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Trade and Commerce

Passed

P HB118

Purchase of handguns of certain officers. Allows a regional jail officer and any former Superintendent of the Department of State Police who leaves service after a minimum of five years to purchase the service handgun issued to him by the agency or institution at a price of one dollar.
Patron - Pollard

P HB251

Septic system inspectors. Changes the effective date for the imposition of minimum requirements for a person to use the title "accredited septic system inspector" from July 1, 2002, to July 1, 2003.
Patron - McQuigg

P HB576

Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act. Amends the provisions relating to transferability of a contractual interest in computer information. This amendment would remove the prohibition on limiting the transferability in the case of a merger or acquisition or sale of a subsidiary or affiliate.
Patron - May

P HB652

Consumer Protection Act; use of social security number. Prohibits a supplier from using a consumer's social security number as the consumer's account number with the supplier, if the consumer has requested in writing that the supplier use a different number. A violation of this provision is a violation of the Consumer Protection Act.
Patron - Dudley

P HB1271

Doing business under a fictitious name; registered agent. Eliminates requirements that (i) persons doing business under a fictitious name appoint a resident attorney as a registered agent and (ii) service of process against the owner of a business operating under a fictitious name be filed in the circuit court where the business is located if the owner has not appointed a registered agent.
Patron - Abbitt

P HB1292

Equipment dealers protection act. Expands protections afforded to retail dealers of farm and other types of equipment with respect to their agreements with wholesalers, manufacturers, or distributors by whom they sell or distribute goods or services or otherwise use a trade name or other commercial symbol. The existing provisions regarding farm machinery dealerships are repealed. Dealer protections include (i) prohibiting suppliers from terminating, failing to renew or substantially changing the competitive circumstances of a dealer agreement without good cause; (ii) requiring a dealer who terminates an agreement with a supplier to give the supplier at least 90 days notice of the termination; (iii) requiring suppliers to give dealers at least ninety days' written notice of termination of the agreement and a sixty-day right to cure any deficiency, or 12 months to cure if the cancellation is based upon the dealer's failure to capture the share of the market required in the agreement; (iv) requiring the supplier to repurchase the dealer's inventory within 90 days following cancellation of the agreement unless the dealer chooses to keep the inventory; and (v) giving the heir of a deceased dealer the option to require the supplier to repurchase the inventory from the heir of the dealer. Suppliers are required to pay warranty claims made by the dealer thirty days after its approval, and to approve or disapprove a warranty claim within 30 days after receipt. Suppliers are also prohibited from coercing a dealer to accept delivery of equipment, parts, or accessories that the dealer has not ordered voluntarily, conditioning the sale of additional equipment to a dealer upon a requirement that the dealer also purchase other goods or services, coercing a dealer into refusing to purchase equipment manufactured by another supplier, and terminating, canceling, or failing to renew or substantially changing the competitive circumstances of the retail agreement based on circumstances beyond the dealer's control.
Patron - Morgan

P SB323

Amusement Device Rider Safety Act; penalty. Establishes a code of conduct for riders of amusement devices. Riders are required to report injuries sustained on an amusement device before leaving the premises, and are required to obey posted rules and warnings and to refrain from acting in a manner that may cause or contribute to injuring the rider or others. Violators are subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $500. The measure states that it shall not repeal or diminish in any respect common law doctrines, which shall continue in full force and effect nor shall a violation constitute negligence per se in any civil action.
Patron - Stolle

P SB436

Roller Skating Safety Act. Establishes duties and responsibilities for the operators of roller skating rinks and skaters. The bill provides that any operator or skater who violates these duties and responsibilities may be subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $500. The bill requires DPOR to examine the feasibility and appropriateness of regulating such skating rinks. The bill will not become effective unless reenacted in the 2003 Session of the General Assembly. The bill was prompted by the tragic death of five year-old Clark Andrew Guye in a roller skating accident in Newport News, Virginia.
Patron - Williams

