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.