By Junell H.B. No. 2530
77R8072 JMG-D
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to certain prohibitions applicable to a person offering a
1-3 sweepstakes; providing a civil penalty.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Title 4, Business & Commerce Code, is amended by
1-6 adding Chapter 43 to read as follows:
1-7 CHAPTER 43. SWEEPSTAKES
1-8 Sec. 43.001. DEFINITION. In this chapter, "sweepstakes"
1-9 means a contest that awards one or more prizes based on the random
1-10 selection of entries.
1-11 Sec. 43.002. OFFENSES. A person offering a sweepstakes may
1-12 not:
1-13 (1) require an individual to order or buy a good or
1-14 service, or promise to buy a good or service in the future, to
1-15 enter a sweepstakes;
1-16 (2) solicit business using an order form or purchasing
1-17 mechanism that has any connection to a sweepstakes;
1-18 (3) use a mechanism for entering a sweepstakes that:
1-19 (A) has any connection to ordering or purchasing
1-20 a good or service; or
1-21 (B) is not the same for all individuals entering
1-22 the sweepstakes;
1-23 (4) solicit an individual to enter a sweepstakes by
1-24 invitation or other opportunity and allow the individual to choose
2-1 or indicate the preferred characteristics of a prize to be awarded
2-2 in the sweepstakes, unless those choices:
2-3 (A) are made on the sweepstakes entering
2-4 mechanism; and
2-5 (B) do not appear on and are not connected in
2-6 any way to an order form or other purchasing mechanism;
2-7 (5) publish or cause to be published an advertisement
2-8 that includes an invitation or opportunity to enter a sweepstakes
2-9 if the advertisement offers any gift, premium, prize, giveaway,
2-10 coupon, rebate, or other economic incentive of any kind, except for
2-11 a competitive price on the goods or services advertised;
2-12 (6) send an advertisement by mail, facsimile,
2-13 electronic mail, or other similar mass distribution to a customer
2-14 or potential customer that includes an invitation or opportunity to
2-15 enter a sweepstakes and send the same customer or potential
2-16 customer any offer for any other gift, premium, prize, giveaway,
2-17 coupon, or rebate, or other economic incentive of any kind, except
2-18 for a competitive price on the goods or services originally
2-19 advertised, before 45 days after the date the original
2-20 advertisement was sent to the customer or potential customer;
2-21 (7) ask an individual for any information or any
2-22 action by that individual that would be consistent with the
2-23 individual winning a sweepstakes prize, unless the individual has
2-24 won a sweepstakes prize;
2-25 (8) send material accompanying or relating to a
2-26 sweepstakes or an offer to enter a sweepstakes that states or
2-27 implies that an individual must comply with a restriction or
3-1 condition to enter the sweepstakes, unless all individuals entering
3-2 the sweepstakes are required to comply with the same restrictions
3-3 or conditions;
3-4 (9) send material accompanying or relating to a
3-5 sweepstakes or an offer to enter a sweepstakes that:
3-6 (A) states or implies that an individual's
3-7 chances of winning a prize in the sweepstakes are raised, lowered,
3-8 or different in any way because of a factor or circumstance that
3-9 has no relation to the manner in which a winner of the sweepstakes
3-10 is selected;
3-11 (B) states or implies that a winner of a
3-12 sweepstakes prize will be selected at a time or place or in a
3-13 manner that is different from the actual time or place at which or
3-14 manner in which a winner is selected; or
3-15 (C) states or implies falsely that the
3-16 individual receiving the advertisement has received any special
3-17 treatment or personal attention from the offeror of the sweepstakes
3-18 or any officer, employee, or agent of the offeror of the
3-19 sweepstakes;
3-20 (10) publish or cause to be published advertisements
3-21 for the same sweepstakes that contain different descriptions of
3-22 prizes awarded through the sweepstakes;
3-23 (11) offer more than one sweepstakes at the same time;
3-24 (12) award multiple prizes in a sweepstakes unless all
3-25 prizes are awarded on the same date and through the same selection
3-26 process;
3-27 (13) publish or cause to be published official rules
4-1 of a sweepstakes that do not uniquely identify the prizes to be
4-2 awarded and the date they will be awarded; or
4-3 (14) provide for entry in a sweepstakes by mail and
4-4 use:
4-5 (A) more than one address to accept entries in
4-6 the sweepstakes; or
4-7 (B) the address for entry in the sweepstakes to
4-8 process or deal in any way with an order to buy a good or service.
4-9 Sec. 43.003. CIVIL PENALTY. (a) A person who violates this
4-10 chapter is liable to the state for a civil penalty in an amount not
4-11 to exceed $50,000 for each violation. If an offer to enter a
4-12 sweepstakes is made by mail, facsimile, electronic mail, or other
4-13 similar mass distribution in violation of this chapter, each
4-14 recipient of the offer constitutes a separate violation.
4-15 (b) The attorney general may initiate an action under this
4-16 section by filing suit in a district court in Travis County or in
4-17 the county in which the violation occurred.
4-18 (c) The attorney general may recover reasonable expenses
4-19 incurred in recovering a civil penalty under this section,
4-20 including court costs, reasonable attorney's fees, reasonable
4-21 investigative costs, witness fees, and deposition expenses.
4-22 (d) A civil penalty recovered under this section shall be
4-23 deposited in the state treasury.
4-24 SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2001.