P SB646

Virginia Breeders Fund; Virginia-sired horses. Allows "Virginia-sired" horses to receive disbursements from the Virginia Breeders Fund. The bill also provides for owners of Virginia-bred horses to receive disbursements from the Fund if their horses earn purse money in nonrestricted races at racetracks in Virginia licensed by the Commission. Currently, these owners are only eligible for such distributions if their horses win races.
Patron - Wagner

Failed

F SB638

Virginia Racing Commission; powers; local referenda. Allows the Virginia Racing Commission to issue provisional licenses to own or operate racetracks or licenses to own satellite wagering facilities to an applicant prior to the applicant securing the approval through the local referendum required by law. The provisional licenses issued by the Commission shall only become effective upon the approval of the racetrack or satellite wagering facility in a referendum conducted in the jurisdiction in which the racetrack or satellite wagering facility is to be located. The bill also (i) removes the limit of six satellite facilities that the Commission is authorized to license, (ii) allows towns to conduct referenda on the question of whether pari-mutuel wagering shall be permitted at a licensed racetrack in (name of such county, city or town) on live horse racing at, and on simulcast horse racing transmitted from another jurisdiction to, the licensed racetrack on such days as may be approved by the Virginia Racing Commission, (iii) authorizes the Commission to regulate and establish fees for account wagering, and (iv) removes the 2005 sunset on the Commission's authority to alter the required number of live racing days.
Patron - Stolle

Carried Over

C HB466

Enterprise zones. Allows business tax credits that are not usable by a small qualified business firm in the year granted to be applied to future tax years, not to exceed five years.
Patron - Suit

C HB467

Residential uses within enterprise zone project. Provides that enterprise zone projects that consist of up to 80 percent residential usage shall be eligible for enterprise zone incentives in the same manner as other qualifying projects.
Patron - Suit

C HB485

Enterprise zone real property investment tax credit. Eliminates the requirement that the owner or tenant who is paying for the real property improvement must operate the business benefiting from the improvements.
Patron - Suit

C HB533

Unsolicited commercial electronic mail; prohibitions; penalties. Prohibits sending unsolicited commercial electronic mail to persons if it uses a third party's domain name without permission; contains false or forged transmission information; contains false or misleading information in the subject line or if the person indicates that he does not wish to receive commercial electronic mail from the sender. The bill requires the sender to identify the message as an advertisement or solicitation; provide notice of the right to decline to receive further unsolicited commercial electronic mail messages from the sender; provide a valid physical address; and provide a valid return electronic mail address for receiving requests to not receive further unsolicited commercial electronic mail messages from the sender. The bill allows interactive service providers to block commercial electronic mail sent in violation of this chapter and provides immunity from liability for such actions taken in good faith. This bill provides relief to an injured person for actual damages or the lesser of $10 for each unsolicited bulk e-mail message or $25,000 per day and states that the injured person shall not have a cause of action against an interactive computer service provider that merely transmits the e-mail message. The Attorney General, or attorney for the Commonwealth or attorney for a locality may bring an action to enforce these provisions. The purpose of the bill is to curb a practice known as "spamming," the sending of unsolicited commercial e-mail to unsuspecting recipients. This bill does not include provisions regarding falsifying transmission or routing information that are included in the Virginia Computer Crimes Act (§ 18.2-152.1 et seq.).
Patron - Devolites

C HB774

Personal Goods Sales Act. Requires any person offering to sell or donate personal goods on behalf of the owner of such goods to enter into a written agreement prior to the sale that includes a listing of the items to be sold or donated, the estimated value of those goods, and the means of compensating the seller for conducting the sale. Within 10 days of completion of the sale, the seller must provide the owner with the proceeds from the sale, an inventory of all goods sold or donated, the purchase price received for goods sold, the name and address of each charity that received a donation and the value of each donated item, the total proceeds received in the sale, and the amount of compensation taken by the seller.
Patron - Watts

