HBA-DMD H.B. 2420 76(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2420 By: Driver Business & Industry 3/17/1999 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) prohibits sending unsolicited faxed advertisements. However, a federal court has ruled that the federal law applies only to interstate transmission. Currently, Texas does not have a law specifically authorizing a private right of action under TCPA. H.B. 2420 prohibits a person from using any telephone facsimile machine, computer, or other device to send to a telephone facsimile machine an unsolicited advertisement or an advertisement that does not contain a toll-free telephone number and address that the recipient may contact in order to stop receiving advertisements. This bill also prohibits a person who has received a request to stop transmission from sending additional advertisements to that facsimile machine. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Chapter 37, Business & Commerce Code, by adding Section 37.031, as follows: Sec. 37.031. ADVERTISEMENT SENT TO FACSIMILE MACHINE. (a) Defines "advertisement" and "unsolicited advertisement." (b) Prohibits a person from using any telephone facsimile machine, computer, or other device to send to a telephone facsimile machine an unsolicited advertisement, or an advertisement that does not contain a toll-free telephone number and address that the recipient may contact in order to stop receiving additional advertisements. (c) Prohibits a person, to whom a recipient of an advertisement has submitted a request under Subsection (b), from sending any additional advertisement to that facsimile machine. SECTION 2.Effective date: September 1, 1999. SECTION 3.Emergency clause.