Consumerism

Consumerism

Consumerism Legislation

SB 12 (Bowen-D) Electronic mail advertising

Sets monetary penalties for those who violate California fidelities relative to unsolicited electronic mailing law.

(Died in Assembly Business and Professions Committee)

SB 30 (Figueroa-D) Home improvement contracts

Revises and refines the elements of the current home improvement contract in order to simplify the form.

Chapter 566, Statutes of 2004

SB 503 (Florez-D) Consumer loans

Authorizes a licensed person, subject to the laws regulating covered loans, to make consumer loans on the same terms and conditions as any financial institution chartered under the laws of the United States or any operating subsidiary of a federally chartered financial institution.

(Died in Senate Judiciary Committee)

SB 584 (Alarcon-D) Advertising

Requires an insurer or public entity that advertises a service, product, or policy in designated languages to provide specified information to the consumer and to notify the consumer of the right to the information.

(Died in Assembly Business and Professions Committee)

SB 648 (Battin-R) Assistive devices

Permits the seller of an assistive device to charge the buyer a nominal fee for any readjustment of that device during the warranty period. Requires the written warranty that accompanies the sale of an assistive device to inform the buyer that a nominal fee may be charged for readjustments during the warranty period.

(Died in Senate Judiciary Committee)

SB 691 (Escutia-D) Credit history

Prohibits insurers from using credit scores to underwrite, rate, or determine placement in a particular payment plan for homeowner's insurance policies.

(Died in Assembly Insurance Committee)

SB 773 (Murray-D) Food labeling and safety

Permits the sale of Korean rice rolls that have been at room temperature for no more than six hours. Requires a food establishment that sells Korean rice rolls to, after six hours, destroy the rice rolls in a manner approved by the local enforcement agency.

(Died in Senate Health and Human Services Committee)

SB 779 (Speier-D) Dietary supplements

Requires manufacturers and distributors of dietary supplements to send to the State Department of Health Services, on a quarterly basis, a report listing all adverse events received relating to the supplements that are manufactured or distributed by them.

(Failed passage on the Assembly Floor)

SB 1150 (Burton-D) Lenders: named trademarks

Requires any individual who uses a lenders trade name or a consumers loan amount or loan account number in a written solicitation to provide a disclaimer that the solicitor is not associated with the lender.

Chapter 197, Statutes of 2004

SB 1154 (Figueroa-D) Consumer rebates

Regulates the offering and fulfillment of rebates for consumer products, including requirements that consumers have a minimum of 30 days to submit a rebate request and companies have a maximum of 60 days to deliver the rebate, as well as restrictions on what evidence and personal information a company may require the consumer to provide.

Vetoed by the Governor

SB 1324 (Vincent-D) Advertising displays

Exempts, from the prohibition against placing advertising displays adjacent to landscaped freeways, any billboard located on property owned by the Lennox School District, subject to certain conditions.

Vetoed by the Governor

SB 1363 (Ducheny-D) Hotel and motel rates

Makes it a misdemeanor and an unlawful business practice for the owner of a hotel or motel, for 30 days following the declaration of a state of emergency after a natural disaster, to raise their room rates by more than 10 percent above the level immediately preceding the declaration.

Chapter 492, Statutes of 2004

SB 1436 (Murray-D) Computer spyware

Establishes the Consumer Protection Against Spyware Act, which prohibits an unauthorized person or entity from installing software on a consumer's computer that would take over control of the computer, modify its security settings, collect the user's personally identifiable information, interfere with its own removal, or otherwise deceive the authorized user, as specified.

Chapter 843, Statutes of 2004

SB 1444 (Speier-D) Dietary supplements

Prohibits the sale of a dietary supplement containing specified components to anyone under the age of 18.

Chapter 859, Statutes of 2004

SB 1451 (Figueroa-D) Privacy guarantees

Requires a person who has access to information protected under specified privacy laws and who is not subject to any of those laws to treat the information with the same care that would be required of a person who is subject to any of those provisions. Provides that the person would be civilly liable, as specified.

