H. B. 2775


(By Delegate Riggs, By Request)
[Introduced March 30, 1993; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.]




A BILL to amend article three, chapter sixty-one of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated section twenty-four-d, relating to crimes and their punishment; advertisements and required preamble message for telephone information services; one-time adjustment; definitions; and penalties.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article three, chapter sixty-one of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section twenty-four-d, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 3. CRIMES AGAINST PROPERTY.

§61-3-24d. Advertisements and required preamble message for telephone information services; telecommunications corporation compensation; definitions; penalties.

(a) An information access telephone service provider shallnot provide or sponsor an advertisement, publication or other communication regarding information access telephone service that does not clearly and conspicuously display the price for each call or for each minute of the call or provide or sponsor a television or radio advertisement that does not include a clearly audible voice announcement of the price for each call or for each minute of the call.
(b) Information access telephone service providers shall begin each information access telephone service call with a clear statement, without charge, of whether the call is billed on a per minute or a per call basis and the price for the call or for each minute of the call.
(c) Information access telephone service providers shall compensate any telecommunications corporation transporting the provider's service for all charges associated with blocking information access telephone services, and shall make arrangements with the telecommunications corporation for a one time adjustment per residential customer account for an information access telephone service charge if the adjustments involve calls made by minors without authorization or involve claims of fraud, theft or misrepresentation. An adjustment pursuant to this subsection, except for billing and transport charges, shall be charged to the information access telephone service provider who shall not attempt private collection of any adjustments to customers' accounts made by a telecommunications corporation.
(d) An information access telephone service provider shall not provide an information access telephone service which describes or depicts, directly or indirectly, sexual conduct or activity or which contains sexually suggestive content unless access to such service is restricted to persons eighteen years of age or older and requires that the service is provided by subscription through the information access telephone service provider.
(e) An information access telephone service provider shall not provide recorded announcements or live programs which forward or refer callers to telephone numbers which are not 976 service or 676 service for the purpose of the type of services provided by 976 service or 676 service.
(f) In this section:
(1) "Adjustment" means a waiver of all unpaid charges incurred by the residential customer for information access telephone services up to the time the customer contacts the telecommunications corporation and requests the adjustment.
(2) "Information access telephone service" means telephone service and facilities which provide access to a provider- sponsored prerecorded or live announcement or program and which is commonly referred to as "976 service" or "676 service."
(3) "Provider" means a person, partnership, corporation or organization that contracts with a telecommunications corporation to transport telephone calls, bill customers or collect charges for a prerecorded or live announcement or program.
(g) A person who violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction, shall be fined not less than one hundred nor more than five hundred dollars, or imprisoned not more than six months, or both such fine and imprisonment.



NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to control sexually oriented phone calls and to establish criminal penalties for violations.

This section is new; therefore, strike-throughs and underscoring have been omitted.