Full Text of HB4417 94th General Assembly
HB4417 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2005 and 2006 HB4417
Introduced 1/6/2006, by Rep. David E. Miller SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: |
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New Act |
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815 ILCS 505/2Z |
from Ch. 121 1/2, par. 262Z |
815 ILCS 505/10a |
from Ch. 121 1/2, par. 270a |
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Creates the Consumer Protection Fuel Price Gouging Act. Provides that it is unlawful for any motor-fuel vendor to sell or offer to sell motor fuel within the State at a price that is increased because of the vendor's knowledge of a perceived disruption in the motor-fuel market. Provides that an increase in the price of motor fuel is rebuttably presumed to be based upon the vendor's knowledge of a perceived disruption in the motor-fuel market if: (1) the amount charged represents a gross disparity between the price at which the motor fuel was readily obtainable within the vendor's trade area during the 7 days immediately before the perceived disruption or price increase; and (2) the increase in the amount charged is not attributable to cost factors to the vendor, including replacement costs, taxes, and transportation costs incurred by the vendor. Provides that a violation of this Act constitutes a violation of the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act, but nothing in this Act creates a private cause of action in favor of any person damaged by a violation of this Act, but individuals may complain to the Attorney General. Preempts home rule. Amends the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act to make corresponding changes. Effective immediately.
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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY | |
HOME RULE NOTE ACT MAY APPLY |
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A BILL FOR
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HB4417 |
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LRB094 16756 LCT 52027 b |
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| AN ACT concerning motor fuel.
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| Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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| represented in the General Assembly:
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| Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the | 5 |
| Consumer Protection Fuel Price Gouging Act. | 6 |
| Section 5. Definitions. As used in this Act: | 7 |
| "Distributor" has the definition set forth in Section 1.2 | 8 |
| of the Motor Fuel Tax Law. | 9 |
| "Motor fuel" has the definition set forth in Section 1.1 of | 10 |
| the Motor Fuel Tax Law. | 11 |
| "Motor-fuel vendor" or "vendor" means a distributor, | 12 |
| supplier, receiver, reseller, or retailer. | 13 |
| "Receiver" has the definition set forth in Section 1.20 of | 14 |
| the Motor Fuel Tax Law. | 15 |
| "Reseller" has the definition set forth in Section 1.21 of | 16 |
| the Motor Fuel Tax Law. | 17 |
| "Retailer" means a person who holds himself or herself out | 18 |
| as being engaged (or who habitually engages) in selling motor | 19 |
| fuel at retail. | 20 |
| "Supplier" has the definition set forth in Section 1.14 of | 21 |
| the Motor Fuel Tax Law. | 22 |
| Section 10. Motor fuel; unconscionable prices prohibited. | 23 |
| (a) It is unlawful for any motor-fuel vendor to sell or | 24 |
| offer to sell motor fuel within the State at a price that is | 25 |
| increased because of the vendor's knowledge of a perceived | 26 |
| disruption in the motor-fuel market. | 27 |
| (b) An increase in the price of motor fuel is rebuttably | 28 |
| presumed to be based upon the vendor's knowledge of a perceived | 29 |
| disruption in the motor-fuel market if: | 30 |
| (1) the amount charged represents a gross disparity | 31 |
| between the price at which the motor fuel was readily |
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| obtainable within the vendor's trade area during the 7 days | 2 |
| immediately before the perceived disruption or price | 3 |
| increase; and | 4 |
| (2) the increase in the amount charged is not | 5 |
| attributable to cost factors to the vendor, including | 6 |
| replacement costs, taxes, and transportation costs | 7 |
| incurred by the vendor. | 8 |
| (c) A price increase approved by an appropriate government | 9 |
| agency is not a violation of this Section. | 10 |
| Section 15. Construction with the Consumer Fraud and | 11 |
| Deceptive Business Practices Act. A violation of this Act | 12 |
| constitutes a violation of the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive | 13 |
| Business Practices Act, and the Attorney General may take any | 14 |
| action consistent with the provisions of that Act. | 15 |
| Notwithstanding Section 10a of the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive | 16 |
| Business Practices Act, however, nothing in this Act creates a | 17 |
| private cause of action in favor of any person damaged by a | 18 |
| violation of this Act, but individuals may make a complaint to | 19 |
| the Attorney General alleging a violation of this Act. | 20 |
| Section 35. Home rule. The regulation of motor fuel prices | 21 |
| is an exclusive power and function of the State. A unit of | 22 |
| local government, including a home rule unit, may not regulate | 23 |
| the price of motor fuel. This Section is a denial and | 24 |
| limitation of home rule powers and functions under subsection | 25 |
| (h) of Section 6 of Article VII of the Illinois Constitution. | 26 |
| Section 900. The Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business | 27 |
| Practices Act is amended by changing Sections 2Z and 10a as | 28 |
| follows:
