Bill Text: NY A07556 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Places a cap on the amount that a rental vehicle company may charge a renter for refueling a rental vehicle; imposes a maximum fine for a violation of such cap on charges.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-01-05 - referred to consumer affairs and protection [A07556 Detail]

Download: New_York-2021-A07556-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          7556

                               2021-2022 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                      May 13, 2021
                                       ___________

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

        AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to a  cap  on  the
          amount  which  rental  vehicle companies may charge for refueling of a
          rental vehicle

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

     1    Section 1. Subdivision 10 of section 396-z of the general business law
     2  is amended by adding a new paragraph (b-1) to read as follows:
     3    (b-1)  A  rental  vehicle  company that charges for the refueling of a
     4  rental vehicle, pursuant to paragraph (b)  of  this  subdivision,  shall
     5  only  charge  the  renter  for  the  amount of gas that was necessary to
     6  return the fuel tank to the amount of fuel that was in the tank  at  the
     7  beginning of the rental. The renter shall not be charged for such gas at
     8  a  rate  exceeding one hundred twenty-five percent of the regional aver-
     9  age market value of gas as  published by the United  States  energy  and
    10  information  administration. Where a rental vehicle company has violated
    11  the provisions of this paragraph, the attorney general  may  commence  a
    12  special proceeding pursuant to subdivision thirteen of this section, and
    13  in  any  such  proceeding  the  court shall impose a civil penalty in an
    14  amount not to exceed twenty-five thousand dollars and,  where  appropri-
    15  ate, order restitution to aggrieved renters.
    16    §  2.  Subdivision  9  of section 396-z of the general business law is
    17  amended by adding a new paragraph (b-1) to read as follows:
    18    (b-1) A rental vehicle company that charges for  the  refueling  of  a
    19  rental  vehicle,  pursuant  to  paragraph (b) of this subdivision, shall
    20  only charge the renter for the amount  of  gas  that  was  necessary  to
    21  return  the  fuel tank to the amount of fuel that was in the tank at the
    22  beginning of the rental. The renter shall not be charged for such gas at
    23  a rate exceeding one hundred twenty-five percent of the regional average
    24  market value of gas as published by the United States energy and  infor-

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD08377-01-1
        A. 7556                             2

     1  mation  administration.  Where a rental vehicle company has violated the
     2  provisions of this  paragraph,  the  attorney  general  may  commence  a
     3  special  proceeding  pursuant to subdivision twelve of this section, and
     4  in  any  such  proceeding  the  court shall impose a civil penalty in an
     5  amount not to exceed twenty-five thousand dollars and,  where  appropri-
     6  ate, order restitution to aggrieved renters.
     7    §  3. This act shall take effect immediately, provided that the amend-
     8  ments to subdivision 10 of section 396-z of  the  general  business  law
     9  made  by  section one of this act shall be subject to the expiration and
    10  reversion of such section pursuant to subdivision (a) of  section  4  of
    11  chapter  109  of  the  laws of 2018, as amended, when upon such date the
    12  provisions of section two of this act shall take effect.