s Advocate or his or her designee 26
to impose certain penalties in a hearing conducted by the Consumer’s Advocate or 27
his or her designee relating to a deceptive trade practice directed towards an elderly 28
person, a person with a disability or a minor person. 29
Existing law provides that if a person fails to comply with an order issued by 30
the Director of the Department of Business and Industry or his or her designee at an 31
administrative hearing, the Attorney General or the Commissioner of Consumer 32
Affairs or Director, through the Attorney General, may cause an action to be 33
instituted in district court. If the court finds that the person failed to comply with 34
the order, the court is: (1) required to issue an order enforcing the Director’s order; 35
and (2) authorized to order certain additional sanctions against the person who 36
engaged in the deceptive trade practice, including a penalty of not more than $5,000 37
for each act amounting to a failure to comply with the original order, an order to 38
cease and desist doing business within the State and injunctive relief. (NRS 39
598.0971) Existing law also authorizes these sanctions in a circumstance where a 40
person who has engaged or is engaging in a deceptive trade practice fails to comply 41
with an assurance of discontinuance of any deceptive trade practice. Section 4 42
eliminates the authority of the court to impose these additional sanctions in a 43
circumstance where a person who engaged in a deceptive trade practice fails to 44
comply with the order issued at an administrative hearing. Section 7 of this bill 45
makes a technical change to continue to allow these additional sanctions where a 46
person who has engaged or is engaging in a deceptive trade practice fails to comply 47
with an assurance of discontinuance of any deceptive trade practice. 48
Under existing law, in addition to certain criminal penalties, if a natural person, 49
firm, or any officer or managing agent of any corporation or association knowingly 50
and willfully engages in certain deceptive trade practices, the court may require the 51
natural person, firm or officer or managing agent of the corporation or association 52
to pay to the aggrieved party damages on all profits derived from the knowing and 53
willful engagement in the deceptive trade practice. (NRS 598.0999) Section 8 of 54
this bill provides instead that the court may require payment to the aggrieved party 55
of damages on all gross revenue derived from the knowing and willful engagement 56
in the deceptive trade practice. Section 8 defines “gross revenue” to mean the total 57
revenues derived from the knowing and willful engagement in a deceptive trade 58
practice without deducting any expenses or losses. 59
Section 1 of this bill defines the term “Consumer’s Advocate” for purposes of 60
the provisions of law relating to deceptive trade practices and section 2 of this bill 61
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applies this definition to the provisions of existing law governing deceptive trade 62
practices. 63
The Nevada Unfair Trade Practice Act generally prohibits certain unfair trade 64
activities, including, without limitation, price fixing, division of markets, allocation 65
of customers, tying arrangements and monopolization and authorizes the Attorney 66
General to bring proceedings for suspected violations. (Chapter 598A of NRS) 67
Pursuant to the Act, the Attorney General is required to institute civil and criminal 68
proceedings on behalf of the State, its agencies, political subdivisions, districts, 69
municipal corporations or residents of this State. (NRS 598A.070) The Act also 70
authorizes certain other persons and entities to bring a civil action related to unfair 71
trade activities. (NRS 598A.200, 598A.210) The Act sets forth the statute of 72
limitations for bringing any such action. (NRS 598A.220) Sections 9 and 10 of this 73
bill eliminate the statute of limitations for the Attorney General to commence a 74
civil action for an unfair trade practice, which is consistent with the authority of the 75
Attorney General to commence a civil action for most deceptive trade practices. 76
Existing law creates the Consumer Protection Legal Account in the Office of 77
the Attorney General and provides that the money remains in the Legal Account at 78
the end of the fiscal year and does not revert to the State General Fund. (NRS 79
228.333) Existing law also creates the Consumer Protection Administrative 80
Account in the Bureau of Consumer Protection and: (1) requires the deposit of 81