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| (815 ILCS 505/2Z) (from Ch. 121 1/2, par. 262Z)
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| Sec. 2Z. Violations of other Acts. Any person who knowingly | 31 |
| violates
the Automotive Repair Act, the Automotive Collision | 32 |
| Repair Act,
the Home Repair and Remodeling Act,
the Dance |
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| Studio Act,
the Physical Fitness Services Act,
the Hearing | 2 |
| Instrument Consumer Protection Act,
the Illinois Union Label | 3 |
| Act,
the Job Referral and Job Listing Services Consumer | 4 |
| Protection Act,
the Travel Promotion Consumer Protection Act,
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| the Credit Services Organizations Act,
the Automatic Telephone | 6 |
| Dialers Act,
the Pay-Per-Call Services Consumer Protection | 7 |
| Act,
the Telephone Solicitations Act,
the Illinois Funeral or | 8 |
| Burial Funds Act,
the Cemetery Care Act,
the Safe and Hygienic | 9 |
| Bed Act,
the Pre-Need Cemetery Sales Act,
the High Risk Home | 10 |
| Loan Act, the Payday Loan Reform Act, subsection (a) or (b) of | 11 |
| Section 3-10 of the
Cigarette Tax Act, the Payday Loan Reform | 12 |
| Act, subsection
(a) or (b) of Section 3-10 of the Cigarette Use | 13 |
| Tax Act, the Electronic
Mail Act, paragraph (6)
of
subsection | 14 |
| (k) of Section 6-305 of the Illinois Vehicle Code, Article 3 of | 15 |
| the Residential Real Property Disclosure Act, the Automatic | 16 |
| Contract Renewal Act, the Consumer Protection Fuel Price | 17 |
| Gouging Act, or the Personal Information Protection Act commits | 18 |
| an unlawful practice within the meaning of this Act.
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| (Source: P.A. 93-561, eff. 1-1-04; 93-950, eff. 1-1-05; 94-13, | 20 |
| eff. 12-6-05; 94-36, eff. 1-1-06; 94-280, eff. 1-1-06; 94-292, | 21 |
| eff. 1-1-06; revised 8-19-05.)
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| (815 ILCS 505/10a) (from Ch. 121 1/2, par. 270a)
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| Sec. 10a. Action for actual damages.
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| (a) Any person who suffers actual damage as a result of a | 25 |
| violation
of this Act committed by any other person may bring | 26 |
| an action against such
person. The court, in its discretion may | 27 |
| award actual economic damages or
any other
relief which the | 28 |
| court deems proper; provided, however, that no award of
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| punitive damages may be assessed under this Section against a | 30 |
| party defendant
who is a new vehicle dealer or used vehicle | 31 |
| dealer within the meaning of
Chapter 5 of the Illinois Vehicle | 32 |
| Code
or who is the holder of a retail installment contract | 33 |
| within the meaning of
Section 2.12 of the Motor
Vehicle Retail | 34 |
| Installment Sales Act, unless the conduct engaged in was
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| willful or intentional and done with evil motive or reckless |
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| indifference to
the rights of others. Proof of a public
injury, | 2 |
| a pattern,
or an effect on consumers and the public interest | 3 |
| generally shall
be required in order to state a cause of action | 4 |
| under this Section against a
party defendant who is a new | 5 |
| vehicle dealer or used vehicle dealer within the
meaning of | 6 |
| Chapter 5 of the Illinois Vehicle Code
or who is the holder of | 7 |
| a retail installment contract within the meaning of
Section | 8 |
| 2.12 of the Motor
Vehicle Retail Installment Sales Act. Proof | 9 |
| of such public
injury may be shown by any one of the following | 10 |
| factors:
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| (1) Violation of a statute that has a public interest | 12 |
| impact.
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| (2) Repeated acts prior to the act involving the | 14 |
| plaintiff.
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| (3) Potential for repetition.
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| (b) Such action may be commenced in the county in which the | 17 |
| person
against whom it is brought resides, has his principal | 18 |
| place of business, or
is doing business, or in the county where | 19 |
| the transaction or any
substantial portion thereof occurred.
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| (c) Except as provided in subsections (f), (g), and
(h) of | 21 |
| this Section, in any
action brought by a person under this | 22 |
| Section, the Court may
grant injunctive relief where | 23 |
| appropriate and may award, in addition to the
relief provided | 24 |
| in this Section, reasonable attorney's fees and costs to
the | 25 |
| prevailing party.
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| (d) Upon commencement of any action brought under this | 27 |
| Section the
plaintiff shall mail a copy of the complaint or | 28 |
| other initial
pleading to the
Attorney General and, upon entry | 29 |
| of any judgment or order in the action,
shall mail a copy of | 30 |
| such judgment or order to the Attorney
General.
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| (e) Any action for damages under this Section shall be | 32 |
| forever barred
unless commenced within 3 years after the cause | 33 |
| of action accrued; provided
that, whenever any action is | 34 |
| brought by the Attorney General or a State's
Attorney for a | 35 |
| violation of this Act, the running of the foregoing statute
of | 36 |
| limitations, with respect to every private right of action for |
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| damages
which is based in whole or in part on any matter | 2 |
| complained of in said
action by the Attorney General or State's | 3 |
| Attorney, shall be suspended
during the pendency thereof, and | 4 |
| for one year thereafter.
