S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   6040
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                               March 4, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by M. of A. BURGOS -- read once and referred to the Committee
   on Consumer Affairs and Protection
 
 AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to including elec-
   tronic messaging texts as a form of telemarketing communication
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Paragraphs h, i, j, k, l and m of subdivision 1 of  section
 399-z  of  the general business law, paragraphs h, i and j as amended by
 chapter 369 of the laws of 2012 and paragraph k  as  amended  and  para-
 graphs  l and m as added by chapter 484 of the laws of 2016, are amended
 and a new paragraph n is added to read as follows:
   h. "Telemarketer" means  any  person  who,  for  financial  profit  or
 commercial  purposes in connection with telemarketing, makes telemarket-
 ing sales calls OR ELECTRONIC MESSAGING TEXTS to  a  customer  when  the
 customer  is in this state or any person who directly controls or super-
 vises the conduct of a telemarketer. For the purposes of  this  section,
 "commercial  purposes" shall mean the sale or offer for sale of goods or
 services;
   i. "Telemarketing"  means  any  plan,  program  or  campaign  that  is
 conducted  to  induce payment or the exchange of any other consideration
 for any goods or services that involves more than one telephone call  OR
 ELECTRONIC  MESSAGING  TEXT  by  a telemarketer in which the customer is
 located within the state at the time of the call. Telemarketing does not
 include the solicitation of sales through media other than by  telephone
 calls  OR ELECTRONIC MESSAGING TEXTS and does not include calls OR ELEC-
 TRONIC MESSAGING TEXTS intended to implement or complete  a  transaction
 to which the customer has previously consented;
   j.  "Telemarketing  sales  call"  means a telephone call OR ELECTRONIC
 MESSAGING TEXT made DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY by a telemarketer or  by  any
 outbound  telephone  calling  technology  that  delivers  a  prerecorded
 message to a customer or to a customer's voicemail or answering  machine
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD08728-01-1

 A. 6040                             2
 
 service,  IN  WHICH  SUCH TELEPHONE CALL OR ELECTRONIC MESSAGING TEXT IS
 for the purpose of inducing payment or the exchange of any other consid-
 eration for any goods or services;
   k.  "Unsolicited  telemarketing  sales  call"  means any telemarketing
 sales call OR ELECTRONIC MESSAGING TEXT other than [a call made]:
   (i) in response to an express written or verbal request by the custom-
 er; or
   (ii) in connection with an established  business  relationship,  which
 has not been terminated by either party, unless such customer has stated
 to  the  telemarketer that such customer no longer wishes to receive the
 telemarketing sales calls of such telemarketer;
   l. "Caller identification information" means information provided by a
 caller identification service regarding the telephone number and name of
 the person calling; [and]
   m. "Caller identification service" means a service that allows a tele-
 phone subscriber to have the telephone  number,  and,  where  available,
 name  of  the calling party transmitted contemporaneously with the tele-
 phone call, and displayed on a device in or connected to  the  subscrib-
 er's telephone[.]; AND
   N.  "ELECTRONIC MESSAGING TEXT" MEANS REAL-TIME OR NEAR REAL-TIME NON-
 VOICE MESSAGES IN TEXT FORM OVER COMMUNICATIONS NETWORKS,  AND  INCLUDES
 THE TRANSMISSION OF WRITING, SIGNS, SIGNALS, PICTURES, AND SOUNDS OF ALL
 KINDS  BY AID OF WIRE, CABLE OR OTHER LIKE CONNECTION BETWEEN THE POINTS
 OF ORIGIN AND RECEPTION OF SUCH TRANSMISSION.
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day  after  it  shall
 have become a law.