Adoption of this amendment will ADD a 2/3s majority vote requirement for final passage of AB343 (§§ 9, 14).
ASSEMBLY ACTION Initial and Date |SENATE ACTION Initial and Date
Adopted Lost | Adopted Lost
Concurred In Not |Concurred In Not
Receded Not | Receded Not
Amend section 1, page 1, line 2, by deleting “and 3” and inserting:
“to 10, inclusive,”.
Amend the bill as a whole by renumbering sections 2 and 3 as sections 4 and 5 and adding new sections designated sections 2 and 3, following section 1, to read as follows:
“Sec. 2. “Account” means the account established pursuant to section 6 of this act.
Sec. 3. “Injured person” means a person who:
1. Paid money to a seller of travel for the purchase of travel services; and
2. Is damaged by the failure of the seller of travel to provide those services adequately.”.
Amend sec. 2, page 1, line 5, after “travel.” by inserting:
“The statement must be prominently displayed in the advertisement and be in substantially the following form in at least 14-point bold type in a font that is easy to read:
Nevada Seller of Travel
Registration No. _____.”.
Amend sec. 3, page 2, line 3, by deleting:
“3 business days” and inserting:
“1 business day”.
Amend the bill as a whole by renumbering sections 4 through 7 as sections 11 through 14 and adding new sections designated sections 6 through 10, following sec. 3, to read as follows:
“Sec. 6. The Division shall administer and account separately for the money received from each seller of travel pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (c) of subsection 1 and paragraph (c) of subsection 4 of NRS 598.365. The Division may refer to the money in the account as the “Recovery Fund.”
Sec. 7. 1. Except as otherwise provided in section 10 of this act, the money in the account must be used to pay claims made by persons who paid money to a seller of travel for the purchase of travel services who are damaged by:
(a) The failure of a seller of travel to provide the travel services satisfactorily; or
(b) The violation of a seller of travel of any provision of NRS 598.305 to 598.365, inclusive, and sections 2 to 10, inclusive, of this act.
2. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 3, an injured person who wishes to recover from the account must file a complaint with the Division or its designee, within 4 years after the initial purchase of the travel services and on a form established for this purpose by the Division.
3. An injured person who has obtained a judgment in any court of competent jurisdiction for recovery of damages against a seller of travel for the failure of the seller of travel to provide the travel services satisfactorily or the violation by the seller of travel of any provision of NRS 598.305 to 598.365, inclusive, and sections 2 to 10, inclusive, of this act, may file a complaint with the Division, within 2 years of the entry of the judgment, with the Division for satisfaction of the judgment from the account if:
(a) The proceedings in connection with the judgment, including all appeals, have terminated;
(b) He submits an application on a form established for this purpose by the Division;
(c) He submits proof satisfactory to the Division of the judgment; and
(d) Upon obtaining payment from the account, he assigns his rights to enforce the judgment to the Division.
4. If the Division receives a complaint pursuant to subsection 2, the Division or its designee shall hold a hearing on the complaint. This Division shall:
(a) Affix the time and place for the hearing; and
(b) Notify the injured person, in writing at least 30 days before the date affixed for the hearing, of the time and place of the hearing.
5. Any testimony taken at the hearing must be considered a part of the record of the hearing before the Division or its designee.
6. The hearing must be public if a request is made for a public hearing.
7. The Division or its designee shall act upon the complaint within 6 months after the complaint is filed with the Division.
Sec. 8. 1. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 2, an injured person is eligible for recovery from the account:
(a) If the Division or its designee, after conducting a hearing on a complaint pursuant to the provisions of subsection 4 of section 7 of this act, finds that the injured person suffered actual damages as a result of:
(1) The failure of a seller of travel to provide the travel services satisfactorily; or
(2) The violation of a seller of travel of any provision of NRS 598.305 to 598.365, inclusive, and sections 2 to 10, inclusive, of this act.
(b) If the injured person files a complaint pursuant to the provisions of subsection 3 of section 7 of this act with the Division for the satisfaction of a judgment from the account.
2. An injured person is not eligible for recovery from the account if:
(a) The injured person is the spouse of the seller of travel, or a personal representative of the spouse of the seller of travel;
(b) The injured person was associated in a business relationship with the seller of travel other than the travel services at issue; or
(c) At the time the person paid the money for the purchase of travel services, the seller of travel was not registered with the Division as required by NRS 598.365.