certain money from settlements and litigation into the Administrative Account; and 82
(2) provides that any balance in excess of $500,000 in the Administrative Account 83
on June 30 and December 31 of each year, and at any other time in the discretion of 84
the Consumer’s Advocate, reverts to the Legal Account. (NRS 228.332) Existing 85
law requires the Attorney General to allocate, in certain percentages, the money in 86
the Legal Account to: (1) the Office of the Attorney General or the Consumer’s 87
Advocate to be used for consumer protection and efforts to prevent fraud, 88
including, without limitation, education, investigation, enforcement and litigation; 89
and (2) certain legal aid organizations to be used for consumer protection and 90
efforts to prevent fraud. (NRS 228.334) Section 11 of this bill provides that the 91
percentage of money allocated from the Legal Account to the Office of the 92
Attorney General or the Consumer’s Advocate may be used to pay for: (1) 93
necessary staff employed for the Consumer’s Advocate to carry out consumer 94
protection and efforts to prevent fraud; (2) necessary staff for the Office of the 95
Attorney General to carry out consumer protection and efforts to prevent fraud; and 96
(3) any other additional purpose relating to consumer protection and efforts to 97
prevent fraud. 98
Section 11 also eliminates the limitation that the money in the Legal Account 99
must exceed 120 days of operating costs for certain staff before the Office of the 100
Attorney General or Consumer’s Advocate may use money in the Legal Account 101
for additional purposes relating to consumer protection and efforts to prevent fraud. 102
Existing law authorizes the Consumer’s Advocate to have access to all records 103
in the possession of any agency, board or commission of this State that he or she 104
determines are necessary to exercise his or her powers relating to consumer 105
protection. (NRS 228.380) Section 12 of this bill clarifies that the Consumer’s 106
Advocate does not have possession of such records until he or she receives the 107
record from the agency, board or commission. 108
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THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN
SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Chapter 598 of NRS is hereby amended by adding 1
thereto a new section to read as follows: 2
“Consumer’s Advocate” means the Consumer’s Advocate of 3
the Bureau of Consumer Protection in the Office of the Attorney 4
General. 5
Sec. 2. NRS 598.0903 is hereby amended to read as follows: 6
598.0903 As used in NRS 598.0903 to 598.0999, inclusive, 7
and section 1 of this act, unless the context otherwise requires, the 8
words and terms defined in NRS 598.0905 to 598.0947, inclusive, 9
and section 1 of this act have the meanings ascribed to them in 10
those sections. 11
Sec. 3. NRS 598.0963 is hereby amended to read as follows: 12
598.0963 1. Whenever the Attorney General is requested in 13
writing by the Commissioner or the Director to represent him or her 14
in instituting a legal proceeding against a person who has engaged 15
or is engaging in a deceptive trade practice, the Attorney General 16
may bring an action in the name of the State of Nevada against that 17
person on behalf of the Commissioner or Director. 18
2. The Attorney General may institute criminal proceedings to 19
enforce the provisions of NRS 598.0903 to 598.0999, inclusive [.] , 20
and section 1 of this act. The Attorney General is not required to 21
obtain leave of the court before instituting criminal proceedings 22
pursuant to this subsection. 23
3. If the Attorney General has reason to believe that a person 24
has engaged or is engaging in a deceptive trade practice, the 25
Attorney General may bring an action in the name of the State of 26
Nevada against that person to obtain a temporary restraining order, a 27
preliminary or permanent injunction, or other appropriate relief, 28
including, without limitation, the recovery of a civil penalty, 29
disgorgement, restitution or the recovery of damages [:] , on behalf 30
of: 31
(a) The State, its agencies, political subdivisions, districts or 32
municipal corporations; or 33
(b) The persons residing in this State: 34
[(a)] (1) As parens patriae of the persons residing this State, 35
with respect to damages sustained directly or indirectly by such 36
persons, or, alternatively, if the court finds in its discretion that the 37
interests of justice so require, as a representative of a class or classes 38
consisting of persons residing in this State who have been damaged 39
