NY State Senate Bill 2019-S8854

Senate Bill S8854

2019-2020 Legislative Session

Relates to establishing the failure to refund school-related educational trips, tours or excursions during a declared state of emergency as an illegal act

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Rules Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jul 29, 2020	referred to rules

2019-S8854 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A10617
Current Committee:: Senate Rules
Law Section:: General Business Law
Laws Affected:: Add §158-b, amd §159, Gen Bus L
Versions Introduced in 2021-2022 Legislative Session:: A3749

2019-S8854 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Establishes the failure to provide a full monetary refund for school-related educational trips, tours or excursions during a declared state of emergency as an illegal act; such act shall be a misdemeanor.

2019-S8854 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S8854

SPONSOR: SAVINO
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the general business law, in relation to establishing
the failure to refund school-related educational trips, tours or excur-
sions during a declared state of emergency as an illegal act

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA 0 BILL:

THE PURPOSE OF THIS BILL IS TO ESTABLISH THAT FAILURE TO PROVIDE A FULL
REFUND FOR SCHOOL-RELATED EDUCATIONAL TRIPS, TOURS, OR EXCURSIONS IN THE
EVENT OF A DECLARED STATE OF EMERGENCY, IS A PROHIBITED PRACTICE.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

§ 1 - AMENDS THE GENERAL BUSINESS LAW BY ADDING A NEW SECTION, 158 -
ESTABLISHING THE ILLEGAL AND PROHIBITED PRACTICE OF FAILING TO PROVIDE A
FULLY MONETARY REFUND, UPON REQUEST, FOR A SCHOOL-RELATED EDUCATIONAL
TRIP, TOUR, OR EXCURSION BY A TRAVEL CONSULTANT, TRAVEL PROMOTER, OR

ENTITY ACTING ON BEHALF OF A CONSUMER TO PROVIDE TRAVEL SERVICES IF THE
TRIP IS CANCELLED AS A RESULT OF A DECLARED STATE OF EMERGENCY.

§ 2 - AMENDS SUBDIVISION 4 OF SECTION 159 OF THE GENERAL BUSINESS LAW BY
ADDING A NEW SECTION, 2-A, - ESTABLISHING THAT VIOLATIONS SHALL BE A
MISDEMEANOR, PROVIDES FOR ATTORNEY GENERAL SHALL HAVE ENFORCEMENT POWERS
FOR VIOLATIONS AND ALLOWS FOR THE IMPOSITION OF A CIVIL PENALTY UP TO
$5,000.

§ 3 - PROVIDES FOR AN IMMEDIATE EFFECTIVE DATE.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC CREATED AN UNPRECEDENTED RISK FOR NEW YORKERS,
INCLUDING STUDENTS AND FAMILIES, CULMINATING IN AN EMERGENCY DECLARATION
BY THE GOVERNOR THAT LIMITED TRAVEL AND CLOSED THE ENTIRE NEW YORK STATE
PUBLIC AND NON-PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEMS.

AT THE SAME TIME THAT COVID-19 BEGAN TO SPREAD, FAMILIES ACROSS THE
STATE WERE GETTING READY TO SEND THEIR KIDS ON SCHOOL TRIPS BUT FOUND
THAT THE INCREASED RISK MADE THEIR TRIPS POTENTIALLY LIFE-THREATENING.
WHEN THEY ATTEMPTED TO CANCEL THE TRIP AND REQUESTED A REFUND, THEY WERE
DENIED, OR OFFERED VOUCHERS FOR TRAVEL.  IN ADDITION, THEY FOUND THEM-
SELVES ALONE AND WITHOUT ASSISTANCE WHILE ATTEMPTING TO NEGOTIATE A
REFUND. MANY OF THESE FAMILIES ARE NOW SUFFERING FINANCIAL HARDSHIPS
FROM THE ECONOMIC DEVASTATION OF COVID-19 AND A REFUND WOULD GO A LONG
WAY TO HELP PAY FOR NECESSITIES SUCH AS HOUSING, FOOD, AND UTILITIES.

SCHOOL RELATED EDUCATION TRIPS, UNLIKE OTHER TRAVEL, CANNOT BE RESCHED-
ULED SINCE STUDENTS MOVE ON TO OTHER GRADES OR SCHOOLS POSSIBLY MAKING
THE TRIP IRRELEVANT FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSE THEREFORE A VOUCHER FOR
FUTURE USE IS WASTED IN THESE SITUATIONS.

