COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
Senate Bill No. 108
(By Senators Humphreys, Yoder, Grubb, Walker,
Holliday, Wehrle, Chernenko, Blatnik and Macnaughtan)
____________
[Originating in the Committee on the Judiciary;
reported March 26, 1993.]
____________

A BILL to amend the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, by adding thereto a new chapter, designated chapter forty-six-b; and to amend and reenact section thirty-two, article three, chapter sixty-one of said code, all relating to the West Virginia consumer credit protection act; creating the West Virginia rent-to- own consumer protection act; consumer protection in rent-to- own transactions for goods to be used for personal, family or household purposes; providing civil penalties for violations; decriminalizing certain conversions of property which are the subject of rent-to-own transactions; and penalties.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended by adding thereto a new chapter, designated chapter forty-six-b; and that section thirty-two, article three, chapter sixty-one of said code be amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:
CHAPTER 46B. CONSUMER PROTECTION; RENT-TO-OWN.

ARTICLE 1. SHORT TITLE; GENERAL PROTECTION; REGULATION ON TRANSACTIONS.

§46B-1-1. Act.

This article may be known and cited as "The West Virginia Rent-To-Own Consumer Protection Act".

§46B-1-2. General definitions; applicability of other law; inapplicability of other law.

(a) Definitions. -- Notwithstanding the other provisions of this chapter, for the purposes of this article, unless a different meaning is plainly required by this article:
(1) "Claim" means any obligation or alleged obligation of a lessee to pay money arising out of a rent-to-own transaction where is the subject of the transaction is primarily for personal, family or household purposes, whether or not such obligation has been reduced to judgment.
(2) "Debt collection" means any action, conduct or practice of soliciting claims for collection or the collection of claims owed or due or alleged to be owed or due to a lessor by a lessee.
(3) "Debt collector" means any person or organization engaging directly or indirectly in debt collection. The term includes any person or organization who sells or offers to sell forms which are, or are represented to be, a collection system, device or scheme, and are intended or calculated to be used to collect claims.
(4) "Damage waiver" means the voiding or disregard by thelessor of any obligation on the part of the lessee to pay the value of the goods or to make payments pursuant to the rent-to- own transaction in the event of loss or damage to the goods in excess of normal wear and tear for the insurance of the value of the goods or of payments pursuant to the rent-to-own transaction in the event of loss or damage to the goods in excess of normal wear and tear.
(5) "Goods" means personal property not excluded by subsection (b) of this section.
(6) "Lessor" means a person who, in the ordinary course of business, provides goods to consumers, offers to provide goods to consumers or acts as an agent to offer or provide goods to consumers pursuant to a rent-to-own transaction governed by this article.
(7) "Lessee" means a consumer who acquires or seeks to acquire possession, use or ownership of goods to be used primarily for personal, family or household purposes pursuant to a rent-to-own transaction governed by this article.
(8) "Ownership" means transferrable legal title to goods whether or not evidenced or required to be evidenced by a document.
(9) "Period" means a week, a month or other duration of time in a rent-to-own transaction during which the lessee has a right to use or possess covered by a periodic payment.
(10) "Periodic payment" means the payment required from the lessee to have the right to possession of the goods during a period. The periodic payment does not include any applicable sales, use, privilege, excise or documentary stamp tax payableupon sale or other transfer of goods to a lessee from a person or entity in the business of making such transfers except as provided by the disclosure requirements of this article.
(11) "Person" or "party" includes a natural person or an individual, an organization, partnerships and corporations.
(12) "Person related to" with respect to an individual means: (a) The spouse of the individual; (b) a brother, brother- in-law, sister or sister-in-law of the individual; (c) an ancestor or lineal descendant of the individual or his spouse; and (d) any other relative, by blood or marriage, of the individual or his spouse who shares the same home with the individual. "Person related to" with respect to an organization, partnership or corporation means: (a) A person directly or indirectly controlling, controlled by or under common control with the organization, partnership or corporation; (b) an officer or director of the organization, partnership or corporation or a person performing similar functions with respect to the organization or to a person related to the organization, partnership or corporation; (c) the spouse of a person related to the organization, partnership or corporation; and (d) a relative by blood or marriage of a person related to the organization, partnership or corporation shares the same home with him or her.
