Bill Text: NJ S1156 | 2010-2011 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Chloe and Samantha's Law; requires notice to consumers of availability of products to prevent tip-over accidents involving certain furniture or televisions.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2010-02-04 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Commerce Committee [S1156 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2010-S1156-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator JEFF VAN DREW
District 1 (Cape May, Atlantic and Cumberland)
SYNOPSIS
Chloe and Samantha's Law; requires notice to consumers of availability of products to prevent tip-over accidents involving certain furniture or televisions.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning the sale or rental of certain consumer products and supplementing Title 2A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. Any person engaged in the business of selling or renting products directly to consumers for personal, family, or household use, shall provide written notice to a consumer regarding the existence of separately available devices designed to anchor, stabilize, or otherwise reduce or prevent product tipping and accidental injury, disability, or death, particularly with respect to young children, for any of the following consumer purchases or rentals:
(1) any dresser, bookcase, bureau, armoire, or similar furniture designed to store, display, or otherwise place items, that is 42 inches or more in height;
(2) any television with a display screen that is 25 inches or more in length; and
(3) any television stand.
b. The person shall provide the written notice to the consumer regarding the devices on a separately provided paper or other format that the consumer may retain, at the point-of-sale or rental of the product.
c. The written notice shall contain all information as prescribed by the Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs by regulation, including, but not limited to, descriptions of the devices and typical locations at which the consumer may obtain the devices.
d. The person providing the notice shall not be required to offer, sell, or otherwise supply any device described in the notice.
e. A person who violates any provision of this section shall be subject to a civil penalty of not more than $250 for a first violation and not more than $500 for each subsequent violation. The penalty shall be collected in a summary proceeding pursuant to the "Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999," P.L.1999, c.274 (C.2A:58-10 et seq.).
f. The Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs, in the Department of Law and Public Safety, shall promulgate rules and regulations in accordance with the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.) to effectuate the purposes of this section.
2. This act shall take effect on the first day of the fourth month next following the date of enactment.
STATEMENT
This bill, designated Chloe and Samantha's Law, requires written notice to consumers, when purchasing or renting certain furniture, televisions, or television stands, of the availability of separate products to prevent furniture or television tip-over accidents. Nationally, each year thousands of persons, primarily young children, are accidentally injured because of large furniture or television tip-over accidents; and in a small percentage of tip-over accidents, death occurs. One such accidental death resulted from a December 17, 2006 incident in Vineland, New Jersey, when a 27-inch television fell on top of an 18-month-old girl, Chloe Keiser. Another victim, 15-month-old Samantha Ventresca of Lawrence Township, New Jersey, died May 10, 2007, when a similarly large television struck her after falling off a bureau.
In an effort to help prevent large furniture and television tip-over accidents, the bill requires that a consumer receive written notice concerning the existence of separately available devices designed to anchor, stabilize, or otherwise prevent large furniture and television product tipping. The seller or renter shall provide the notice to the consumer on a paper sheet or other format that the consumer may retain, at the point-of-sale or rental, with respect to any of the following products:
(1) any dresser, bookcase, bureau, armoire, or similar furniture designed to store, display, or otherwise place items, that is 42 inches or more in height;
(2) any television with a display screen that is 25 inches or more in length; and
(3) any television stand.
A person that violates any provision of the bill shall be subject to a civil penalty of not more than $250 for a first violation and not more than $500 for each subsequent violation. The penalty shall be collected in a summary proceeding pursuant to the "Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999," P.L.1999, c.274 (C.2A:58-10 et seq.).