Vetoed by the Governor

SB 1457 (Murray-D) Commercial e-mail advertisements

Modifies recently enacted state law banning e-mail spam to conform to recently enacted federal law.

Chapter 571, Statutes of 2004

SB 1542 (Figueroa-D) Automotive repair

Establishes a "sunset review" process every four years for the State Bureau of Automotive Repair (BAR), and authorizes the appointment of an Administration and Enforcement Monitor for two years to research areas of concern related to BAR and provide recommendations. Appropriates $184,000 from the Vehicle and Inspection Repair Fund.

Chapter 572, Statutes of 2004

SB 1580 (Bowen-D) Food product advertising

Requires manufacturers to accompany claims of "low saturated fat" or "reduced saturated fat" with the phrase "Contains Trans Fat" if the product contains trans fat.

(Died in Senate Business and Professions Committee)

SB 1585 (Speier-D) Recalled beef or poultry

Requires meat and poultry suppliers, distributors, and processors to notify the State Department of Health Services (DHS) when meat or poultry that they sell in California has been subject to a voluntary recall by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and provide DHS with a list of retailers that have or will receive the product. Authorizes DHS to notify local health officers and environmental health directors of any meat or poultry being sold in California that is subject to a USDA recall, and requires DHS, local health officers and environmental health directors to notify the public. Prohibits notification of a USDA Class III recall.

Vetoed by the Governor

SB 1589 (Denham-R) Bottled and vended water

Changes the method for measuring compliance with the standard for trihalomethanes in vended water. Compliance will be measured based on an average of samples rather than an individual sample. Requires the State Department of Health Services to develop an inspection program for water vending machines.

(Died in Senate Health and Human Services Committee)

SB 1633 (Figueroa-D) Medical information privacy

Prohibits any business from seeking to obtain medical information directly from an individual for direct marketing purposes without clearly and conspicuously disclosing how it will use and share that information and obtaining the consumer's consent to that use and sharing.

Chapter 861, Statutes of 2004

SB 1664 (Karnette-D) Customer records

Expands the definition of business for purposes of personal information disposal to include a subcontractor of a business that is entrusted with a customer's personal information.

(Died in Senate Judiciary Committee)

SB 1721 (Bowen-D) Consumer contracts

Explicitly prohibits the practice of packing, which involves combining the charges for several goods or services into a consumer contract without the consumer's knowledge or consent.

(Failed passage in Assembly Banking and Finance Committee)

SB 1801 (Bowen-D) Credit cards

Prohibits state agencies from imposing a special fee for credit card or debit card payments.

(Failed passage in Senate Judiciary Committee)

SB 1822* (Figueroa-D) Privacy

Prohibits, under specified circumstances, a provider of an electronic mail or instant messaging service from knowingly divulging or deriving personally identifiable information, user characteristics, or content of an electronic mail or instant message while the electronic mail or instant message is being electronically stored by the provider. Permits a provider to derive content from an electronic mail or instant message being electronically stored by the provider for the provider's marketing purposes if specified conditions are met.

(Died in Assembly Judiciary Committee)

SB 1834 (Bowen-D) Radio frequency identification systems

Prohibits a private entity from using an electronic product code system that uses radio frequency identification (RFID) tags attached to consumer products or an RFID reader to gather, store, use or share information that could be used to identify an individual unless the entity complies with certain conditions.

(Died in Assembly Business and Professions Committee)

SCR 56 (Figueroa-D) Jt. Committee on Boards, Commissions, & Consumer Protection

Renames the Joint Legislative Sunset Review Committee the Joint Committee on Boards, Commissions and Consumer Protection.

Resolution Chapter 14, Statutes of 2004

SJR 2 (Figueroa-D) Privacy

Requests that the Congress of the United States exempt from preemption any state privacy law that provides greater protection to consumers than is, or will be provided by federal law.