(13) "Premises" means a particular physical place of business opened to the public by a lessor.
(14) "Rent-to-own transaction" means a transaction, other than a transaction excluded from coverage by subsection (b) of this section, in which a person acquires the possession or use of goods to be used primarily for personal, family or householdpurposes and in which the lessee agrees to acquire ownership of the goods.
(15) "Retail value" means the price at which goods would change hands in the particular market area at the time of the rent-to-own transaction in exchange for cash, check or other legal tender, between a willing seller who has the knowledge of a reasonable seller of the relevant facts, who is under no compulsion to sell to a particular buyer and who is in the business of selling such goods and a willing buyer who has the knowledge of a reasonable consumer of the relevant facts and who is under no compulsion to buy or to buy from a particular seller: Provided, That retail value does not mean the price at which goods would change hands through catalogue, mail order, telemarketing or other similar marketing technique in which the supplier of the goods does not have a place of business in the market area where such transactions occur unless such marketing technique used has not direct or indirect ownership connection with any lessor. The retail value shall not include any applicable sales, use, privilege, excise or documentary stamp tax payable upon sale or other transfer of goods to a consumer from a person or entity in the business of making such transfers except as provided by the disclosure requirements of this article.
Retail value of a good is defined as, including, but not limited to, a bona fide retail sale of goods of the same make or manufacturer and substantially the same quality and characteristics in the same market area at the time of the rent-to-own transaction in exchange for chase, check or otherlegal tender to a willing consumer buyer who has the knowledge of a reasonable consumer of the relevant facts and who is under no compulsion to buy or to buy from a particular seller from a willing seller who is in the business of selling such goods, who has the knowledge of a reasonable seller of the relevant facts, who is under no compulsion to sell to a particular buyer, and who has no connection with the lessor of the goods in questions: Provided, That a sale of goods through catalogue, mail order, telemarketing or other similar marketing technique in which the supplier of the goods does not have a place of business in the market area where such transactions occur would not alone constitute such evidence unless such marketing technique used has no direct or indirect ownership connection with the lessor.
(16) "Services" includes: (a) Work, labor and other personal services; (b) privileges with respect to transportation, use of vehicles, hotel and restaurant accommodations, education, entertainment, recreation, physical culture, hospital accommodations, funerals, cemetery accommodations and the like; and (c) insurance.
(17) "Total of payments" means the total of all scheduled payments specified in the written agreement that the lessee pays to acquire ownership of the good.
(18) "Written agreement" means a written document containing or evidencing the terms of a rent-to-own transaction.
(b) Exclusions. -- Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, the further provisions of this chapter, chapter forty-six of this code and other law, a transaction is not a rent-to-own transaction subject to theprovisions of this article if it is a transaction:
(1) In which a national bank or a state chartered bank is a party if it is subject to the federal Truth in Lending Act or the federal Consumer Leasing Act and the regulations promulgated pursuant thereto;
(2) In which all the goods which are the subject matter of the transaction are vehicles as defined in section one, article one, chapter seventeen-a of this code;
(3) In which all of the goods which are the subject of the transaction are two-way telecommunications equipment and are subject to the federal Consumer Lease Act and regulations promulgated pursuant thereto;
(4) In which all of the goods are medical equipment and the transaction is subject to the federal Truth in Lending Act or the regulations promulgated pursuant thereto; or
(5) In which all of the goods which are the subject of the transaction are musical instruments if the transaction is subject to the federal Truth in Lending Act or the regulations promulgated pursuant thereto.
(c) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to limit the applicability of any other provisions of this code which apply generally to consumer sales transactions and may apply to a rent-to-own transaction.
§46B-1-3. Written agreement in rent-to-own transactions.
All rent-to-own purchases shall be by written agreement. This agreement shall include all disclosures required by this article and the cost, if any, which is imposed by a government entity to transfer ownership of the goods upon payment asprovided in section six of this article. The lessee and lessor shall sign the agreement. A lessor may not attempt to take any action that is not included in the agreement. The lessor shall provide a copy of the written agreement to the lessee at the time of execution of the agreement. Any transaction entered into without a written agreement may be voided by the lessee who may return the goods and be refunded all amounts paid to lessor.
