Senate Bill S5615A

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                  5615--A
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 25, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sens. MAY, ADDABBO, FERNANDEZ, KRUEGER, RAMOS, SCARCELLA-
   SPANTON -- read twice and ordered printed,  and  when  printed  to  be
   committed  to  the  Committee  on  Consumer  Protection  --  committee
   discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
   to said committee

 AN ACT to amend the general  business  law,  in  relation  to  automatic
   renewals,   continuous  service  offers,  and  automatic  subscription
   renewals
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  This act shall be known and may be cited as the "click to
 cancel act".
   § 2. Paragraph c of subdivision 1 of  section  527-a  of  the  general
 business  law,  as added by chapter 267 of the laws of  2020, is amended
 to read as follows:
   c. fail to provide  an  acknowledgment  that  includes  the  automatic
 renewal  or  continuous  service  offer  terms, cancellation policy, and
 information regarding how to cancel in a CLEAR  AND  CONSPICUOUS  manner
 that is capable of being retained by the consumer. If the offer includes
 a  free  gift or trial, the business shall also disclose in the acknowl-
 edgment [how to cancel and allow  the  consumer  to  cancel  before  the
 consumer  pays for the goods or services] THE PRICE THAT WILL BE CHARGED
 AFTER THE FREE GIFT OR TRIAL PERIOD ENDS, AND IF THE FREE GIFT OR  TRIAL
 PERIOD LASTS FOR MORE THAN THIRTY-ONE DAYS FOLLOWED BY AN UPCOMING AUTO-
 MATIC  RENEWAL  OR CONTINUOUS SERVICE CHARGE TO SUCH CONSUMER'S ACCOUNT,
 THE BUSINESS SHALL PROVIDE SUCH  ACKNOWLEDGEMENT  AT  LEAST  THREE  DAYS
 BEFORE, BUT NOT MORE THAN TWENTY-ONE DAYS BEFORE, THE CANCELLATION DEAD-
 LINE  FOR  SUCH  AUTOMATIC  RENEWAL  OR  CONTINUOUS SERVICE CHARGE. SUCH
 NOTICE SHALL INCLUDE INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO CANCEL AND ALLOW THE CONSUM-
 ER TO CANCEL BEFORE THE CONSUMER  PAYS  FOR  THE  AUTOMATIC  RENEWAL  OR
 CONTINUOUS SERVICE CHARGE.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD02152-07-5
              

 S. 5615--A                          2
 
   §  3.  Paragraph  b  of  subdivision 3 of section 527-a of the general
 business law, as added by chapter 728 of the laws of 2023, is amended to
 read as follows:
   b. A business that allows a consumer to accept an automatic renewal or
 continuous  service  offer for an initial paid term of one year or long-
 er[, provided that such automatic renewal or continuous  service  renews
 for  a  paid  term of six months or longer,] WITH A RENEWAL TERM OF MORE
 THAN THIRTY-ONE DAYS shall notify such consumer of such  upcoming  auto-
 matic renewal or continuous service charge to such consumer's account at
 least fifteen days before, but not more than forty-five days before, the
 cancellation  deadline  for such automatic renewal OR CONTINUOUS SERVICE
 CHARGE.  Such notice shall include instructions on how  to  cancel  such
 renewal OR CONTINUOUS SERVICE charge.
   §  4.  Paragraph  a  of  subdivision 3 of section 527-a of the general
 business law, as amended by chapter 728 of the laws of 2023, is  amended
 and a new paragraph d is added to read as follows:
   a. In addition to the requirements of subdivision two of this section,
 a  consumer who accepts an automatic renewal or continuous service offer
 online shall be allowed to terminate the automatic renewal or continuous
 service exclusively  online,  which  may  include  a  termination  email
 formatted  and  provided by the business that a consumer can send to the
 business without additional information. A CONSUMER WHO ACCEPTS AN AUTO-
 MATIC RENEWAL OR CONTINUOUS SERVICE OFFER SHALL ADDITIONALLY BE  ALLOWED
 TO  TERMINATE  THE  AUTOMATIC RENEWAL OR CONTINUOUS SERVICE OFFER IN THE
 SAME MEDIUM THAT THE CONSUMER ACCEPTED SUCH AUTOMATIC RENEWAL OR CONTIN-
 UOUS SERVICE OFFER.  IF THE CONSUMER ACCEPTED THE AUTOMATIC  RENEWAL  OR
 CONTINUOUS  SERVICE OFFER THROUGH A PHONE CALL, A TOLL-FREE PHONE NUMBER
 SHALL BE PROVIDED FOR THE PURPOSES OF CANCELLATION OF  THE  SUBSCRIPTION
 AND SHALL BE PROMINENTLY DISPLAYED IN THE DISCLOSURE.
   D. IN ADDITION TO THE REQUIREMENTS OF SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION,
 IN  THE  CASE OF A CHANGE IN THE FEE CHARGED UNDER AN EXISTING AUTOMATIC
 RENEWAL OR CONTINUOUS SERVICE OFFER THAT HAS BEEN ACCEPTED BY A  CONSUM-
 ER, THE BUSINESS SHALL PROVIDE, NO LESS THAN SEVEN DAYS AND NO MORE THAN
 THIRTY  DAYS  BEFORE THE FEE CHANGE TAKES EFFECT, THE CONSUMER WITH BOTH
 OF THE FOLLOWING: (I) A CLEAR AND CONSPICUOUS NOTICE OF THE FEE  CHANGE;
 AND  (II)  INFORMATION REGARDING HOW TO CANCEL SUCH AUTOMATIC RENEWAL OR
 CONTINUOUS SERVICE IN A MANNER THAT IS CAPABLE OF BEING RETAINED BY  THE
 CONSUMER.
   § 5. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
 it shall have become a law.