Sponsored by:
Senator JEFF VAN DREW
District 1 (Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland)
Senator SANDRA B. CUNNINGHAM
District 31 (Hudson)
SYNOPSIS
Establishes telemarketing fraud investigation unit.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning telemarketing practices and supplementing P.L.2003, c.76 (C.56:8-119 et seq.).
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. The Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs shall establish a telemarketing fraud investigation unit within the division. The unit shall be responsible for investigating consumer complaints of unsolicited telemarketing sales calls from:
(1) unregistered telemarketers, in violation of section 3 of P.L.2003, c.76 (C.56:8-121);
(2) telemarketing calls made in violation of the division's no call list, in violation of subsection a. of section 10 of P.L.2003, c.76 (C.56:8-128);
(3) telemarketing calls in which the telemarketer does not promptly provide identifying information for the person on behalf of whom the call is made or the purpose of the call, in violation of subsection b. of section 10 of P.L.2003, c.76 (C.56:8-128);
(4) telemarketing calls received between the hours of 9 p.m. and 8 a.m., in violation of subsection c. of section 10 of P.L.2003, c.76 (C.56:8-128);
(5) telemarketing calls made using caller identification blocking methods, in violation of subsection d. of section 10 of P.L.2003, c.76 (C.56:8-128);
(6) telemarketing calls made to any commercial mobile services device, in violation of section 12 of P.L.2003, c.76 (C.56:8-130); and
(7) any other consumer complaints related to telemarketing practices as determined by the director.
b. Pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), the Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs, may adopt rules and regulations to effectuate the purposes of this act.
2. This act shall take effect on the first day of the seventh month following enactment, but the Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs shall take such anticipatory administrative action in advance thereof as shall be necessary for the implementation of this act.
STATEMENT
This bill provides for the establishment of a telemarketing fraud investigation unit within the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety to investigate consumer complaints related to telemarketing practices.
Under the bill, the unit will be established by the director of the division, and will be responsible for investigating consumer complaints of:
(1) unsolicited telemarketing sales calls from unregistered telemarketers;
(2) telemarketing calls made in violation of the division's no call list;
(3) telemarketing calls in which the telemarketer does not promptly provide identifying information for the person on behalf of whom the call is made or the purpose of the call;
(4) telemarketing calls received between the hours of 9 p.m. and 8 a.m.;
(5) telemarketing calls made using caller identification blocking methods;
(6) telemarketing calls made to any commercial mobile services device; and
(7) any other consumer complaints related to telemarketing practices as determined by the director.
The bill authorizes the director of the division to adopt rules and regulations to effectuate the purposes of the bill.
The bill takes effect on the first day of the seventh month following enactment, but authorizes the director of the division to take anticipatory administrative actions in advance of the bill's effective date.