directly or indirectly; or 40
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[(b)] (2) As parens patriae, with respect to direct or indirect 1
damages to the general economy of the State of Nevada or any 2
agency or political subdivision thereof. 3
4. If the Attorney General has cause to believe that a person 4
has engaged or is engaging in a deceptive trade practice, the 5
Attorney General may issue a subpoena to require the testimony of 6
any person or the production of any documents, and may administer 7
an oath or affirmation to any person providing such testimony. The 8
subpoena must be served upon the person in the manner required for 9
service of process in this State or by certified mail with return 10
receipt requested. An employee of the Attorney General may 11
personally serve the subpoena. 12
Sec. 4. NRS 598.0971 is hereby amended to read as follows: 13
598.0971 1. If, after an investigation, the Commissioner or 14
Attorney General has reasonable cause to believe that any person 15
has been engaged or is engaging in any deceptive trade practice in 16
violation of NRS 598.0903 to 598.0999, inclusive, and section 1 of 17
this act, the Commissioner or Attorney General may issue an order 18
directed to the person to show cause why the Director or Attorney 19
General should not order the person to cease and desist from 20
engaging in the practice and to pay an administrative fine. The order 21
must contain a statement of the charges and a notice of a hearing to 22
be held thereon. The order must be served upon the person directly, 23
by certified or registered mail, return receipt requested, or in any 24
other manner permitted by the Nevada Rules of Civil Procedure for 25
the service of process in civil actions. 26
2. An administrative hearing on any action brought by the 27
Commissioner or Attorney General must be conducted before the 28
Director or his or her designee [.] or the Consumer’s Advocate or 29
his or her designee. 30
3. If, after conducting a hearing pursuant to the provisions of 31
subsection 2, the Director or his or her designee or the Consumer’s 32
Advocate or his or her designee determines that the person has 33
violated any of the provisions of NRS 598.0903 to 598.0999, 34
inclusive, and section 1 of this act or if the person fails to appear for 35
the hearing after being properly served with the statement of charges 36
and notice of hearing, the Director or his or her designee or the 37
Consumer’s Advocate or his or her designee shall issue an order 38
setting forth his or her findings of fact concerning the violation and 39
cause to be served a copy thereof upon the person and any 40
intervener at the hearing. If the Director or his or her designee or the 41
Consumer’s Advocate or his or her designee determines in the 42
report that such a violation has occurred, he or she may order the 43
violator to: 44
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(a) Cease and desist from engaging in the practice or other 1
activity constituting the violation; 2
(b) Pay the costs of conducting the investigation, costs of 3
conducting the hearing, costs of reporting services, fees for experts 4
and other witnesses, charges for the rental of a hearing room if such 5
a room is not available to the Director or his or her designee or the 6
Consumer’s Advocate or his or her designee free of charge, 7
charges for providing an independent hearing officer, if any, and 8
charges incurred for any service of process, if the violator is 9
adjudicated to have committed a violation of NRS 598.0903 to 10
598.0999, inclusive [;] , and section 1 of this act; 11
(c) Provide restitution for any money or property improperly 12
received or obtained as a result of the violation; and 13
(d) Impose an administrative fine of [$1,000] $15,000 for each 14
violation or treble the amount of restitution ordered, whichever is 15
greater. 16
The order must be served upon the person directly or by certified 17
or registered mail, return receipt requested. The order becomes 18
effective upon service in the manner provided in this subsection. 19
4. Any person whose pecuniary interests are directly and 20
immediately affected by an order issued pursuant to subsection 3 or 21
who is aggrieved by the order may petition for judicial review in the 22
manner provided in chapter 233B of NRS. Such a petition must be 23
filed within 30 days after the service of the order. The order 24
becomes final upon the filing of the petition. 25
5. If a person fails to comply with any provision of an order 26
issued by the Director or his or her designee or the Consumer’s 27
