S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8131
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              January 8, 2024
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. HARCKHAM -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Consumer Protection
 
 AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to  providing  for
   electronic notice for collateral loan brokers
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 49 of the general business law, as
 amended by chapter 594 of the laws  of  1997,  is  amended  to  read  as
 follows:
   1. [No pledge shall be sold unless written or printed notice of inten-
 tion  to sell with a statement of the article or articles to be sold has
 been first mailed by letter addressed to  the  pledgor  at  the  address
 given  at the time of pledging at least thirty days prior to the date of
 sale] NOTWITHSTANDING ANY GENERAL OR SPECIAL  STATUTES,  LOCAL  LAW  AND
 ORDINANCES  TO THE CONTRARY, UPON THE TENDERING OF A PLEDGE, THE PLEDGOR
 SHALL PROVIDE A COLLATERAL LOAN BROKER AN EMAIL ADDRESS OR PHONE  NUMBER
 TO  BE USED IN THE EVENT A PLEDGE IS NOT TIMELY REDEEMED FOR PURPOSES OF
 PROVIDING A NOTICE OF INTENTION TO SELL.  NO PLEDGE SHALL BE SOLD UNLESS
 A NOTICE OF INTENTION TO SELL, WITH A STATEMENT OF THE ARTICLE OR  ARTI-
 CLES  TO BE SOLD, IS FORWARDED ELECTRONICALLY, BY EMAIL OR TEXT MESSAGE,
 AT LEAST THIRTY DAYS PRIOR TO THE DATE OF SALE.    A  SECOND  NOTICE  OF
 INTENTION  TO  SELL  SHALL BE FORWARDED ELECTRONICALLY, BY EMAIL OR TEXT
 MESSAGE, TO THE PLEDGOR AT LEAST FIFTEEN DAYS PRIOR TO THE SALE.  ALTER-
 NATIVELY, A PLEDGOR MAY AT THE TIME  OF  TENDERING  A  PLEDGE  ELECT  TO
 RECEIVE  A  NOTICE  OF INTENTION TO SELL BY UNITED STATES POSTAL SERVICE
 MAIL WITH A STATEMENT OF THE ARTICLES TO BE SOLD BY LETTER ADDRESSED  TO
 THE PLEDGOR AT THE ADDRESS GIVEN AT THE TIME OF PLEDGING AT LEAST THIRTY
 DAYS  PRIOR TO THE DATE OF THE SALE.  A PLEDGOR MAY AT ANY TIME PRIOR TO
 THE TRANSMISSION OF THE SECOND NOTICE REFERENCED ABOVE, OR MAILING OF  A
 LETTER  ADDRESSED  TO THE PLEDGOR, PROVIDE ONE OR MORE UPDATED ADDRESSES
 OR PHONE NUMBERS TO BE USED FOR PURPOSES OF TRANSMISSION OF A NOTICE  OF
 INTENTION  TO  SELL  AND  THE  COLLATERAL  LOAN BROKER SHALL ACCORDINGLY
 EMPLOY A SUBSTITUTE NEW ADDRESS OR PHONE NUMBER. COPIES  OF  NOTICES  OF
 INTENTION TO SELL SENT PURSUANT TO THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL BE RETAINED BY
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD13655-01-3
 S. 8131                             2
 
 A  COLLATERAL LOAN BROKER FOR NOT LESS THAN SIX YEARS. If the sale shall
 be by public auction, then notice of every such sale shall be  published
 for  at  least  six  days previous thereto, in at least two of the daily
 newspapers  printed  in the city where the business shall be carried on,
 and also in two daily newspapers of the city where the sale is  to  take
 place  and to be designated by said mayor, and such notice shall specify
 the time and place at which such sale is to take place and the  name  of
 the  auctioneers  by  whom  the  same is to be conducted together with a
 statement of the class of pledges to be sold and the inclusive dates and
 numbers of the pawn tickets of the pledges to be sold. If the pledge, at
 such sale, shall be purchased back by the collateral  loan  broker,  the
 pledgor  shall  be entitled to redeem same within ten days thereafter by
 tendering to the collateral loan broker the amount of the loan with  the
 interest  due thereon, the amount of the auctioneer's lawful commission,
 lawful extra care charges, and the expense of the advertisement  of  the
 sale.
   §  2.  Subdivision  2  of  section  50 of the general business law, as
 amended by chapter 321 of the laws  of  1983,  is  amended  to  read  as
 follows:
   2. In the event there is any surplus money due to a pledgor after such
 sale,  the  collateral loan broker shall give the pledgor written notice
 thereof, by mailing to such pledgor, directed  to  him  at  the  address
 given  at the time of pledging or in the event such pledgor has notified
 the collateral loan broker, in writing, of a change of address, to  such
 new  address,  within  thirty days after such sale, a notice which shall
 state the name and address of the collateral loan broker, the number  of
 the  pledge,  the  date  of sale and the amount of any surplus, PROVIDED
 HOWEVER THAT IN THE EVENT THAT THE COLLATERAL LOAN BROKER HAS  TRANSMIT-
 TED A NOTICE OF SALE VIA ELECTRONIC MEANS PURSUANT TO SECTION FORTY-NINE
 OF  THIS ARTICLE, THE NOTICE OF SURPLUS HEREIN SHALL BE TRANSMITTED IN A
 MANNER IDENTICAL TO THE MEANS EMPLOYED WITH  REGARD  TO  THE  NOTICE  OF
 SALE,  PROVIDED FURTHER THAT SUCH ELECTRONIC NOTICE SHALL BE REQUIRED TO
 BE TRANSMITTED ONE TIME TO THE ELECTRONIC ADDRESS PROVIDED BY THE  PLED-
 GOR  AT  THE  TIME  THE  ARTICLE  WAS PLEDGED OR TO AT LEAST ONE OR MORE
 ALTERNATIVE ELECTRONIC ADDRESSES IF PROVIDED, IN WRITING, HARD  COPY  OR
 ELECTRONIC,  TO  THE  COLLATERAL LOAN BROKER BY THE PLEDGOR PRIOR TO THE
 TRANSMITTAL OF THE NOTICE OF SURPLUS AS PRESCRIBED HEREIN. In the  event
 any  person  entitled  to  such surplus fails to make claim for the same
 within one year from the date of such sale, such surplus shall  be  paid
 over, by the collateral loan broker, to the state comptroller in accord-
 ance  with  the  provisions of section one thousand three hundred one of
 the abandoned property law.
   § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
 it shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition,  amend-
 ment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implemen-
 tation  of  this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and
 completed on or before such effective date.