Florida Senate - 2014                       CS for CS for SB 450
       
       
        
       By the Committees on Appropriations; and Agriculture; and
       Senators Clemens and Sobel
       
       
       
       
       576-02568A-14                                          2014450c2
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to telephone solicitation; reordering
    3         and amending s. 501.059, F.S.; redefining the term
    4         “telephonic sales call”; prohibiting a telephone
    5         solicitor from transmitting certain text messages to a
    6         consumer if the consumer is on the “no sales
    7         solicitation calls” list maintained by the Department
    8         of Agriculture and Consumer Services or if the
    9         consumer has previously communicated such a request to
   10         the telephone solicitor; making an appropriation;
   11         providing an effective date.
   12          
   13  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   14  
   15         Section 1. Subsection (1) of section 501.059, Florida
   16  Statutes, is reordered and amended, and subsection (5) of that
   17  section is amended, to read:
   18         501.059 Telephone solicitation.—
   19         (1) As used in this section, the term:
   20         (g)(a) “Telephonic sales call” means a telephone call or
   21  text message call made by a telephone solicitor to a consumer,
   22  for the purpose of soliciting a sale of any consumer goods or
   23  services, or for the purpose of soliciting an extension of
   24  credit for consumer goods or services, or for the purpose of
   25  obtaining information that will or may be used for the direct
   26  solicitation of a sale of consumer goods or services or an
   27  extension of credit for such purposes.
   28         (b) “Consumer goods or services” means any real property or
   29  any tangible or intangible personal property that which is
   30  normally used for personal, family, or household purposes,
   31  including, but not limited to without limitation, any such
   32  property intended to be attached to or installed in any real
   33  property without regard to whether it is so attached or
   34  installed, as well as cemetery lots and timeshare estates, and
   35  any services related to such property.
   36         (h)(c) “Unsolicited telephonic sales call” means a
   37  telephonic sales call other than a call made:
   38         1. In response to an express request of the person called;
   39         2. Primarily in connection with an existing debt or
   40  contract, if payment or performance of such debt or contract
   41  which has not been completed at the time of such call;
   42         3. To a any person with whom the telephone solicitor has a
   43  prior or existing business relationship; or
   44         4. By a newspaper publisher or his or her agent or employee
   45  in connection with his or her business.
   46         (f)(d) “Telephone solicitor” means a any natural person,
   47  firm, organization, partnership, association, or corporation, or
   48  a subsidiary or affiliate thereof, doing business in this state,
   49  who makes or causes to be made a telephonic sales call,
   50  including, but not limited to, calls made by use of automated
   51  dialing or recorded message devices.
   52         (a)(e) “Consumer” means an actual or prospective purchaser,
   53  lessee, or recipient of consumer goods or services.
   54         (e)(f) “Merchant” means a person who, directly or
   55  indirectly, offers or makes available to consumers any consumer
   56  goods or services.
   57         (d)(g) “Doing business in this state” means refers to
   58  businesses that who conduct telephonic sales calls from a
   59  location in Florida or from other states or nations to consumers
   60  located in Florida.
   61         (c)(h) “Department” means the Department of Agriculture and
   62  Consumer Services.
   63         (5) A telephone solicitor may not initiate an outbound
   64  telephone call or text message to a consumer who has previously
   65  communicated to the telephone solicitor that he or she does not
   66  wish to receive an outbound telephone call or text message:
   67         (a) Made by or on behalf of the seller whose goods or
   68  services are being offered; or
   69         (b) Made on behalf of a charitable organization for which a
   70  charitable contribution is being solicited.
   71         Section 2. For the 2014-2015 fiscal year, there is
   72  appropriated to the Department of Agriculture and Consumer
   73  Services, the sums of $152,175 in recurring funds and $16,103 in
   74  nonrecurring funds from the General Inspection Trust Fund, and
   75  three full-time equivalent positions with associated salary rate
   76  of 87,262 are authorized for the purpose of implementing this
   77  act.
   78         Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2014.