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SF 3246

as introduced - 82nd Legislature (2001 - 2002) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

KEY: stricken = removed, old language.
underscored = added, new language.
  1.1                          A bill for an act
  1.2             relating to trade practices; limiting unsolicited 
  1.3             telephone calls to certain individuals; proposing 
  1.4             coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 325E.
  1.5   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.6      Section 1.  [325E.311] [DEFINITIONS.] 
  1.7      Subdivision 1.  [SCOPE.] For the purposes of sections 
  1.8   325E.311 to 325E.316, the following terms have the meanings 
  1.9   given them. 
  1.10     Subd. 2.  [CALLER.] "Caller" means a person, corporation, 
  1.11  firm, partnership, association, or legal or commercial entity 
  1.12  that attempts to contact, or that contacts, a residential 
  1.13  subscriber in this state by using a telephone or a telephone 
  1.14  line. 
  1.15     Subd. 3.  [CALLER IDENTIFICATION SERVICE.] "Caller 
  1.16  identification service" means a telephone service that permits 
  1.17  telephone subscribers to see the telephone number of incoming 
  1.18  telephone calls. 
  1.19     Subd. 4.  [RESIDENTIAL SUBSCRIBER.] "Residential subscriber"
  1.20  means a person who has subscribed to residential telephone 
  1.21  services from a telephone company or the other persons living or 
  1.22  residing with the subscribing person. 
  1.23     Subd. 5.  [TELEPHONE SOLICITATION.] "Telephone solicitation"
  1.24  means any voice communication over a telephone line for the 
  1.25  purpose of encouraging the purchase or rental of, or investment 
  2.1   in, property, goods, or services, whether the communication is 
  2.2   made by a live operator, through the use of an automatic 
  2.3   dialing-announcing device as defined in section 325E.26, 
  2.4   subdivision 2, or by other means.  Telephone solicitation does 
  2.5   not include communications: 
  2.6      (1) to any residential subscriber with that subscriber's 
  2.7   prior express invitation or permission; 
  2.8      (2) by or on behalf of any person or entity with whom a 
  2.9   residential subscriber has a prior or current business or 
  2.10  personal relationship; or 
  2.11     (3) by or on behalf of an organization listed in Minnesota 
  2.12  Statutes 2000, section 290.21, subdivision 3, paragraphs (a) to 
  2.13  (e). 
  2.14     Sec. 2.  [325E.312] [TELEPHONE SOLICITATIONS.] 
  2.15     Subdivision 1.  [PERSONS INCLUDED IN NO-CALL LIST.] No 
  2.16  caller shall make or cause to be made any telephone solicitation 
  2.17  to the telephone line of any residential subscriber in this 
  2.18  state who has given notice to the commissioner, according to 
  2.19  section 325E.313, of that residential subscriber's objection to 
  2.20  receiving telephone solicitations. 
  2.21     Subd. 2.  [IDENTIFICATION OF CALLER.] Any caller who makes 
  2.22  a telephone solicitation to a residential subscriber in this 
  2.23  state shall state the caller's identity and the telephone number 
  2.24  of the caller clearly at the beginning of the call. 
  2.25     Subd. 3.  [INTERFERENCE WITH CALLER IDENTIFICATION.] No 
  2.26  caller who makes a telephone solicitation to a residential 
  2.27  subscriber in this state shall knowingly use any method to block 
  2.28  or otherwise circumvent the subscriber's use of a caller 
  2.29  identification service. 
  2.30     Sec. 3.  [325E.313] [NO-CALL LIST.] 
  2.31     Subdivision 1.  [ESTABLISHMENT OF LIST.] The commissioner 
  2.32  shall establish and maintain a list of telephone numbers of 
  2.33  residential subscribers who object to receiving telephone 
  2.34  solicitations.  The commissioner may fulfill the requirements of 
  2.35  this subdivision by contracting with an agent for the 
  2.36  establishment and maintenance of the list.  The list must be 
  3.1   established by January 1, 2003. 
  3.2      Subd. 2.  [OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE OF LIST.] (a) Each 
  3.3   local exchange company must inform its residential subscribers 
  3.4   of the opportunity to provide notification to the commission or 
  3.5   its contractor that the subscriber objects to receiving 
  3.6   telephone solicitations.  The notification must be made in the 
  3.7   manner prescribed by the commissioner. 
  3.8      (b) Any residential subscriber may contact the commissioner 
  3.9   or the commissioner's agent and give notice, in the manner 
  3.10  prescribed by the commissioner, that the subscriber objects to 
  3.11  receiving telephone solicitations.  The commissioner shall add 
  3.12  the telephone number of any subscriber who gives notice of 
  3.13  objection to the list maintained pursuant to subdivision 1 
  3.14  within 90 days of the date the notice is received. 
