Texas 2019 - 86th Regular

Texas House Bill HB1152 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1		-	H.B. No. 1152
	1	+	By: Bernal, Guillen (Senate Sponsor - Campbell) H.B. No. 1152
	2	+	(In the Senate - Received from the House May 13, 2019;
	3	+	May 14, 2019, read first time and referred to Committee on State
	4	+	Affairs; May 19, 2019, reported favorably by the following vote:
	5	+	Yeas 9, Nays 0; May 19, 2019, sent to printer.)
	6	+	Click here to see the committee vote
2	7
3	8
	9	+	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
4	10		AN ACT
5	11		relating to the deceptive trade practice of charging exorbitant or
6	12		excessive prices for necessities during a declared disaster.
7	13		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
8	14		SECTION 1. Section 17.45, Business & Commerce Code, is
9	15		amended by adding Subdivision (17) to read as follows:
10	16		(17) "Building materials" includes lumber, windows,
11	17		and other materials used in the construction or repair of
12	18		improvements to real property.
13	19		SECTION 2. Section 17.46(b), Business & Commerce Code, as
14	20		amended by Chapters 324 (S.B. 1488), 858 (H.B. 2552), and 967 (S.B.
15	21		2065), Acts of the 85th Legislature, Regular Session, 2017, is
16	22		reenacted and amended to read as follows:
17	23		(b) Except as provided in Subsection (d) of this section,
18	24		the term "false, misleading, or deceptive acts or practices"
19	25		includes, but is not limited to, the following acts:
20	26		(1) passing off goods or services as those of another;
21	27		(2) causing confusion or misunderstanding as to the
22	28		source, sponsorship, approval, or certification of goods or
23	29		services;
24	30		(3) causing confusion or misunderstanding as to
25	31		affiliation, connection, or association with, or certification by,
26	32		another;
27	33		(4) using deceptive representations or designations
28	34		of geographic origin in connection with goods or services;
29	35		(5) representing that goods or services have
30	36		sponsorship, approval, characteristics, ingredients, uses,
31	37		benefits, or quantities which they do not have or that a person has
32	38		a sponsorship, approval, status, affiliation, or connection which
33	39		the person does not;
34	40		(6) representing that goods are original or new if
35	41		they are deteriorated, reconditioned, reclaimed, used, or
36	42		secondhand;
37	43		(7) representing that goods or services are of a
38	44		particular standard, quality, or grade, or that goods are of a
39	45		particular style or model, if they are of another;
40	46		(8) disparaging the goods, services, or business of
41	47		another by false or misleading representation of facts;
42	48		(9) advertising goods or services with intent not to
43	49		sell them as advertised;
44	50		(10) advertising goods or services with intent not to
45	51		supply a reasonable expectable public demand, unless the
46	52		advertisements disclosed a limitation of quantity;
47	53		(11) making false or misleading statements of fact
48	54		concerning the reasons for, existence of, or amount of price
49	55		reductions;
50	56		(12) representing that an agreement confers or
51	57		involves rights, remedies, or obligations which it does not have or
52	58		involve, or which are prohibited by law;
53	59		(13) knowingly making false or misleading statements
54	60		of fact concerning the need for parts, replacement, or repair
55	61		service;
56	62		(14) misrepresenting the authority of a salesman,
57	63		representative or agent to negotiate the final terms of a consumer
58	64		transaction;
59	65		(15) basing a charge for the repair of any item in
60	66		whole or in part on a guaranty or warranty instead of on the value of
61	67		the actual repairs made or work to be performed on the item without
62	68		stating separately the charges for the work and the charge for the
63	69		warranty or guaranty, if any;
64	70		(16) disconnecting, turning back, or resetting the
65	71		odometer of any motor vehicle so as to reduce the number of miles
66	72		indicated on the odometer gauge;
67	73		(17) advertising of any sale by fraudulently
68	74		representing that a person is going out of business;
69	75		(18) advertising, selling, or distributing a card
70	76		which purports to be a prescription drug identification card issued
71	77		under Section 4151.152, Insurance Code, in accordance with rules
72	78		adopted by the commissioner of insurance, which offers a discount
73	79		on the purchase of health care goods or services from a third party
74	80		provider, and which is not evidence of insurance coverage, unless:
75	81		(A) the discount is authorized under an agreement
76	82		between the seller of the card and the provider of those goods and
77	83		services or the discount or card is offered to members of the
78	84		seller;
79	85		(B) the seller does not represent that the card
80	86		provides insurance coverage of any kind; and
81	87		(C) the discount is not false, misleading, or
82	88		deceptive;
83	89		(19) using or employing a chain referral sales plan in