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| (f) At any time more than 30 days before the commencement | 6 |
| of trial, a party,
who is a new vehicle dealer or used vehicle | 7 |
| dealer within the meaning of
Chapter 5 of the Illinois Vehicle | 8 |
| Code
or who is the holder of a retail installment contract | 9 |
| within the meaning of
Section 2.12 of the Motor
Vehicle Retail | 10 |
| Installment Sales Act
and who is defending a claim under
this | 11 |
| Act, may serve upon the party seeking relief under this Act an | 12 |
| offer
to allow judgment to be taken against the defending party | 13 |
| to the effect
specified in the offer with costs then accrued. | 14 |
| If within 10 days after
service of the offer, the offeree | 15 |
| serves written notice that the offer is
accepted, either party | 16 |
| may then file the offer and notice of acceptance
together with | 17 |
| proof of service of the notice; the court shall then enter
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| judgment. An offer not accepted shall be deemed withdrawn and | 19 |
| evidence
of the offer is not admissible except in a proceeding | 20 |
| to determine costs. When
a party seeking relief under this Act | 21 |
| does not accept an offer filed with
the clerk and served upon | 22 |
| the attorney for that party more than 30 days
before the | 23 |
| commencement of trial and when that party fails to obtain a
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| judgment in an amount more than the total offer of settlement, | 25 |
| that party
shall forfeit and the court may not award any | 26 |
| compensation for attorney's
fees and costs incurred after the | 27 |
| date of the offer.
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| (g) At any time more than 30 days before the commencement | 29 |
| of trial, a
party who is seeking relief under this Act from a | 30 |
| new vehicle dealer or
used vehicle dealer within the meaning of | 31 |
| Chapter 5 of the Illinois
Vehicle Code
or from the holder of a | 32 |
| retail installment contract within the meaning of
Section 2.12 | 33 |
| of the Motor
Vehicle Retail Installment Sales Act
may serve the | 34 |
| dealer or holder an offer to allow judgment to be taken
against | 35 |
| the dealer or holder to the effect specified in the offer with
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| costs then
accrued. If within 10 days after service of the |
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| offer, the offeree serves
written notice that the offer is | 2 |
| accepted, either party may then file the offer
and notice of | 3 |
| acceptance together with proof of service of the notice; the
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| court shall then enter judgment. An offer not accepted shall be | 5 |
| deemed
withdrawn and evidence of the offer is not admissible | 6 |
| except in a proceeding to
determine costs. When a dealer or | 7 |
| holder does not accept an offer filed
with the clerk
and served | 8 |
| upon the attorney for the dealer or holder more than 30 days
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| before the
commencement of trial and if the party seeking | 10 |
| relief against a dealer or
holder obtains
a judgment in an | 11 |
| amount equal to or in excess of the offer amount, the party
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| seeking relief shall be paid interest on the offer amount at | 13 |
| the rate as
provided in Section 2-1303
of the Code of Civil | 14 |
| Procedure from the date of the offer until the judgment is
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| paid.
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| (h) At least 30 days prior to the filing of an action under | 17 |
| this Section,
a party who is seeking relief shall serve a | 18 |
| written notice of the nature of the
alleged violation and | 19 |
| demand for relief upon the prospective party, who is a
new | 20 |
| vehicle dealer or used vehicle dealer within the meaning of | 21 |
| Chapter 5 of
the Illinois Vehicle Code
or who is the holder of | 22 |
| a retail installment contract within the meaning of
Section | 23 |
| 2.12 of the Motor
Vehicle Retail Installment Sales Act, against | 24 |
| whom
such action will be commenced. Any person receiving such a | 25 |
| demand for relief
may, within 30 days of service of the demand | 26 |
| for relief, submit a written offer
of settlement, which offer | 27 |
| is to be exclusive of attorney's fees, to the party
serving the | 28 |
| notice and demand. The party who is seeking relief must certify | 29 |
| in
any cause of action that the notice and demand was served | 30 |
| upon the named
defendants and the substance of their response, | 31 |
| if any. If the offer of
settlement is rejected in writing by | 32 |
| the party who is seeking relief, then, in
any subsequent | 33 |
| action, the court shall deny any award of attorney's fees and
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| costs requested by the party seeking relief under this Act | 35 |
| incurred after the
rejection of the written offer of | 36 |
| settlement, if the judgment is less than the
amount contained |
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| within the offer of settlement. All written offers of
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| settlement under this subsection shall be presumed to be | 3 |
| offered without
prejudice in compromise of a disputed matter.
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| (i) This Section does not apply to any violation of the | 5 |
| Consumer Protection Fuel Price Gouging Act.
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| (Source: P.A. 91-270, eff. 1-1-00.)
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| Section 999. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | 8 |
| becoming law.
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