Download Zipped Introduced WP 8.0 HB0135.ZIP 11,316 Bytes
[Status][Bill Documents][Fiscal Note][Bills Directory]

H.B. 135

             1     

PREVENTION OF UNAUTHORIZED

             2     
TELECOMMUNICATIONS PROVIDER CHANGE

             3     
1999 GENERAL SESSION

             4     
STATE OF UTAH

             5     
Sponsor: Sheryl L. Allen

             6      John E. Swallow




             7      AN ACT RELATING TO PUBLIC UTILITIES; PROHIBITING THE UNAUTHORIZED
             8      TELECOMMUNICATIONS PROVIDER CHANGE KNOWN AS SLAMMING; PROVIDING
             9      DEFINITIONS; PRESCRIBING CHANGE AND VERIFICATION PROCEDURES AND
             10      RECORDS; REQUIRING RESTITUTION; AUTHORIZING THE PUBLIC SERVICE
             11      COMMISSION TO PROMULGATE RULES; PROVIDING AND PRESCRIBING PENALTIES
             12      AND PROCEDURES FOR SUBSCRIBER COMPLAINTS; AND REQUIRING NOTICE OF
             13      CHANGE TO SUBSCRIBERS.
             14      This act affects sections of Utah Code Annotated 1953 as follows:
             15      ENACTS:
             16          54-8b-18, Utah Code Annotated 1953
             17      Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
             18          Section 1. Section 54-8b-18 is enacted to read:
             19          54-8b-18. Slamming -- Definitions -- Unauthorized change of telecommunications
             20      provider -- Unauthorized charges -- Procedures for verification -- Penalties -- Authority of
             21      commission.
             22          (1) For purposes of this section:
             23          (a) "Agents" includes any person, firm, or corporation representing a telecommunications
             24      corporation for purposes of requesting a change in a subscriber's telecommunications provider, but
             25      does not include a local service provider when executing a request submitted by another service
             26      provider or its agents.
             27          (b) "Freeze" means a directive from a subscriber to retain the provider of public


             28      telecommunications services selected by the subscriber until the subscriber provides authorization
             29      for a change to another provider of public telecommunications services through any means by
             30      which a freeze is implemented.
             31          (c) "Slamming" means changing of a subscriber's service provider without the prior
             32      knowledge and authorization of the subscriber as provided in Subsection (2)(c).
             33          (d) "Small commercial subscriber" is a person or entity conducting a business, agriculture,
             34      or other enterprise in the state having less than five telecommunications lines.
             35          (e) "Subscriber" means a corporation, person, or government, or a person acting legally
             36      on behalf of a corporation, person, or government who has purchased public telecommunications
             37      services from a telecommunications corporation.
             38          (2) No telecommunications corporation or its agents shall make any change or authorize
             39      a different telecommunications corporation to make any change in the provider of any public
             40      telecommunications service to a subscriber unless it complies, at a minimum, with Subsections
             41      (2)(a) through (e). This Subsection (2) does not apply to a telecommunications corporation that
             42      effectuates a change in service provider pursuant to a change authorization submitted or requested
             43      by another telecommunications corporation.
             44          (a) The telecommunications corporation or its agents shall, at a minimum, inform the
             45      subscriber of the nature, extent, and rates of the service being offered and any charges associated
             46      with the change.
             47          (b) Notwithstanding Section 13-26-4 , changes in provider of telecommunication service
             48      accomplished through telephone solicitation shall comply with the Telephone Fraud Prevention
             49      Act, Sections 13-26-2 , 13-26-8 , 13-26-10 , and 13-26-11 .
             50          (c) For sales of residential service or small commercial subscriber service, the
             51      telecommunications corporation or its agents shall confirm that the subscriber is aware of any
             52      charges that the subscriber must pay associated with the change and that the subscriber authorizes
             53      the change of provider. The subscriber's authorization to change the provider shall be confirmed
             54      by any one of the following methods:
             55          (i) obtaining the subscriber's written authorization;
             56          (ii) having the subscriber's oral authorization verified by an independent third party; or
             57          (iii) any means provided by rule of the Federal Communications Commission or the
             58      commission.