84	90		connection with the sale or offer to sell of goods, merchandise, or
85	91		anything of value, which uses the sales technique, plan,
86	92		arrangement, or agreement in which the buyer or prospective buyer
87	93		is offered the opportunity to purchase merchandise or goods and in
88	94		connection with the purchase receives the seller's promise or
89	95		representation that the buyer shall have the right to receive
90	96		compensation or consideration in any form for furnishing to the
91	97		seller the names of other prospective buyers if receipt of the
92	98		compensation or consideration is contingent upon the occurrence of
93	99		an event subsequent to the time the buyer purchases the merchandise
94	100		or goods;
95	101		(20) representing that a guaranty or warranty confers
96	102		or involves rights or remedies which it does not have or involve,
97	103		provided, however, that nothing in this subchapter shall be
98	104		construed to expand the implied warranty of merchantability as
99	105		defined in Sections 2.314 through 2.318 and Sections 2A.212 through
100	106		2A.216 to involve obligations in excess of those which are
101	107		appropriate to the goods;
102	108		(21) promoting a pyramid promotional scheme, as
103	109		defined by Section 17.461;
104	110		(22) representing that work or services have been
105	111		performed on, or parts replaced in, goods when the work or services
106	112		were not performed or the parts replaced;
107	113		(23) filing suit founded upon a written contractual
108	114		obligation of and signed by the defendant to pay money arising out
109	115		of or based on a consumer transaction for goods, services, loans, or
110	116		extensions of credit intended primarily for personal, family,
111	117		household, or agricultural use in any county other than in the
112	118		county in which the defendant resides at the time of the
113	119		commencement of the action or in the county in which the defendant
114	120		in fact signed the contract; provided, however, that a violation of
115	121		this subsection shall not occur where it is shown by the person
116	122		filing such suit that the person neither knew or had reason to know
117	123		that the county in which such suit was filed was neither the county
118	124		in which the defendant resides at the commencement of the suit nor
119	125		the county in which the defendant in fact signed the contract;
120	126		(24) failing to disclose information concerning goods
121	127		or services which was known at the time of the transaction if such
122	128		failure to disclose such information was intended to induce the
123	129		consumer into a transaction into which the consumer would not have
124	130		entered had the information been disclosed;
125	131		(25) using the term "corporation," "incorporated," or
126	132		an abbreviation of either of those terms in the name of a business
127	133		entity that is not incorporated under the laws of this state or
128	134		another jurisdiction;
129	135		(26) selling, offering to sell, or illegally promoting
130	136		an annuity contract under Chapter 22, Acts of the 57th Legislature,
131	137		3rd Called Session, 1962 (Article 6228a-5, Vernon's Texas Civil
132	138		Statutes), with the intent that the annuity contract will be the
133	139		subject of a salary reduction agreement, as defined by that Act, if
134	140		the annuity contract is not an eligible qualified investment under
135	141		that Act or is not registered with the Teacher Retirement System of
136	142		Texas as required by Section 8A of that Act;
137	143		(27) subject to Section 17.4625, taking advantage of a
138	144		disaster declared by the governor under Chapter 418, Government
139	145		Code, or by the president of the United States by:
140	146		(A) selling or leasing fuel, food, medicine,
141	147		lodging, building materials, construction tools, or another
142	148		necessity at an exorbitant or excessive price; or
143	149		(B) demanding an exorbitant or excessive price in
144	150		connection with the sale or lease of fuel, food, medicine, lodging,
145	151		building materials, construction tools, or another necessity;
146	152		(28) using the translation into a foreign language of
147	153		a title or other word, including "attorney," "immigration
148	154		consultant," "immigration expert," "lawyer," "licensed," "notary,"
149	155		and "notary public," in any written or electronic material,
150	156		including an advertisement, a business card, a letterhead,
151	157		stationery, a website, or an online video, in reference to a person
152	158		who is not an attorney in order to imply that the person is
153	159		authorized to practice law in the United States;
154	160		(29) delivering or distributing a solicitation in
155	161		connection with a good or service that:
156	162		(A) represents that the solicitation is sent on
157	163		behalf of a governmental entity when it is not; or
158	164		(B) resembles a governmental notice or form that
159	165		represents or implies that a criminal penalty may be imposed if the