Advocate or his or her designee pursuant to subsection 3, the 28
Attorney General [,] or the Consumer’s Advocate, or the 29
Commissioner or the Director through the Attorney General, may, at 30
any time after 30 days after the service of the order, cause an action 31
to be instituted in the district court of the county wherein the person 32
resides or has his or her principal place of business requesting the 33
court to enforce the provisions of the order or to provide any other 34
appropriate injunctive relief. 35
6. If the court finds that the person has failed to comply with an 36
order issued by the Director or his or her designee or the 37
Consumer’s Advocate or his or her designee pursuant to subsection 38
3, the court shall issue an order enforcing the provisions of the order 39
of the Director or his or her designee [. 40
7. An order issued pursuant to subsection 6 may include: 41
(a) A provision requiring the payment to the Consumer Affairs 42
Unit of the Department of Business and Industry of a penalty of not 43
more than $5,000 for each act amounting to a failure to comply with 44
the Director’s or designee’s order; 45
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(b) An order that the person cease doing business within this 1
State; and 2
(c) Such injunctive or other equitable or extraordinary relief as 3
is determined appropriate by the court. 4
8. Any aggrieved party may appeal from the final judgment, 5
order or decree of the court in a like manner as provided for appeals 6
in civil cases. 7
9. Upon the violation of any judgment, order or decree issued 8
pursuant to subsection 6 or 7, the Commissioner, after a hearing 9
thereon, may proceed] or the Consumer’s Advocate or his or her 10
designee, and may impose civil penalties in accordance with the 11
provisions of NRS 598.0999. 12
Sec. 5. NRS 598.0973 is hereby amended to read as follows: 13
598.0973 1. Except as otherwise provided in NRS 598.0974, 14
in any action or proceeding brought pursuant to NRS 598.0903 to 15
598.0999, inclusive, and section 1 of this act, if the court , [or] the 16
Director or his or her designee or the Consumer’s Advocate or his 17
or her designee finds that a person has engaged in a deceptive trade 18
practice directed toward an elderly person or a person with a 19
disability, the court , [or] the Director or his or her designee or the 20
Consumer’s Advocate or his or her designee may, in addition to 21
any other civil or criminal penalty, impose a civil penalty of: 22
(a) For a deceptive trade practice directed toward a person with 23
a disability, not more than $15,000 for each violation. 24
(b) For a deceptive trade practice directed toward an elderly 25
person, not more than $25,000 for each violation. 26
2. In determining whether to impose a civil penalty pursuant to 27
subsection 1, the court , [or] the Director or his or her designee or 28
the Consumer’s Advocate or his or her designee shall consider 29
whether: 30
(a) The conduct of the person was in disregard of the rights of 31
the elderly person or person with a disability; 32
(b) The person knew or should have known that his or her 33
conduct was directed toward an elderly person or a person with a 34
disability; 35
(c) The elderly person or person with a disability was more 36
vulnerable to the conduct of the person because of the age, health, 37
infirmity, impaired understanding, restricted mobility or disability of 38
the elderly person or person with a disability; 39
(d) The conduct of the person caused the elderly person or 40
person with a disability to suffer actual and substantial physical, 41
emotional or economic damage; 42
(e) The conduct of the person caused the elderly person or 43
person with a disability to suffer: 44
(1) Mental or emotional anguish; 45
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(2) The loss of the primary residence of the elderly person or 1
person with a disability; 2
(3) The loss of the principal employment or source of income 3
of the elderly person or person with a disability; 4
(4) The loss of money received from a pension, retirement 5
plan or governmental program; 6
(5) The loss of property that had been set aside for retirement 7
or for personal or family care and maintenance; 8
(6) The loss of assets which are essential to the health and 9
welfare of the elderly person or person with a disability; or 10
(7) Any other interference with the economic well-being of 11
the elderly person or person with a disability, including the 12
encumbrance of his or her primary residence or principal source of 13
