CHAPTER 115
HOUSE BILL No. 2099
An Act concerning telecommunications; amending K.S.A. 2000
Supp.
50-6,103 and repealing the existing section.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
Section 1. K.S.A. 2000 Supp.
50-6,103 is hereby amended to read as
follows: 50-6,103. (a) As used in this section:
(1) ``Express authorization'' means an
express, affirmative act by a
consumer clearly agreeing to the a change
in the consumer's telecom-
munications carrier or local exchange carrier to another
carrier.
(2) ``Supplemental telecommunication
services'' means any property
or services for which any charge or assessment appears on a
billing state-
ment directed to a consumer by a local exchange carrier or
telecommu-
nications carrier, including but not limited to personal 800
number serv-
ices, calling card plans, internet advertisement and website
services, voice
mail services, paging services, psychic services, psychic
memberships, dat-
ing services or memberships, travel club memberships, internet
access
services and service maintenance plans. ``Supplemental
telecommunica-
tion services'' does not include direct dial services to which a
per use
charge applies.
(2)
(3) ``Telecommunications services'' has the meaning
provided by
K.S.A. 66-1,187 and amendments thereto.
(b) No local exchange carrier or
telecommunications carrier shall sub-
mit or cause to be submitted to a local exchange carrier an
order to change
a consumer's telecommunications carrier or local exchange carrier
to an-
other carrier without having obtained the express authorization of
the
consumer authorized to make the change. The local exchange carrier
or
telecommunications carrier requesting the change shall have the
burden
of proving the express authorization by a preponderance of the
evidence.
It shall not be a violation of this subsection for a local
exchange carrier
to assign a consumer to a telecommunications carrier for
purposes of
intralata services pursuant to order of the state corporation
commission.
(c) No local exchange carrier,
telecommunications carrier or third
party utilized to verify an order to change a consumer's
telecommunica-
tions carrier or local exchange carrier to another
carrier supplier shall:
(1) Engage in any activity, conduct or
representation that has the
capacity to mislead, deceive or confuse the consumer, while
soliciting or
verifying a change in a consumer's telecommunications carrier or
local
exchange carrier to another carrier that has the capacity
to mislead, de-
ceive or confuse the consumer;
(2) employ a box or container used to
collect entries for sweepstakes,
contests or drawings to gather letters of agency or other documents
that
constitute authorizations by consumers to change the consumers'
tele-
communications carrier or local exchange carrier to another carrier
or to
change or add to the consumers' other accounts
any supplemental tele-
communications services; or
(3) use any methods not approved by
statute, regulations of the fed-
eral communications commission statutes, rules and
regulations or federal
trade commission (as in effect on the effective date of this
act) or state
corporation commission rules and regulations to change a
consumer's
telecommunications carrier or local exchange carrier to another
carrier.;
or
(4) employ a check, draft or
other negotiable instrument that consti-
tutes authorization to change or add to the consumer's accounts
any sup-
plemental telecommunications services.
(d) Any local exchange carrier or
telecommunications carrier supplier
that violates subsection (b) or (c) shall be subject to a civil
penalty of not
less than $5,000 nor more than $20,000 for each such violation
instead
of the penalty provided for in subsection (a) of K.S.A. 50-636, and
amend-
ments thereto.
(e) Any violation of this section is a
deceptive and unconscionable act
or practice under the provisions of the Kansas consumer protection
act
and shall be subject to any and all of the enforcement provisions
of the
Kansas consumer protection act. Nothing in this section shall
preclude
the state corporation commission from exerting its authority as it
pertains
to intrastate services nor the attorney general from pursuing
violations of
any other provisions of the Kansas consumer protection act by a
local
exchange carrier or telecommunications carrier
supplier.
(f) All local exchange carriers
shall offer consumers the option of no-
tifying the local exchange carrier in writing that they do not
desire any
change of telecommunications carrier regardless of any orders to
the con-
trary submitted by any third party. The consumer shall be permitted
to
cancel such notification or to change its telecommunications
carrier by
notifying the consumer's local exchange carrier accordingly. All
local
exchange carriers shall annually notify the consumers of the
carrier's tel-
ecommunications services of the availability of this option.
(g) Any person alleging a violation of
this section may bring a private
action to seek relief pursuant to K.S.A. 50-634, 50-636 and this
section,
and amendments thereto, and such person may be defined as a
consumer
pursuant to K.S.A. 50-624, and amendments thereto, for the
purposes of
such private action.
(h) The attorney general and the state
corporation commission shall
enter into a memorandum of understanding providing for the
cooperation
and sharing of information necessary to enforce this section
against sup-
pliers and to assist consumers under federal and state
law.
(g) (i) This
section shall be part of and supplemental to the Kansas
consumer protection act.
Sec. 2. K.S.A. 2000 Supp. 50-6,103 is hereby
repealed.
Sec. 3. This act shall take effect and be in force
from and after its
publication in the statute book.
Approved April 18, 2001.
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