NO TRAVEL PROVIDER SHOULD HAVE A WINDFALL AT THE EXPENSE OF STUDENTS AND
FAMILIES WHO ARE GIVEN ONLY TWO CHOICES: RISK HEALTH AND SAFETY OR BE
PROVIDED NO SERVICE AT THEIR EXPENSE. SUCH A CHOICE IS INHERENTLY UNETH-
ICAL AND PREDATORY. WHEN A STATE OF EMERGENCY IS DECLARED, A THIRD

OPTION, A FULL REFUND, MUST BE PROVIDED AND THIS BILL WILL MAKE IT ILLE-
GAL TO WITHHOLD THAT CHOICE.

THE ATTORNEY GENERAL HAS ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITY AND THE COURTS MAY SET A
CIVIL PENALTY OF UP TO $5,000 WHEN A VIOLATION OCCURS.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2020 SESSION - NEW BILL

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
IMMEDIATELY

2019-S8854 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8854
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               July 29, 2020
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  SAVINO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
 
 AN ACT to amend the general business law, in  relation  to  establishing
   the  failure  to  refund  school-related  educational  trips, tours or
   excursions during a declared state of emergency as an illegal act

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. The general business law is amended by adding a new section
 158-b to read as follows:
   §  158-B. PROHIBITED PRACTICES; STATE OF DISASTER EMERGENCY.  NOTWITH-
 STANDING ANY PROVISION OF LAW, RULE OR REGULATION TO  THE  CONTRARY,  IT
 SHALL  BE  ILLEGAL  FOR ANY TRAVEL CONSULTANT, TRAVEL PROMOTER, OR OTHER
 ENTITY ACTING ON BEHALF OF A CONSUMER TO  PROVIDE  TRAVEL  SERVICES,  TO
 FAIL  TO  PROVIDE A FULL MONETARY REFUND, UPON REQUEST, FOR A SCHOOL-RE-
 LATED EDUCATIONAL TRIP, TOUR OR EXCURSION CANCELLED AS  A  RESULT  OF  A
 DECLARED  STATE  OF  DISASTER EMERGENCY PURSUANT TO ARTICLE TWO-B OF THE
 EXECUTIVE LAW.
   § 2. Subdivision 4 of section 159 of  the  general  business  law,  as
 added  by chapter 754 of the laws of 1990, is amended and a new subdivi-
 sion 2-a is added to read as follows:
   2-A. EXCEPT AS OTHERWISE PROVIDED BY LAW, ANY TRAVEL CONSULTANT, TRAV-
 EL PROMOTER, OR OTHER ENTITY PROVIDING TRAVEL SERVICES WHO SHALL VIOLATE
 SECTION ONE HUNDRED FIFTY-EIGHT-B OF THIS ARTICLE SHALL BE GUILTY  OF  A
 MISDEMEANOR.
   4.  Enforcement;  penalties.  Whenever  there  shall be a violation of
 section one hundred fifty-seven-a, one  hundred  fifty-eight  [or],  one
 hundred  fifty-eight-a  OR ONE HUNDRED FIFTY-EIGHT-B of this article, an
 application may be made by the attorney  general  in  the  name  of  the
 people  of  the state of New York to a court or justice having jurisdic-
 tion by a special proceeding to issue an injunction, and upon notice  to
 the  defendant  of  not  less than five days, to enjoin and restrain the
 continuance of such violations; and if it shall appear to the  satisfac-
 tion  of  the court or justice that the defendant has, in fact, violated
 this article, an injunction may be issued  by  such  court  or  justice,
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets

                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD16539-02-0

 S. 8854                             2
 
 enjoining and restraining any further violation, without requiring proof
 that  any  person has, in fact, been injured or damaged thereby.  In any
 such proceeding, the court may make allowances to the  attorney  general
 as  provided in paragraph six of subdivision (a) of section eighty-three
 hundred three of the civil practice law and rules, and  direct  restitu-
 tion.  Whenever the court shall determine that a violation of this arti-
 cle  has occurred, the court may impose a civil penalty of not more than
 five hundred dollars for each  violation;  PROVIDED,  HOWEVER,  A  CIVIL
 PENALTY  OF  NOT  MORE  THAN  FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS MAY BE IMPOSED FOR A
 VIOLATION OF SECTION ONE HUNDRED FIFTY-EIGHT-B  OF  THIS  ARTICLE.    In
 connection  with  any such proposed application, the attorney general is
 authorized to take proof and make a determination of the relevant  facts
 and  to  issue  subpoenas  in accordance with the civil practice law and
 rules.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.

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