income; or 14
(f) Any other factors that the court , [or] the Director or his or 15
her designee or the Consumer’s Advocate or his or her designee 16
deems to be appropriate. 17
Sec. 6. NRS 598.09735 is hereby amended to read as follows: 18
598.09735 1. Except as otherwise provided in NRS 19
598.0974, in any action or proceeding brought pursuant to NRS 20
598.0903 to 598.0999, inclusive, and section 1 of this act, if the 21
court , [or] the Director or his or her designee or the Consumer’s 22
Advocate or his or her designee finds that a person has engaged in a 23
deceptive trade practice directed toward a minor person, the court , 24
[or] the Director or his or her designee or the Consumer’s Advocate 25
or his or her designee may, in addition to any other civil or criminal 26
penalty, impose a civil penalty of not more than $25,000 for each 27
violation. 28
2. In determining whether to impose a civil penalty pursuant to 29
subsection 1, the court , [or] the Director or his or her designee or 30
the Consumer’s Advocate or his or her designee shall consider 31
whether: 32
(a) The conduct of the person was in disregard of the rights of 33
the minor person; 34
(b) The person knew or should have known that his or her 35
conduct was directed toward a minor person; 36
(c) The minor person was more vulnerable to the conduct of the 37
person because of the age of the minor person; 38
(d) The conduct of the person caused the minor person to suffer 39
actual and substantial physical, emotional or economic damage; 40
(e) The conduct of the person caused the minor person to suffer: 41
(1) Mental or emotional anguish; 42
(2) The loss of money or financial support received from any 43
source; 44
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(3) The loss of property that had been set aside for education 1
or for personal or family care and maintenance; 2
(4) The loss of assets which are essential to the health and 3
welfare of the minor person; or 4
(5) Any other interference with the economic well-being of 5
the minor person; or 6
(f) Any other factors that the court , [or] the Director or his or 7
her designee or the Consumer’s Advocate or his or her designee 8
deems to be appropriate. 9
3. As used in this section, “minor person” means a person who 10
is 17 years of age or younger. 11
Sec. 7. NRS 598.0979 is hereby amended to read as follows: 12
598.0979 1. Notwithstanding the requirement of knowledge 13
as an element of a deceptive trade practice, when the Commissioner 14
or Director has cause to believe that a person has engaged or is 15
engaging in any deceptive trade practice, knowingly or otherwise, 16
he or she may request in writing that the Attorney General represent 17
him or her in instituting an appropriate legal proceeding, including, 18
without limitation, an application for an injunction or temporary 19
restraining order prohibiting the person from continuing the 20
practices. The court may make orders or judgments necessary to 21
prevent the use by the person of any such deceptive trade practice or 22
to restore to any other person any money or property which may 23
have been acquired by the deceptive trade practice. 24
2. Where the Commissioner or Director has the authority to 25
institute a civil action or other proceeding, in lieu thereof or as a part 26
thereof, he or she may accept an assurance of discontinuance of any 27
deceptive trade practice. This assurance may include a stipulation 28
for the payment by the alleged violator of: 29
(a) The costs of investigation and the costs of instituting the 30
action or proceeding, including attorney’s fees for the services of the 31
Attorney General; 32
(b) Any amount of money which he or she may be required to 33
pay pursuant to the provisions of NRS 598.0971 in lieu of any 34
administrative fine; and 35
(c) The restitution of any money or property acquired by any 36
deceptive trade practice. 37
3. Any assurance of discontinuance accepted by the 38
Commissioner or Director pursuant to subsection 2 must be filed 39
with the court in the same manner as required by the Attorney 40
General pursuant to NRS 598.0995 and, upon acceptance by the 41
court, becomes an order of the court. An assurance of 42
discontinuance made pursuant to subsection 2 is not an admission of 43
guilt or liability for any purpose . [, except that any failure to 44
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comply with the provisions of the assurance is enforceable in the 1
same manner as provided in subsection 7 of NRS 598.0971.] 2
Sec. 8. NRS 598.0999 is hereby amended to read as follows: 3