Resolution Chapter 157, Statutes of 2004

SJR 29 (Kuehl-D) Food marketing and advertising

Requests the Congress and President of the United States to require the Federal Trade Commission to develop nutrition standards to determine acceptable advertising to children and prohibit advertising that does not meet these standards. Requests the Legislature memorializes the Federal Communications Commission to ensure that equal television time is given to promoting healthy foods as compared to unhealthy foods. Requests the Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to fund research studies on the effects of advertising on children's health. Calls on various industries to adhere to a voluntary code of standards for responsible advertising aimed at children.

Resolution Chapter 140, Statutes of 2004

AB 3 (Calderon-D) Consumer credit reporting

Enacts the Consumer Credit Reporting Equity Act of 2004, requiring a consumer credit reporting agency to remove adverse information from a consumer's credit report no later than 30 days after a tax, judgment, or civil lien has been released, as specified.

(Died in Assembly Banking and Finance Committee)

AB 62 (Bermudez-D) Outdoor advertising

Exempts, from the prohibition against placing advertising displays adjacent to landscape freeways, any billboard used to advertise specified business and development activities in the City of Whittier, subject to certain conditions. Has the effect of exempting an existing electronic message sign from the onsite premises permit requirement.

(Died in Senate Rules Committee)

AB 73 (Lowenthal-D) Consumer loans

Prohibits financial institutions and lenders from soliciting a consumer loan or credit through the use of an unsolicited check or other unsolicited negotiable instrument unless the company provides the consumer with a mechanism to choose not to receive unsolicited checks and unsolicited negotiable instruments.

(Died in Senate Judiciary Committee)

AB 83 (Corbett-D) Bottled water

Creates a new program requiring bottled water and water vending machines to meet new licensure requirements similar to those imposed on public water systems regarding emergency notification plans, consumer confidence reports, specified labeling requirements and annual inspections.

(Died in Senate Appropriations Committee)

AB 102 (Pacheco-R) Unfair competition

Amends the Unfair Competition Law to substantially limit the circumstances when a consumer may act on behalf of the general public.

(Failed passage in Assembly Judiciary Committee)

Similar legislation was AB 2369 (Correa-D), which died in Assembly Judiciary Committee.

AB 118 (Frommer-D) Rental car companies: deposit fees

Requires rental car companies to charge an impact fee to be deposited in the State Highway Account to fund road improvement and traffic congestion relief projects near airports and tourist destinations.

(Died at Senate Desk)

AB 147 (Nation-D) Food products: alcohol notice

Expands a requirement that food facilities provide written notice when selling or serving an unlabeled or unpackaged confectionary containing more than 0.5 percent alcohol by weight by applying the request to all unlabeled or unpackaged foods.

(Died in Assembly Appropriations Committee)

AB 258 (Calderon-D) Retail sales

Prohibits any retail seller from requesting personal identifying information, as defined, from any person making a return or exchange of merchandise, if paid for by cash.

(Died in Assembly Judiciary Committee)

AB 451 (Lowenthal-D) Cellular and wireless telephone service

Requires wireless telephone service providers to include in a customer's billing statement a table that provides the specified information regarding the service plan.

(Died in Assembly Business and Professions Committee)

AB 558 (Correa-D) Health studios

Increase the existing limit on health studio services contracts and revises cancellation rights.

(Died on Senate Inactive File)

AB 567 (Simitian-D) Advertising

Modifies existing law concerning unsolicited electronic mail (e-mail) to allow a recipient of unsolicited e-mail advertisements to bring an action against the initiator of an unsolicited commercial e-mail for the recovery of actual damages or $1,000, whichever is greater, for each violation.

(Died in Senate Business and Professions Committee)

AB 656 (Corbett-D) Gift certificates

Clarifies that gift certificates purchased for another person are subject to the existing prohibition on expiration dates for gift certificates.