160	166		recipient does not remit payment for the good or service;
161	167		(30) delivering or distributing a solicitation in
162	168		connection with a good or service that resembles a check or other
163	169		negotiable instrument or invoice, unless the portion of the
164	170		solicitation that resembles a check or other negotiable instrument
165	171		or invoice includes the following notice, clearly and conspicuously
166	172		printed in at least 18-point type:
167	173		"SPECIMEN-NON-NEGOTIABLE";
168	174		(31) in the production, sale, distribution, or
169	175		promotion of a synthetic substance that produces and is intended to
170	176		produce an effect when consumed or ingested similar to, or in excess
171	177		of, the effect of a controlled substance or controlled substance
172	178		analogue, as those terms are defined by Section 481.002, Health and
173	179		Safety Code:
174	180		(A) making a deceptive representation or
175	181		designation about the synthetic substance; or
176	182		(B) causing confusion or misunderstanding as to
177	183		the effects the synthetic substance causes when consumed or
178	184		ingested;
179	185		(32) a licensed public insurance adjuster directly or
180	186		indirectly soliciting employment, as defined by Section 38.01,
181	187		Penal Code, for an attorney, or a licensed public insurance
182	188		adjuster entering into a contract with an insured for the primary
183	189		purpose of referring the insured to an attorney without the intent
184	190		to actually perform the services customarily provided by a licensed
185	191		public insurance adjuster, provided that this subdivision may not
186	192		be construed to prohibit a licensed public insurance adjuster from
187	193		recommending a particular attorney to an insured; [or]
188	194		(33) owning, operating, maintaining, or advertising a
189	195		massage establishment, as defined by Section 455.001, Occupations
190	196		Code, that:
191	197		(A) is not appropriately licensed under Chapter
192	198		455, Occupations Code, or is not in compliance with the applicable
193	199		licensing and other requirements of that chapter; or
194	200		(B) is not in compliance with an applicable local
195	201		ordinance relating to the licensing or regulation of massage
196	202		establishments; or
197	203		(34) [(33)] a warrantor of a vehicle protection
198	204		product warranty using, in connection with the product, a name that
199	205		includes "casualty," "surety," "insurance," "mutual," or any other
200	206		word descriptive of an insurance business, including property or
201	207		casualty insurance, or a surety business.
202	208		SECTION 3. Subchapter E, Chapter 17, Business & Commerce
203	209		Code, is amended by adding Section 17.4625 to read as follows:
204	210		Sec. 17.4625. PRICE GOUGING DURING DECLARED DISASTER. (a)
205	211		In this section, "designated disaster period" means the period:
206	212		(1) beginning on the earliest of:
207	213		(A) the date the disaster occurs; or
208	214		(B) the date of:
209	215		(i) the proclamation or executive order of
210	216		the governor declaring the disaster; or
211	217		(ii) the declaration of the disaster by the
212	218		president of the United States, if any part of this state is named
213	219		in the federally declared disaster area; and
214	220		(2) ending on the 30th day after the date the disaster
215	221		declaration expires or is terminated.
216	222		(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of this subchapter,
217	223		Section 17.46(b)(27) applies only to an act described by that
218	224		subdivision that occurs during a designated disaster period in this
219	225		state.
220	226		SECTION 4. To the extent of any conflict, this Act prevails
221	227		over another Act of the 86th Legislature, Regular Session, 2019,
222	228		relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted
223	229		codes.
224	230		SECTION 5. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
225	231		an act or practice that occurs on or after the effective date of
226	232		this Act. An act or practice that occurs before the effective date
227	233		of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the act or
228	234		practice occurred, and the former law is continued in effect for
229	235		that purpose.
230	236		SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.
231		-	______________________________ ______________________________
232		-	President of the Senate Speaker of the House
233		-	I certify that H.B. No. 1152 was passed by the House on May
234		-	10, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 112, Nays 29, 2 present, not
235		-	voting.
236		-	______________________________
237		-	Chief Clerk of the House
238		-	I certify that H.B. No. 1152 was passed by the Senate on May
239		-	22, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 28, Nays 3.
240		-	______________________________
241		-	Secretary of the Senate
242		-	APPROVED: _____________________
243		-	Date
244		-	_____________________
245		-	Governor
	237	+	* * * * *