598.0999 1. Except as otherwise provided in NRS 598.0974, 4
a person who violates a court order or injunction issued pursuant to 5
the provisions of NRS 598.0903 to 598.0999, inclusive, and section 6
1 of this act, upon a complaint brought by the Commissioner, the 7
Director, the district attorney of any county of this State or the 8
Attorney General shall forfeit and pay to the State General Fund a 9
civil penalty of not more than $10,000 for each violation. For the 10
purpose of this section, the court issuing the order or injunction 11
retains jurisdiction over the action or proceeding. Such civil 12
penalties are in addition to any other penalty or remedy available for 13
the enforcement of the provisions of NRS 598.0903 to 598.0999, 14
inclusive [.] , and section 1 of this act. 15
2. Except as otherwise provided in NRS 598.0974, in any 16
action brought pursuant to the provisions of NRS 598.0903 to 17
598.0999, inclusive, and section 1 of this act, if the court finds that 18
a person has willfully engaged in a deceptive trade practice, the 19
Commissioner, the Director, the district attorney of any county in 20
this State or the Attorney General bringing the action may recover a 21
civil penalty not to exceed $15,000 for each violation. The court in 22
any such action may, in addition to any other relief or 23
reimbursement, award reasonable attorney’s fees and costs. 24
3. A natural person, firm, or any officer or managing agent of 25
any corporation or association who knowingly and willfully engages 26
in a deceptive trade practice: 27
(a) For an offense involving a loss of property or services valued 28
at $1,200 or more but less than $5,000, is guilty of a category D 29
felony and shall be punished as provided in NRS 193.130. 30
(b) For an offense involving a loss of property or services 31
valued at $5,000 or more but less than $25,000, is guilty of a 32
category C felony and shall be punished as provided in 33
NRS 193.130. 34
(c) For an offense involving a loss of property or services valued 35
at $25,000 or more but less than $100,000, is guilty of a category B 36
felony and shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for 37
a minimum term of not less than 1 year and a maximum term of not 38
more than 10 years, and by a fine of not more than $10,000. 39
(d) For an offense involving a loss of property or services 40
valued at $100,000 or more, is guilty of a category B felony and 41
shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for a 42
minimum term of not less than 1 year and a maximum term of not 43
more than 20 years, and by a fine of not more than $15,000. 44
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(e) For any offense other than an offense described in 1
paragraphs (a) to (d), inclusive, is guilty of a misdemeanor. 2
The court may require the natural person, firm, or officer or 3
managing agent of the corporation or association to pay to the 4
aggrieved party damages on all [profits] gross revenues derived 5
from the knowing and willful engagement in a deceptive trade 6
practice and treble damages on all damages suffered by reason of 7
the deceptive trade practice. 8
4. If a person violates any provision of NRS 598.0903 to 9
598.0999, inclusive, and section 1 of this act, NRS 598.100 to 10
598.2801, inclusive, 598.405 to 598.525, inclusive, 598.741 11
to 598.787, inclusive, 598.840 to 598.966, inclusive, or 598.9701 to 12
598.9718, inclusive, fails to comply with a judgment or order of any 13
court in this State concerning a violation of such a provision, or fails 14
to comply with an assurance of discontinuance or other agreement 15
concerning an alleged violation of such a provision, the 16
Commissioner or the district attorney of any county may bring an 17
action in the name of the State of Nevada seeking: 18
(a) The suspension of the person’s privilege to conduct business 19
within this State; or 20
(b) If the defendant is a corporation, dissolution of the 21
corporation. 22
The court may grant or deny the relief sought or may order other 23
appropriate relief. 24
5. If a person violates any provision of NRS 228.500 to 25
228.640, inclusive, fails to comply with a judgment or order of any 26
court in this State concerning a violation of such a provision, or fails 27
to comply with an assurance of discontinuance or other agreement 28
concerning an alleged violation of such a provision, the Attorney 29
General may bring an action in the name of the State of Nevada 30
seeking: 31
(a) The suspension of the person’s privilege to conduct business 32
within this State; or 33
