Minnesota Session Laws - 2002, Regular Session

                            CHAPTER 367-S.F.No. 3246 
                  An act relating to trade practices; limiting 
                  unsolicited telephone calls to certain individuals; 
                  appropriating money; proposing coding for new law in 
                  Minnesota Statutes, chapter 325E. 
        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
           Section 1.  [325E.311] [DEFINITIONS.] 
           Subdivision 1.  [SCOPE.] For the purposes of sections 
        325E.311 to 325E.316, the terms in subdivisions 2 to 6 have the 
        meanings given them. 
           Subd. 2.  [CALLER.] "Caller" means a person, corporation, 
        firm, partnership, association, or legal or commercial entity 
        that attempts to contact, or that contacts, a residential 
        subscriber in this state by using a telephone or a telephone 
        line. 
           Subd. 3.  [CALLER IDENTIFICATION SERVICE.] "Caller 
        identification service" means a telephone service that permits 
        telephone subscribers to see the telephone number of incoming 
        telephone calls. 
           Subd. 4.  [COMMISSIONER.] "Commissioner" means the 
        commissioner of commerce. 
           Subd. 5.  [RESIDENTIAL SUBSCRIBER.] "Residential subscriber"
        means a person who has subscribed to residential telephone 
        services from a telephone company or the other persons living or 
        residing with the subscribing person. 
           Subd. 6.  [TELEPHONE SOLICITATION.] "Telephone solicitation"
        means any voice communication over a telephone line for the 
        purpose of encouraging the purchase or rental of, or investment 
        in, property, goods, or services, whether the communication is 
        made by a live operator, through the use of an automatic 
        dialing-announcing device as defined in section 325E.26, 
        subdivision 2, or by other means.  Telephone solicitation does 
        not include communications: 
           (1) to any residential subscriber with that subscriber's 
        prior express invitation or permission; 
           (2) by or on behalf of any person or entity with whom a 
        residential subscriber has a prior or current business or 
        personal relationship; 
           (3) by or on behalf of an organization that is identified 
        as a nonprofit organization under state or federal law; or 
           (4) by a person soliciting without the intent to complete, 
        and who does not in fact complete, the sales presentation during 
        the call, but who will complete the sales presentation at a 
        later face-to-face meeting between the solicitor who makes the 
        call and the prospective purchaser. 
           Sec. 2.  [325E.312] [TELEPHONE SOLICITATIONS.] 
           Subdivision 1.  [PERSONS INCLUDED IN NO-CALL LIST.] No 
        caller shall make or cause to be made any telephone solicitation 
        to the telephone line of any residential subscriber in this 
        state who is on the no-call list established and maintained 
        under section 325E.313. 
           Subd. 2.  [IDENTIFICATION OF CALLER.] Any caller who makes 
        a telephone solicitation to a residential subscriber in this 
        state shall state the caller's identity clearly at the beginning 
        of the call and, if requested, the caller's telephone number. 
           Subd. 3.  [INTERFERENCE WITH CALLER IDENTIFICATION.] No 
        caller who makes a telephone solicitation to a residential 
        subscriber in this state shall knowingly use any method to block 
        or otherwise deliberately circumvent the subscriber's use of a 
        caller identification service. 
           Sec. 3.  [325E.313] [NO-CALL LIST.] 
           Subdivision 1.  [ESTABLISHMENT OF LIST.] The commissioner 
        shall establish and maintain a list of telephone numbers of 
        residential subscribers who object to receiving telephone 
        solicitations.  The commissioner may fulfill the requirements of 
        this subdivision by contracting with an agent for the 
        establishment and maintenance of the list.  The list must be 
        established by January 1, 2003. 
           Subd. 2.  [OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE OF LIST.] (a) Each 
        local exchange company must inform its residential subscribers 
        of the opportunity to provide notification to the commissioner 
        or its contractor that the subscriber objects to receiving 
        telephone solicitations.  The notification must be made in the 
        manner prescribed by the commissioner. 
           (b) Any residential subscriber may contact the commissioner 
        or the commissioner's agent and give notice, in the manner 
        prescribed by the commissioner, that the subscriber objects to 
        receiving telephone solicitations.  The commissioner shall add 
        the telephone number of any subscriber who gives notice of 
        objection to the list maintained pursuant to subdivision 1 
        within 90 days of the date the notice is received. 
           (c) Any notice given by a subscriber under this subdivision 
        shall be effective for four years unless revoked by the 
        subscriber.  Any subsequent notices given by the same subscriber 
        related to a different telephone number are separate from the 
        original notice. 
           (d) The commissioner shall allow consumers to give notice 
        under this subdivision by mail or electronically. 