Chapter 319, Statutes of 2004

AB 699 (Lieber-D) Contractors

Requires the Office of the Legislative Analyst, not later than January 1, 2005, to complete and submit to the Legislature a study concerning the construction inspector certification programs of the Office of Statewide Health, Planning and Development and the State Department of General Services, as specified.

(Died in Assembly Appropriations Committee)

AB 761 (Oropeza-D) Automotive repair

Creates an "Automotive Repair Report Card Pilot Program" to provide for the public posting of a ranked warning system based on disciplinary actions taken against automotive repair dealers and their employees.

(Died in Assembly Business and Professions Committee)

AB 830 (Oropeza-D) Service stations: restrooms

Requires every service station in the state, regardless of location, to provide public restrooms for its customers.

(Died in Assembly Business and Professions Committee)

AB 832 (Montanez-D) Consumer loans: discrimination

Prohibits the denial of a consumer loan application on the basis of applicant's race, ethnicity, national origin, native language, or residential or business address. Authorizes an applicant to bring a cause of action for a violation.

(Died in Assembly Banking and Finance Committee)

AB 970 (Correa-D) Automotive repair regulations

Provides that the Director of the State Department of Consumer Affairs may adopt and enforce rules and regulations to promote a fair, healthy, and competitive automotive repair marketplace for the consumer.

(Died in Senate Business and Professions Committee)

AB 973 (Yee-D) Interpretation services

Requires the State Department of Consumer Affairs to create a web site to present information regarding language interpretations services and resources for this state.

(Died in Assembly Business and Professions Committee)

AB 1078 (Runner-R) Telephone solicitations

Requires a person who contacts a consumer by telephone in order to solicit a magazine, newspaper, or newsletter subscription renewal or extension to notify the consumer of the termination date of the current subscription prior to requesting the consumer to renew or extend the subscription, and makes a violation a crime.

(Died in Assembly Business and Professions Committee)

AB 1079 (Bermudez-D) Automotive repair

Defines the term customer for purposes of state auto repair regulation, specifies who may be designated to authorize auto repair work to be performed, and corrects an erroneous cross reference in the auto repair law.

Chapter 874, Statutes of 2004

AB 1139 (Lowenthal-D) Medical services: labeling

Mandates labeling of medical drugs or devices that control Di-(2-Ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP).

(Died in Assembly Health Committee)

AB 1143 (Simitian-D) Consumer information protection

Adds Internet service providers to the list of "witnesses" who have and maintain personal records of a consumer, such as physicians, clinical laboratories, security brokerage firms, attorneys, accountants, insurance companies and schools, that may be subject to a subpoena duces tecum for production of a consumer's personal records in connection with a civil action or proceeding.

(Died in Senate Judiciary Committee)

AB 1540 (Runner-R) Outdoor advertising

Exempts applications for the renewal of a valid existing permit that was received on or before December 31, 2002, from these consent requirements.

(Died in Assembly Governmental Organization Committee)

AB 1623 (Longville-D) Investigative consumer reports

Contains various minor changes to the Investigative Consumer Reporting Agencies Act. Clarifies various definitions and the application of certain requirements, and conforms civil penalty dollar amounts.

(Died in Senate Appropriations Committee)

AB 1713 (Assembly Judiciary Committee) Consumer arbitration agreement

Adds definitions and remedies for private arbitration company obligations related to the Assembly Judiciary Committee's arbitration package of last year.

(Died on Assembly Inactive File)

AB 1714 (Assembly Judiciary Committee) Arbitration: consumer arbitration agreements

Revises the provisions regarding the revocability of a written agreement to arbitrate, to provide that these agreements may not be revoked except upon the grounds that exist for rescission of a contract.