(b) If the defendant is a corporation, dissolution of the 34
corporation. 35
The court may grant or deny the relief sought or may order other 36
appropriate relief. 37
6. In an action brought by the Commissioner or the Attorney 38
General pursuant to subsection 4 or 5, process may be served by an 39
employee of the Consumer Affairs Unit of the Department of 40
Business and Industry or an employee of the Attorney General. 41
7. As used in this section: 42
(a) “Gross revenues” mean the total revenues derived from the 43
knowing and willful engagement in a deceptive trade practice 44
without deducting any expenses or losses. 45
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(b) “Property” has the meaning ascribed to it in NRS 193.0225. 1
[(b)] (c) “Services” has the meaning ascribed to it in 2
NRS 205.0829. 3
[(c)] (d) “Value” means the fair market value of the property or 4
services at the time the deceptive trade practice occurred. The value 5
of a written instrument which does not have a readily ascertainable 6
market value is the greater of the face amount of the instrument less 7
the portion satisfied or the amount of economic loss to the owner of 8
the instrument resulting from the deprivation of the instrument. The 9
trier of fact shall determine the value of all other property whose 10
value is not readily ascertainable, and may, in making that 11
determination, consider all relevant evidence, including evidence of 12
the value of the property to its owner. 13
Sec. 9. NRS 598A.220 is hereby amended to read as follows: 14
598A.220 1. [An] Except as otherwise provided in NRS 15
11.245, an action brought under NRS [598A.170 or] 598A.200 is 16
barred if it is not commenced within 4 years after the cause of action 17
accrues, or if the cause of action is based upon a conspiracy in 18
violation of this chapter, within 4 years after the plaintiff 19
discovered, or by the exercise of reasonable diligence, should have 20
discovered the facts relied upon for proof of the conspiracy. 21
2. An action brought under NRS [598A.160 or] 598A.210 is 22
barred if it is not commenced: 23
(a) Within 4 years after the cause of action accrues, or if the 24
cause of action is based upon a conspiracy in violation of this 25
chapter, within 4 years after the plaintiff discovered, or by the 26
exercise of reasonable diligence, should have discovered the facts 27
relied upon for proof of the conspiracy; or 28
(b) Within 1 year after the conclusion of any action or 29
proceeding brought under NRS 598A.170 or 598A.200 commenced 30
within or before the running of the 4-year period as provided in 31
paragraph (a) and which is based in whole or in part on any matter 32
complained of in the action for damages. 33
3. For the purpose of this section, a cause of action for a 34
continuing violation arises at any time during the period of such 35
violation. 36
Sec. 10. NRS 11.245 is hereby amended to read as follows: 37
11.245 There is no limitation on the time in which an action 38
brought by the Attorney General against a person alleged to have 39
committed [a] : 40
1. A deceptive trade practice in violation of NRS 598.0903 to 41
598.0999, inclusive, and section 1 of this act, other than a deceptive 42
trade practice of the type described in NRS 598.09235, may be 43
commenced. 44
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2. An unfair trade practice in violation of chapter 598A of 1
NRS may be commenced. 2
Sec. 11. NRS 228.334 is hereby amended to read as follows: 3
228.334 1. After any reversion of money from the Consumer 4
Protection Administrative Account to the Consumer Protection 5
Legal Account in accordance with subsection 3 of NRS 228.332, the 6
Attorney General shall allocate the money in the Consumer 7
Protection Legal Account as follows: 8
(a) Fifty percent to the Office of the Attorney General or the 9
Consumer’s Advocate, to be used for consumer protection and 10
efforts to prevent fraud, including, without limitation, education, 11
investigation, enforcement and litigation. [Beginning on July 1, 12
2023, the] The Office of the Attorney General or the Consumer’s 13
Advocate, as applicable [: 14
(1) May] , may use money allocated pursuant to this 15
paragraph to pay for [necessary:] : 16
(1) Necessary staff employed pursuant to NRS 228.330 for 17
the Consumer’s Advocate to carry out such consumer protection 18
and efforts to prevent fraud; [and] 19
(2) [If the amount of money in the Account that is allocated 20
pursuant to this paragraph exceeds the amount required to pay for 21
120 days of operating costs for necessary] Necessary staff for the 22