           (e) The commissioner shall establish the procedures by 
        which a person wishing to make telephone solicitations may 
        obtain access to the list.  Those procedures shall, to the 
        extent practicable, allow for access to paper or electronic 
        copies of the list. 
           Subd. 3.  [USE OF FEDERAL LIST.] If, pursuant to United 
        States Code, title 15, section 6102(a), the Federal Trade 
        Commission establishes a national list of telephone numbers of 
        subscribers who object to receiving telephone solicitations, the 
        commissioner shall include subscribers who live in Minnesota and 
        are included in the national list in the list established under 
        this section.  The commissioner shall also transmit to the 
        Federal Trade Commission the telephone numbers included on the 
        no-call list established under this section and shall request 
        that they be included in the national list.  
           Sec. 4.  [325E.314] [FEES; ACQUISITION AND USE OF LIST.] 
           (a) A person or entity desiring to make telephone 
        solicitations shall pay a fee, payable to the commissioner, for 
        access to, or for paper or electronic copies of, the list 
        established under section 325E.313.  The fee shall not exceed 
        $125 for each acquisition of the list.  The fee shall not exceed 
        $90 in fiscal year 2004, and the fee shall not exceed $75 in 
        fiscal year 2005 and thereafter. 
           (b) A caller who makes a telephone solicitation to the 
        telephone line of any residential subscriber must, at the time 
        of the call, have obtained access to a current version of the 
        list at least once in the 90 days prior to the call.  A caller 
        who complies with this requirement is not liable for any 
        violation of section 325E.312 relating to a solicitation made to 
        a subscriber during the first 30 days after the caller first 
        obtained a copy of the list including that subscriber's 
        telephone number that has not been superseded by a later list 
        obtained by the caller that does not include the subscriber's 
        telephone number. 
           (c) If the Federal Trade Commission establishes a national 
        do-not-call list as described in section 325E.313, subdivision 
        3, a person or entity who is required by law to obtain a copy of 
        the national list is not required to purchase or retain a copy 
        of the list established by the commissioner, unless the Federal 
        Trade Commission fails to incorporate the Minnesota names 
        transmitted by the commissioner. 
           Sec. 5.  [325E.315] [RELEASE OF INFORMATION.] 
           Information contained in the list established under section 
        325E.313 shall be used only for the purposes of compliance with 
        sections 325E.311 to 325E.316 or in a proceeding or action under 
        section 325E.316.  The information contained in the list is 
        private data on individuals or nonpublic data as defined in 
        section 13.02. 
           Sec. 6.  [325E.316] [PENALTIES.] 
           Subdivision 1.  [ENFORCEMENT BY COMMISSIONER.] In enforcing 
        sections 325E.311 to 325E.316, the commissioner has all powers 
        provided by section 45.027, including, but not limited to, the 
        power to impose a civil penalty to a maximum of $1,000 for each 
        solicitation that violates section 325E.312. 
           Subd. 2.  [DEFENSES.] (a) In any action or proceeding 
        against a person under this section, it shall be a defense that 
        the defendant has established and implemented, with due care, 
        reasonable practices and procedures to effectively prevent 
        telephone solicitations in violation of section 325E.312. 
           (b) No provider of caller identification service shall be 
        held liable for violations of section 325E.312 committed by 
        other persons or entities. 
           Subd. 3.  [TIME LIMITATIONS.] No action or proceeding may 
        be brought under this section: 
           (1) more than two years after the person bringing the 
        action knew or should have known of the alleged violation; or 
           (2) more than two years after the termination of any 
        proceeding or action by the state of Minnesota, whichever is 
        later. 
           Subd. 4.  [JURISDICTION.] A court of this state may 
        exercise personal jurisdiction over any nonresident or the 
        nonresident's executor or administrator as to an action or 
        proceeding authorized by this section according to the 
        provisions of section 543.19. 
           Subd. 5.  [OTHER REMEDIES.] The remedies, duties, 
        prohibitions, and penalties of this section are not exclusive 
        and are in addition to all other causes of action, remedies, and 
        penalties provided by law. 
           Sec. 7.  [APPROPRIATION.] 
           $482,000 is appropriated from the general fund in fiscal 
        year 2003 to the commissioner of commerce for purposes of this 
        act.  The general fund base in fiscal year 2004 is $349,000, and 
        in fiscal year 2005 is $299,000. 
           Sec. 8.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
           Sections 2 and 4 are effective 30 days after the 
        commissioner complies with the requirements of section 3, 
        subdivision 1. 
           Presented to the governor May 13, 2002 
           Signed by the governor May 15, 2002, 1:23 p.m.