  3.15     (c) Any notice given by a subscriber under this subdivision 
  3.16  shall be effective for two years unless revoked by the 
  3.17  subscriber.  Any subsequent notices given by the same subscriber 
  3.18  related to a different telephone number are separate from the 
  3.19  original notice. 
  3.20     (d) The commissioner shall establish the procedures by 
  3.21  which a notice of objection may be given under this subdivision. 
  3.22  Those procedures shall, to the extent practicable, allow for 
  3.23  notice to be given by mail or electronically. 
  3.24     (e) The commissioner shall establish the procedures by 
  3.25  which a person wishing to make telephone solicitations may 
  3.26  obtain access to the list.  Those procedures shall, to the 
  3.27  extent practicable, allow for access to paper or electronic 
  3.28  copies of the list. 
  3.29     Subd. 3.  [USE OF FEDERAL LIST.] If, pursuant to United 
  3.30  States Code, title 47, section 227(c)(3), the Federal 
  3.31  Communications Commission establishes a single national list of 
  3.32  telephone numbers of subscribers who object to receiving 
  3.33  telephone solicitations, the commissioner shall include 
  3.34  subscribers who live in Minnesota and are included in the 
  3.35  national list in the list established under this section. 
  3.36     Sec. 4.  [325E.314] [FEES.] 
  4.1      A person or entity desiring to make telephone solicitations 
  4.2   shall pay a fee, payable to the commissioner, for access to, or 
  4.3   for paper or electronic copies of, the list established under 
  4.4   section 325E.313.  The fee shall be $50 for the first year the 
  4.5   list is available.  After that time, the fee shall be in an 
  4.6   amount the commissioner determines is adequate to cover the 
  4.7   costs of carrying out the requirements of sections 325E.311 to 
  4.8   325E.316. 
  4.9      Sec. 5.  [325E.315] [RELEASE OF INFORMATION.] 
  4.10     Information contained in the list established under section 
  4.11  325E.313 shall be used only for the purposes of compliance with 
  4.12  sections 325E.311 to 325E.316 or in a proceeding or action under 
  4.13  section 325E.316.  The information contained in the list is 
  4.14  private data on individuals or nonpublic data as defined in 
  4.15  section 13.02. 
  4.16     Sec. 6.  [325E.316] [PENALTIES.] 
  4.17     Subdivision 1.  [ENFORCEMENT BY COMMISSIONER.] In enforcing 
  4.18  sections 325E.311 to 325E.316, the commissioner has all powers 
  4.19  provided by section 45.027, including, but not limited to, the 
  4.20  power to impose a civil penalty to a maximum of $2,000 for each 
  4.21  solicitation that violates section 325E.312. 
  4.22     Subd. 2.  [PRIVATE REMEDIES.] A person who has received 
  4.23  more than one telephone solicitation within any 12-month period 
  4.24  by or on behalf of the same person or entity in violation of 
  4.25  section 325E.312, may bring an action under section 8.31, 
  4.26  subdivision 3a. 
  4.27     Subd. 3.  [DEFENSES.] (a) In any action or proceeding 
  4.28  against a person under this section, it shall be a defense that 
  4.29  the defendant has established and implemented, with due care, 
  4.30  reasonable practices and procedures to effectively prevent 
  4.31  telephone solicitations in violation of section 325E.312. 
  4.32     (b) No provider of caller identification service shall be 
  4.33  held liable for violations of section 325E.312 committed by 
  4.34  other persons or entities. 
  4.35     Subd. 4.  [TIME LIMITATIONS.] No action or proceeding may 
  4.36  be brought under this section: 
  5.1      (1) more than two years after the person bringing the 
  5.2   action knew or should have known of the alleged violation; or 
  5.3      (2) more than two years after the termination of any 
  5.4   proceeding or action by the state of Minnesota, whichever is 
  5.5   later. 
  5.6      Subd. 5.  [JURISDICTION.] A court of this state may 
  5.7   exercise personal jurisdiction over any nonresident or the 
  5.8   nonresident's executor or administrator as to an action or 
  5.9   proceeding authorized by this section according to the 
  5.10  provisions of section 543.19. 
  5.11     Subd. 6.  [OTHER REMEDIES.] The remedies, duties, 
  5.12  prohibitions, and penalties of this section are not exclusive 
  5.13  and are in addition to all other causes of action, remedies, and 
  5.14  penalties provided by law.