(Died at Senate Desk)

AB 1721 (Koretz-D) Prices: overcharges

Prohibits any person, at the time of sale of a commodity, from charging an amount greater than the price, or computing an amount greater than a true extension of the price per unit, that is then advertised, posted, marked, displayed, or quoted for that commodity.

Chapter 752, Statutes of 2004

AB 1782 (Jerome Horton-D) Outdoor advertising

Exempts, from the prohibition against placing advertising displays adjacent to landscaped freeways, any billboard located on property owned by the Lennox School District, subject to certain conditions.

Vetoed by the Governor

AB 1792 (Yee-D) Violent video games

Prohibits the sale, rental, distribution, mailing, and exhibition of violent video games to minors.

(Died in Assembly Arts, Entertainment, Sports, Tourism, and Internet Media Committee)

AB 1793 (Yee-D) Video games: ratings

Requires video game retailers to post signs regarding the availability of a video game ratings system and make brochures available that explain the system.

Chapter 630, Statutes of 2004

AB 1839 (Montanez-D) Car Buyers Bill of Rights

Enacts the Car Buyers Bill of Rights which places caps on markups of dealer financing and requires disclosure of consumer credit scores, places regulations on the sale of certified used vehicles, and requires disclosure for "add-ons" to vehicle sales contracts.

Vetoed by the Governor

AB 1878 (Chan-D) Motor scooters

Requires operators of motor scooters, as defined, to be licensed or permitted and places restrictions on the alteration or modification of a motor scooter's exhaust system to amplify or create excessive noise.

Chapter 755, Statutes of 2004

AB 1887 (Nakanishi-R) Motor fuel: signage

Exempts electronic changeable message centers advertising gasoline from prohibitions on advertising other products, as specified.

Chapter 72, Statutes of 2004

AB 2025 (Chu-D) Adulterated cosmetics

Restricts the sale of cosmetics and personal care products, as defined, that contain known carcinogens or reproductive toxins.

(Died in Assembly Health Committee)

AB 2092 (Liu-D) Credit card solicitations

Prohibits a business that has personal information that it knows, or reasonably should know, to be about a minor child from disclosing that information to a third party, as defined, for the purpose of enabling the party to make a personalized, unsolicited offer for an extension of credit to the minor.

(Died on Assembly Inactive File)

AB 2094 (Liu-D) Credit: preprinted checks

Requires an activation process for preprinted checks or drafts attached to a credit card account.

(Failed passage in Assembly Banking and Finance Committee)

AB 2193 (Nation-D) Tanning facilities

Prohibits persons under 14 years of age from using a tanning device unless prescribed by a doctor.

Chapter 758, Statutes of 2004

AB 2297 (Vargas-D) Imported candy

Expands the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Act of 1991 to require the State Department of Health Services to regulate the lead content of imported candy.

(Failed passage in Senate Health and Human Services Committee)

AB 2326 (Corbett-D) Prescription drugs: report card

Requires the Office of Patient Advocate in the State Department of Managed Health Care (DMHC) to publish a report card on DMHC's web site, which addresses the safety, effectiveness and cost of prescription drugs. Requires this report card to be updated annually and specifies certain information that should be considered and actions that should be taken in regard to the report card.

(Failed passage in Senate Appropriations Committee)

AB 2363 (Correa-D) Lease contracts: translations

Requires a prospective assignees who provides a lessor with any preprinted form for use as a lease contract to provide the lessor with a Chinese, Tagalog, Korean, or Vietnamese language translation of the preprinted form.

(Died in Senate Judiciary Committee)

AB 2371 (Bates-R) Contingent fee agreements

Enacts the Legal Consumer's Protection Act, requiring contingent fee attorneys to make specified disclosures of reports.

(Died in Assembly Judiciary Committee)

AB 2374 (Bates-R) Debt collection: notices

Requires a debt collector, when submitting negative information to a consumer credit reporting agency, to verify that the address to which the debt collector sends notice of the negative information is substantially the same as the address associated with the consumer's credit report. If the address for notifying the consumer is not substantially the same as the address associated with consumer's credit report, requires the debt collector to send notice of the negative information to both addresses.