Office of the Attorney General to carry out such consumer 23
protection and efforts to prevent fraud [, may use any such excess 24
amount of money for additional purposes] ; and 25
(3) Any other additional purpose relating to consumer 26
protection and efforts to prevent fraud. 27
(b) Fifty percent to the following legal aid organizations, or their 28
successors, in the following percentages: 29
(1) Seventy percent to the organization operating the 30
program for legal services in a county whose population is 700,000 31
or more that receives the fees charged pursuant to NRS 19.031 for 32
programs for the indigent, to be used to provide legal services in a 33
county whose population is 700,000 or more; 34
(2) Nineteen percent to the organization operating the 35
program for legal services in counties whose population is less than 36
100,000 that receive the fees charged pursuant to NRS 19.031 for 37
programs for the indigent, to be used to provide legal services in 38
those counties; and 39
(3) Eleven percent to the organization operating the program 40
for legal services in a county whose population is 100,000 or more 41
but less than 700,000 that receives the fees charged pursuant to NRS 42
19.031 for programs for the indigent, to be used to provide legal 43
services in a county whose population is 100,000 or more but less 44
than 700,000. 45
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2. Each legal aid organization listed in paragraph (b) of 1
subsection 1 shall: 2
(a) Use the money received from the Account for consumer 3
protection and efforts to prevent fraud, including, without limitation, 4
education and litigation; and 5
(b) On or before January 1 and July 1 of each year, submit a 6
report to the Office of the Attorney General that includes a detailed 7
summary of all activities undertaken by the legal aid organization 8
during the previous 6-month period with the money received from 9
the Account, including, without limitation: 10
(1) Activities relating to consumer protection and the 11
prevention of fraud; 12
(2) Litigation; 13
(3) Educational activities; 14
(4) Statistical information on the number of persons served; 15
and 16
(5) An accounting of the use of the money, including, 17
without limitation, the specific amount of money used for salaries, 18
costs and expenses. 19
3. On or before July 1 of each year, each legal aid organization 20
listed in paragraph (b) of subsection 1 shall submit to the Office of 21
the Attorney General an audited statement regarding the use of 22
money received from the Account during the previous calendar 23
year. 24
4. The Office of the Attorney General is entitled to audit, 25
examine or inspect the books and records of each legal aid 26
organization listed in paragraph (b) of subsection 1 at any time 27
regarding the use of money received from the Account. 28
Sec. 12. NRS 228.380 is hereby amended to read as follows: 29
228.380 1. Except as otherwise provided in this section, the 30
Consumer’s Advocate may exercise the power of the Attorney 31
General in areas of consumer protection, including, but not limited 32
to, enforcement of chapters 90, 597, 598, 598A, 598B, 598C, 599B 33
and 711 of NRS. 34
2. The Consumer’s Advocate may not exercise any powers to 35
enforce any criminal statute set forth in: 36
(a) Chapter 90, 597, 598, 598A, 598B, 598C or 599B of NRS 37
for any transaction or activity that involves a proceeding before the 38
Public Utilities Commission of Nevada if the Consumer’s Advocate 39
is participating in that proceeding as a real party in interest on behalf 40
of the customers or a class of customers of utilities; or 41
(b) Chapter 711 of NRS. 42
3. The Consumer’s Advocate may have access to all records in 43
the possession of any agency, board or commission of this State that 44
he or she determines are necessary for the exercise of the powers set 45
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forth in subsection 1. The Consumer’s Advocate does not have 1
custody or control of any record until the Consumer’s Advocate 2
receives the record from the agency, board or commission of this 3
State. 4
4. The Consumer’s Advocate may expend revenues derived 5
from NRS 704.033 only for activities directly related to the 6
protection of customers of public utilities. 7
5. The powers of the Consumer’s Advocate do not extend to 8
proceedings before the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada 9
directly relating to discretionary or competitive telecommunication 10
services. 11
Sec. 13. This act becomes effective on July 1, 2025. 12
H