             59          (d) If the subscriber is not an individual, an authorization shall be valid only if given by
             60      an authorized representative of the subscriber.
             61          (e) (i) The written authorization to change the provider shall be signed by the subscriber
             62      and shall contain a clear, conspicuous, and unequivocal request by the subscriber for a change of
             63      telecommunications provider.
             64          (ii) A written authorization is not valid if it is presented to the subscriber for signature in
             65      connection with a sweepstakes, game of chance, or any other means prohibited by commission
             66      rule.
             67          (iii) Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit any person from offering a
             68      premium, incentive, or a thing of value to another as consideration for authorizing a change of
             69      telecommunications service provider, provided that no element of chance or skill is associated with
             70      the offer of the premium, incentive, or thing of value or its receipt.
             71          (3) The confirmation by a third-party verifier shall, at a minimum:
             72          (a) confirm the subscriber's identity with information unique to the customer, unless the
             73      customer refuses to provide identifying information, then that fact shall be noted;
             74          (b) confirm that the subscriber agrees to the requested change in telecommunications
             75      service providers; and
             76          (c) confirm that the subscriber has the authority to select the provider as the provider of
             77      that service.
             78          (4) A third-party verifier shall meet each of the following criteria:
             79          (a) any criteria for third-party verifiers set by the Federal Communications Commission;
             80          (b) not be directly or indirectly managed, controlled, directed, or owned wholly or in part:
             81          (i) by the telecommunications corporation or its agents that seek to provide the
             82      telecommunications service or by any corporation, firm, or person who directly or indirectly
             83      manages, controls, directs, or owns more than 5% of the telecommunications corporation; or
             84          (ii) by the marketing entity that seeks to market the telecommunications service or by any
             85      corporation, firm, or person who directly or indirectly manages, controls, directs, or owns more
             86      than 5% of the marketing entity;
             87          (c) operate from facilities physically separated from:
             88          (i) those of the telecommunications corporation or its agents that seek to provide the
             89      subscriber's telecommunications service; or


             90          (ii) those of the marketing entity that seeks to market a telecommunications service to the
             91      subscriber; and
             92          (d) not derive commissions or compensation based upon the number of change
             93      authorizations verified.
             94          (5) A telecommunications corporation or its agents seeking to verify the change
             95      authorization shall connect the subscriber to the third-party verifier or arrange for the third-party
             96      verifier to call the subscriber to verify the change authorization.
             97          (6) A third-party verifier that obtains the subscriber's oral verification regarding the change
             98      shall record that verification by obtaining appropriate verification data.
             99          (7) (a) The record verifying a subscriber's change of provider shall be available to the
             100      subscriber upon request.
             101          (b) Information obtained from the subscriber through verification may not be used for any
             102      other purpose.
             103          (c) Any intentional unauthorized release of the information in Subsection (7)(b) is grounds
             104      for penalties or other action by the commission or remedies provided by law to the aggrieved
             105      subscriber against the telecommunications corporation, third-party verifier, their agents, or their
             106      employees who are responsible for the violation.
             107          (8) The third-party verification shall occur in the same language as that in which the
             108      change was solicited.
             109          (9) The verification requirements described in this section shall apply to all changes in the
             110      provider of any public telecommunications service.
             111          (10) The commission may promulgate rules:
             112          (a) necessary to implement this section;
             113          (b) consistent with any rules promulgated by the Federal Communications Commission;
             114      and
             115          (c) in a nondiscriminatory and competitively neutral manner.
             116          (11) (a) Each subscriber may elect to require the telecommunications corporation
             117      providing the subscriber's local exchange service to implement a freeze until the subscriber
             118      provides authorization for a change to another provider of public telecommunications services.
             119          (b) Once a subscriber has elected the freeze option under Subsection (11)(a), the
             120      telecommunications corporation providing the subscriber's local exchange service may not process


             121      a request to change the subscriber to another provider of telecommunications services without
             122      prior authorization directly from the subscriber.
             123          (12) (a) Whenever the subscriber's provider of a telecommunications service changes, the
             124      new provider shall:
             125          (i) retain a record of the verified change authorization consistent with requirements of the
             126      Federal Communications Commission or rules issued by the commission; and
             127          (ii) be responsible for providing a conspicuous notice of the change within 30 days of the
             128      effective date of the change of service.
             129          (b) At a minimum, the notice in Subsection (12)(a)(ii) shall identify the new provider,
             130      contain a general description of the service and price, and provide information necessary for the
             131      subscriber to have questions answered or to rescind the change.
             132          (13) Any bill shall identify each telecommunications service provider of
             133      telecommunication service for which billing is rendered.
             134          (14) (a) Any person or provider of telecommunications service inadvertently or knowingly
             135      designating or changing the subscriber's telecommunications service provider in violation of this
             136      section shall refund to the subscriber any amounts required by the rules of the Federal
             137      Communications Commission and the commission.
             138          (b) The unauthorized provider in Subsection (14)(a) additionally shall:
             139          (i) bear all costs of restoring the customer to the service of the subscriber's original service
             140      provider; and
             141          (ii) pay to any other telecommunications provider any fees set by the commission for the
             142      designation or change.
             143          (15) Proceedings for violations of this section may be commenced by request for agency
             144      action filed with the commission by a subscriber, a telecommunications corporation, the Division
             145      of Public Utilities, or by the commission on its own motion.
             146          (16) Any telecommunications corporation, its agents, or a third-party verifier who violates
             147      this section or rules adopted to implement this section shall be subject to the provisions of Sections
             148      54-7-23 through 54-7-29 .
             149          (17) The commission is granted authority to enforce violations of slamming in interstate
             150      and intrastate telecommunication service involving telecommunications corporations operating in
             151      the state.






Legislative Review Note
    as of 2-2-99 4:14 PM


A limited legal review of this legislation raises no obvious constitutional or statutory concerns.

Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel


[Bill Documents][Bills Directory]