(Died in Assembly Banking and Finance Committee)

AB 2503 (Liu-D) Rental vehicles

Requires a rental car company to provide a renter of a 15-passenger van with a copy of the State Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's warning and safety recommendations for 15-passenger vans titled, "Reducing The Risk of Rollover Crashes in 15-Passenger Vans." If the warning is updated, the bill requires the furnishing of the updated warning.

Chapter 883, Statutes of 2004

AB 2656 (Jackson-D) Motor vehicles: contracts

Regulates the circumstances under which consumers may waive their legal rights in contracts with specified automobile dealers.

(Died on Assembly Inactive File)

AB 2708 (Reyes-D) Motorized vehicles: disclosure

Requires a person who sells at retail a two-wheeled motorized vehicle, commonly known as a "pocket bike," that is not stamped or affixed with a 17-digit vehicle identification number in conformance with federal regulations, and the operation of that motorized vehicle on the highways violates safety equipment requirements, to notify the purchaser, either verbally or in writing, that it is illegal to operate that motorized vehicle on a highway because of specified reasons.

(Died in Senate Rules Committee)

AB 2715 (Reyes-D) Telemarketing

Requires a person or entity conducting business in California that contracts with a customer sales call center or a customer service telephone desk, as defined, to include a provision in the contract that requires a customer service employee to disclose his or her location upon the request of a California resident.

Vetoed by the Governor

AB 2723 (Laird-D) Consumer warranties: service and repair

Provides that the state consumer warrantly law applies to building materials and other consumer goods which cannot practicably be serviced or repaired because of the method of installation, and provides that the manufacturer must replace and install the goods or reimburse the buyer in an amount equal to the purchase price paid by the buyer, including installation costs, less that amount directly attributable to use by the buyer prior to the discovery of the nonconformity.

Chapter 331, Statutes of 2004

AB 2761 (Leno-D) Vehicle rental agreements

Permits rental car companies to separately quote and charge additional rental fees and charges in addition to the contract base rental rate to qualified business renters renting under a business program, so long as a good faith estimate of the total charge is provided to the renter at the time the reservation is made or when the car is picked up for rental, as specified.

Chapter 536, Statutes of 2004

AB 2763 (Diaz-D) Food labeling

Allows temporary food facilities to keep sushi, teriyaki chicken, and manju at room temperature for up to 24 hours. Defines these foods and requires them to be labeled with the time of manufacture.

(Died in Senate Health and Human Services Committee)

AB 2787 (Leslie-R) Computer spyware

Prohibits a person or entity doing business in California from hijacking a user's computer in this state, and authorizes civil penalties and a right of private action for violations.

(Died in Senate Judiciary Committee)

AB 2840 (Corbett-D) Vehicle rental agreements

Prohibits rental companies form using, accessing, or obtaining any information relating to a renter's use of a rental vehicle obtained using electronic surveillance technology, except in certain limited circumstances.

Chapter 317, Statutes of 2004

AB 2999 (Lieber-D) Beef labeling

Require labeling of imported beef products sold by retails and restaurants.

(Died on Assembly Inactive File)

AB 3013 (Pavley-D) Credit cards

Establishes credit card companies use of account number in various circumstances.

(Died in Assembly Banking and Finance Committee)

AB 3055 (Diaz-D) Advertising

Requires the State Department of General Services to survey all state agencies and departments to determine the potential revenue generation from allowing private advertising on state property, and to report to the Legislature by December 1, 2005.

(Died in Assembly Appropriations Committee)

AB 3093 (Jerome Horton-D) Motor vehicle fuel: pricing

Requires every service station in this state to round the price per gallon or liter of motor vehicle fuel to the nearest penny.

(Died in Assembly Business and Professions Committee)

Index (in Bill Order)