3. If the Division or its designee determines that an injured person is eligible for recovery from the account pursuant to this section, the Division or its designee may pay out of the account:
(a) If the complaint was filed pursuant to subsection 2 of section 7 of this act, the amount of actual damages suffered, but not to exceed $10,000; or
(b) If the complaint was filed pursuant to subsection 3 of section 7 of this act, the amount of actual damages included in the judgment and remaining unpaid, but not to exceed $10,000.
4. The decision of the Division or its designee regarding eligibility for recovery and all related issues is final and not subject to judicial review.
5. If the injured person has recovered a portion of his loss from sources other than the account, the Division shall deduct the amount recovered from the other sources from the amount payable upon the claim and direct the difference to be paid from the account.
6. To the extent of payments made from the account, the Division is subrogated to the rights of the injured person, including, without limitation, the right to collect from a surety bond or a cash bond. The Division and the Attorney General shall promptly enforce all subrogation claims.
7. The amount of recovery from the account based upon claims made against any single seller of travel:
(a) Must not exceed $200,000; and
(b) For any single action of the seller of travel, must not exceed 20 percent of the balance of the account.
8. As used in this section, “actual damages” includes attorney’s fees or costs in contested cases appealed to the Supreme Court of this state. The term does not include any other attorney’s fees or costs.
Sec. 9. 1. A seller of travel shall notify each purchaser of travel services from whom he accepts money of the rights of the purchaser pursuant to NRS 598.305 to 598.365, inclusive, and sections 2 to 10, inclusive, of this act, including, without limitation, providing a written statement explaining those rights in any agreement or contract for travel services. The written statement must be in substantially the following form:
RECOVERY FUND FOR CUSTOMERS
OF SELLERS OF TRAVEL
Payment may be available from the Recovery Fund if you are damaged financially by the failure of a seller of travel to provide satisfactorily the travel services for which you paid and the damage resulted from certain specified violations of Nevada law by a seller of travel registered in this state. To obtain information relating to the Recovery Fund and filing a claim for recovery from the Recovery Fund, you may contact the Consumer Affairs Division of the Department of Business and Industry at the following locations:
SOUTHERN NEVADA: 1850 East Sahara Avenue
Suite 101
Las Vegas, Nevada 89104
Phone: 702.486.7355
Fax: 702.486.7371
NORTHERN NEVADA: 4600 Kietzke Lane
Building B, Suite 113
Reno, Nevada 89502
Phone: 775.688.1800
Fax: 775.688.1803
2. The Division may impose upon a seller of travel an administrative fine of not more than:
(a) For the first violation of subsection 1, $100; and
(b) For a second or subsequent violation of subsection 1, $250.
3. The Division shall deposit any money received pursuant to this section in the account established pursuant to section 6 of this act.
4. The provisions of NRS 598.305 to 598.365, inclusive, and sections 2 to 10, inclusive, of this act do not limit the authority of the Division to take disciplinary action against a seller of travel.
Sec. 10. 1. The Division shall:
(a) On or before February 1 of each year, prepare and submit to the Director of the Legislative Counsel Bureau for transmittal to the appropriate legislative committee if the Legislature is in session, or to the Interim Finance Committee if the Legislature is not in session, a statement of the condition of the account that is prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles.
(b) Employ accountants as necessary for the performance of the duties set forth in this section and pay any related expenses from the money in the account. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 3, the expenditures made by the Division pursuant to this paragraph must not exceed $10,000 in any fiscal year.
(c) Employ or contract with persons and procure necessary equipment, supplies and services to be paid from or purchased with the money in the account as may be necessary to monitor or process claims filed by injured persons that may result in a recovery from the account.
2. Any interest earned on the money in the account must be credited to the account. The Division may expend the interest earned on the money in the account to increase public awareness of the account. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 3, the expenditures made by the Division for this purpose must not exceed $50,000 in any fiscal year.
3. The total expenditures made by the Division pursuant to this section must not exceed 10 percent of the account in any fiscal year.
4. Once an initial balance of $200,000 exists in the account, the Division shall maintain a minimum balance of $200,000 in the account.
5. The Division shall adopt such regulations as are necessary to carry out the provisions of NRS 598.305 to 598.365, inclusive, and sections 2 to 10, inclusive, of this act, including, without limitation, regulations governing:
(a) The disbursement of money from the account; and
(b) The manner in which a complaint is filed with the Division or its designee pursuant to the provisions of section 7 of this act.”.