C HB849

Equal access to public accommodations. Prohibits any person who owns or operates a place of public accommodation from restricting an individual from access or admission to the place of public accommodation or otherwise preventing the individual from using the place of public accommodation solely because the individual (i) operates a motorcycle, (ii) is a member of an organization or association that operates motorcycles, or (iii) wears clothing that displays the name of a motorcycle organization or association. The bill defines "public accommodation" as a business or other entity that offers to the general public food, shelter, recreation, or amusement, or any other goods, services, privilege, facility, or accommodation. The bill also permits individuals to sue to enjoin violations, recover damages in the amount of $500 per violation, or up to $1,500 for willful violations, and recover attorneys' fees and court costs.
Patron - Stump

C HB1064

Enterprise zone designations. Allows the Governor to designate up to 65 areas as enterprise zones beginning July 1, 2002, and up to 70 areas beginning July 1, 2003, and thereafter. Under current law, he may designate up to 60 areas.
Patron - Bland

C HB1112

Telephone Privacy Protection Act; Do-Not-Call List. Prohibits telephone solicitors from making telephone solicitation calls to persons who are included on a Do-Not-Call List of persons who do not wish to receive telephone solicitations. The Office of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services will contract with a nonprofit organization qualifying as a list administrator to maintain the Do-Not-Call List.
Patron - Plum

C HB1363

Unsolicited facsimile transmissions. Makes the unsolicited transmission of advertising materials by facsimile a prohibited practice under the Consumer Protection Act. The bill eliminates the requirement that the unsolicited facsimile be advertising goods or services for sale or lease. The State Corporation Commission is empowered to block access to any telephone number used in connection with such transmissions. Enforcement provisions under the Consumer Protection Act (i) permit the Attorney General to issue civil investigative demands and assurances of voluntary compliance, (ii) create an individual action for damages, and (iii) permit aggrieved parties or the Attorney General to seek injunctive relief to prevent further violations.
Patron - Nutter

C SB423

Telephone Privacy Protection Act. Prohibits telephone solicitors from making telephone solicitations to persons who are included on a database of persons who do not wish to receive telephone solicitations. The Office of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services will maintain the database and provide copies to telephone solicitors for a $10 annual fee. Persons may be placed on the database upon written notice and payment of a $10 registration fee and a five dollar annual renewal fee. Violations of the Telephone Privacy Protection Act are a prohibited practice under the Consumer Protection Act and are subject to the enforcement provisions of the Virginia Consumer Protection Act, except that private actions for damages are set at $500 per violation, which may be increased, in the court's discretion, to an amount not exceeding $1,500. Telephone companies are required to notify customers about the database and their rights under the Act. The measure also prohibits telephone solicitors from using a predictive automated dialing system to make a telephone solicitation if a telephone call generated by such system does not immediately connect the person answering the telephone call with an individual who is the telephone solicitor or an employee or agent of the telephone solicitor.
Patron - Byrne

C SB567

Unsolicited commercial electronic mail; prohibitions; penalties. Prohibits sending unsolicited commercial electronic mail to persons if it uses a third party's domain name without permission; contains false or forged transmission information; contains false or misleading information in the subject line or if the person indicates that he does not wish to receive commercial electronic mail from the sender. The bill requires the sender to identify the message as an advertisement or solicitation; provide notice of the right to decline to receive further unsolicited commercial electronic mail messages from the sender; provide a valid physical address; provide a valid return electronic mail address for receiving requests to not receive further unsolicited commercial electronic mail messages from the sender. The bill allows interactive service providers to block commercial electronic mail sent in violation of this chapter and provides immunity from liability for such actions taken in good faith. This bill provides relief to an injured person for actual damages or the lesser of $100 for each unsolicited bulk e-mail message or $25,000 per day and states that the injured person shall not have a cause of action against an interactive computer service provider that merely transmits the e-mail message. The Attorney General or attorney for the Commonwealth or attorney for a locality may bring an action to enforce these provisions. The purpose of the bill is to curb a practice known as "spamming," the sending of unsolicited commercial e-mail to unsuspecting recipients. This bill does not include provisions regarding falsifying transmission or routing information that are included in the Virginia Computer Crimes Act (§ 18.2-152.1 et seq.).
Patron - Byrne

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