Bill Text: NY A04910 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Establishes requirements for certain contracts involving DOCCS and third-party care package vendors; prohibits vendors from charging more for a product than the price of the same or similar item in the commissary plus actual shipping costs.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2024-01-03 - referred to consumer affairs and protection [A04910 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A04910-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          4910

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    February 24, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  O'DONNELL  --  read once and referred to the
          Committee on Consumer Affairs and Protection

        AN ACT to amend the general business law, the  correction  law  and  the
          state  finance  law,  in relation to establishing pricing restrictions
          for certain contracts involving care package vendors

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. The general business law is amended by adding a new section
     2  396-mmm to read as follows:
     3    §  396-mmm.  Pricing  restrictions;  care  package vendors. 1. For the
     4  purposes of this section:
     5    (a) "Care package vendor" shall mean a mail-order  business  or  tele-
     6  phone  order business as such terms are defined in section three hundred
     7  ninety-six-m of this chapter that is primarily engaged in the  solicita-
     8  tion  of  orders  by  advertisement  or  otherwise for merchandise to be
     9  shipped to an incarcerated individual housed in a correctional  facility
    10  pursuant  to a contract with the department of corrections and community
    11  supervision or a state or local correctional facility.
    12    (b) "Accepts orders" shall mean, in the case of a mail order,  receipt
    13  of  an  order with payment or with charge account authorization remitted
    14  through the mail, electronic mail or the Internet, and, in the case of a
    15  telephone order, receipt of an order with charge  account  authorization
    16  and debiting the buyer's account.
    17    2.  No  person, partnership, firm, association or corporation or agent
    18  or employee thereof who conducts a care package  vendor  business  shall
    19  sell  or offer to sell any merchandise, or accept any order for merchan-
    20  dise, for an amount which exceeds the price of the same or substantially
    21  similar merchandise sold in the commissary or canteen of the correction-
    22  al facility in which the incarcerated individual to whom  such  merchan-
    23  dise  is  to be shipped is housed, plus the actual cost of shipping such
    24  merchandise to such incarcerated individual.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD08631-01-3
        A. 4910                             2

     1    3. It shall be unlawful for any person, partnership, firm, association
     2  or corporation or agent or employee thereof who conducts a care  package
     3  vendor  business to demand or accept any payment, fee, or charge from an
     4  incarcerated individual or other purchaser for any amount other than the
     5  price authorized pursuant to subdivision two of this section.
     6    4. Any contract or agreement purporting to waive or modify the pricing
     7  restrictions  set  forth  in  this  section shall be void as contrary to
     8  public policy.
     9    § 2. Section 112 of the correction law is  amended  by  adding  a  new
    10  subdivision 6 to read as follows:
    11    6.  The  commissioner shall promulgate rules and regulations requiring
    12  that every procurement contract with a care package vendor as defined in
    13  section three hundred ninety-six-mmm of the general business  law  shall
    14  contain  a  provision prohibiting such care package vendor from charging
    15  any price for its merchandise in excess of  the  amounts  authorized  by
    16  subdivision  two  of section three hundred ninety-six-mmm of the general
    17  business law. The commissioner shall monitor and enforce compliance with
    18  this subdivision.
    19    § 3. The state finance law is amended by adding a new section 165-b to
    20  read as follows:
    21    § 165-b. Purchasing restrictions; correctional facilities. The depart-
    22  ment of corrections and community supervision and  any  state  or  local
    23  correctional  facility, as defined in section two of the correction law,
    24  shall not enter into a contract with a care package vendor,  as  defined
    25  in  section  three  hundred  ninety-six-mmm of the general business law,
    26  unless such contract requires compliance with the  pricing  restrictions
    27  set  forth  in subdivisions two and three of section three hundred nine-
    28  ty-six-mmm of the general business law in accordance with the provisions
    29  of subdivision six of section one hundred twelve of the correction law.
    30    § 4. This act  shall  take  effect  immediately  and  shall  apply  to
    31  contracts entered into on and after such date.