Amend sec. 4, page 2, line 44, by deleting:
“598.395, inclusive, and sections 2 and 3” and inserting:
“[598.395,] 598.365, inclusive, and sections 2 to 10, inclusive,”.
Amend sec. 5, page 3, lines 14 and 15, by deleting:
“598.395, inclusive, and sections 2 and 3” and inserting:
“[598.395,] 598.365, inclusive, and sections 2 to 10, inclusive,”.
Amend sec. 5, page 3, by deleting line 16 and inserting:
“the words and terms defined in NRS [598.315] 598.325 to 598.356, inclusive, and sections 2 and 3 of this act”.
Amend sec. 6, page 3, lines 40 and 41 , by deleting:
“or
[(c)]” and inserting:
“[or
(c)]”.
Amend sec. 6, page 3, line 42, by deleting “inclusive.” and inserting:
“inclusive [.] ; or
(e) A motor club as defined in NRS 696A.050.”.
Amend sec. 7, page 4, by deleting lines 8 and 9 and inserting:
“(c) [Depositing the security required pursuant to NRS 598.375, if any, with the Division.] Paying to the Division a fee of $100 for deposit to the account established pursuant to section 6 of this act.”.
Amend sec. 7, page 4, by deleting lines 11 through 14 and inserting:
“seller of travel upon receipt of [:
(a) The security in the proper form if the seller of travel is required to deposit security pursuant to NRS 598.375; and
(b) The] the payment of [the fee] any fees required by this section.”.
Amend sec. 7, page 4, line 21, by deleting “and” and inserting “[and]”.
Amend sec. 7, page 4, line 22, by deleting “$25.” and inserting:
“$25 [.] ; and
(c) Paying to the Division a fee of $100 for deposit to the account established pursuant to section 6 of this act.”.
Amend the bill as a whole by deleting sec. 8 renumbering sec. 9 as sec. 17 and adding new sections designated sections 15 and 16, following sec. 7, to read as follows:
“Sec. 15. NRS 598.315, 598.375, 598.385 and 598.395 are hereby repealed.
Sec. 16. 1. Except as otherwise provided in subsections 2 and 3, the Consumer Affairs Division of the Department of Business and Industry shall return any security deposited with the Division by a seller of travel pursuant to NRS 598.365, as the provisions of that section existed before July 1, 2003.
2. The Consumer Affairs Division of the Department of Business and Industry shall not return any security deposited with the Division by a seller of travel pursuant to NRS 598.365, as the provisions of that section existed before July 1, 2003, if:
(a) Before July 1, 2003, a consumer has brought an action to recover from the security pursuant to the provisions of NRS 598.385, as the provisions of that section existed before July 1, 2003; and
(b) The proceedings in connection with the action, including all appeals, have not terminated.
3. If, pursuant to the provisions of subsection 2, the Consumer Affairs Division of the Department of Business and Industry does not return the security deposited with the Division by a seller of travel pursuant to NRS 598.365, as the provisions of that section existed before July 1, 2003, the Division shall return the security to the seller of travel when all proceedings in connection with all actions, including all appeals, brought pursuant to the provisions of NRS 598.385 against the seller of travel have terminated.
4. If, before July 1, 2003, a consumer files an action to recover from the security of a seller of travel pursuant to the provisions of NRS 598.385, as the provisions of that section existed before July 1, 2003, the provisions of that section shall apply, for all purposes, to that action.”.
Amend the bill as a whole by adding the leadlines of repealed sections, following sec. 9, to read as follows:
“
LEADLINES OF REPEALED SECTIONS
598.315 “Commissioner” defined.
598.375 Security required for registration: Form; term; amount; records; rejection for nonconformance; change in form; inadequate amount; exception.
598.385 Rights and remedies of injured consumers; resolution by Division of claims against security; regulations.
598.395 Release of security if seller ceases to operate or registration expires.”.
Amend the title of the bill by deleting the eighth through eleventh lines and inserting:
“current certificate; establishing an account for a consumer to recover damages for certain actions of a seller of travel; repealing the provisions that require a seller of travel to comply with certain financial security requirements; repealing the provisions allowing a consumer to recover damages from security deposited by a seller of travel with the Consumer Affairs Division of the Department of Business and Industry;”.