§46B-1-4. Termination of rent-to-own transaction by lessee; by lessor.
(a) Termination by the lessee:
(1) A lessee may terminate any rent-to-own transaction at the end of any rental period;
(2) When a lessee terminates a rent-to-own transaction, the lessor may not require any further action or payment by the lessee except:
(A) Payment of unpaid payments and charges accrued before the lessee notifies the lessor of the termination of the transaction and makes the goods available to the lessor; and
(B) Payment of any pickup charge provided for in the written agreement.
(b) Termination by the lessor: A lessor may terminate any rent-to-own transaction only as authorized by this section and when the lessee fails to make a periodic payment or when the lessee, with the intent to defraud and without written consent of the lessor, disposes of the goods by sale or transfer, secretes or converts the goods to his or her own use or moves or causes the good to be removed from the state.
(1) Seven days prior to terminating any transaction, thelessor shall provide a written notice to the lessee informing him or her:
(A) Of amount of any payment that the lessee has failed to make;
(B) That lessee may voluntarily surrender possession of the goods to the lessor;
(C) Of any late payment which has been or may be assessed;
(D) Of the right to reinstate which shall include:
(i) That the lessee may reinstate the agreement by payment of amounts due when the goods are in the possession of the lessee;
(ii) The amount of time when the lessee has to reinstate the agreement;
(iii) That reinstatement will result in continuation of the original agreement, including the provisions relating to regaining ownership of the goods; and
(iv) The amount of fees to be paid for reinstatement.
(2) The lessor may request that the goods be surrendered at any time after a lessee has failed to make a payment required under the agreement. When the lessee surrenders the goods, the transaction is terminated. The lessor shall provide the lessee the notice required by this section.
§46B-1-5. Reinstatement of written rental agreement.
(a) The lessee may reinstate the transaction at any time until the lessee is served, in a manner pursuant to rule four of the rules of civil procedure, with a civil complaint arising out of the transaction.
(b) When a lessee fails to timely make one or more periodicpayments, he or she may reinstate the original rent-to-own transaction, without losing any right or option of the lessee under the rental-purchase agreement, within sixty days after the expiration of the last period for which the lessee made a timely payment: Provided, That if a lessee has made more than forty percent of the regular payments required to obtain ownership of the goods, pursuant to the rent-to-own transaction, the lessee shall have ninety days to reinstate a rent-to-own transaction: Provided, however, That when a lessor seeks to repossess the goods and has lawfully repossessed the goods two previous times during the same transaction, the lessee may not reinstate the transaction.
(c) If reinstatement occurs pursuant to this section, the lessor shall provide the lessee with the same goods leased by the lessee prior to the reinstatement as if those goods are not available to the lessor, substitute property that is of no less quality and condition. When substitute property is provided, the lessor shall make all disclosures required by this chapter. A lessor may charge a nominal fee to reinstate the transaction only when the property is returned to the lessor prior to reinstatement.
§46B-1-6. Lessee's right to ownership of the goods.
When the lessee has paid all periodic payments required by a rent-to-own transaction together with any other charges authorized by law which have been lawfully imposed in the transaction, he or she shall have exclusive ownership of the goods: Provided, That the lessee, after the initial payment, may obtain ownership before the scheduled end of the rent-to-owntransaction by paying:
(1) A portion of the periodic payments, which have not yet become payable, subject to any limitation provided by this chapter;
(2) All periodic payments and other charges authorized by law which have already become due and which may be lawfully imposed in the transaction; and
(3) The amount of any documentary or other fee charged by a governmental entity to transfer ownership or proof of ownership.
§46B-1-7. Maintenance of goods.
All lessors shall maintain the goods that are the subject in usable condition of any rent-to-own transaction until the lessee obtains ownership of the goods.

§46B-1-8. Requirement for rent-to-own transactions -- Transfer of warranty.

(a) When goods that are subjects of a rent-to-own transaction are covered by a warranty that is transferrable to the lessee, the warranty shall be transferred to the lessee. The lessor shall advise, orally and in writing, the lessee of any manufacturer's warranty that may apply to the goods and any details regarding the warranty and the transfer of the warranty.
(b) Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit any other implied or expressed warranty on the goods.
§46B-1-9. Disclosure requirements.
(a) The lessor shall make all disclosures required by this section.
(b) In all circumstances listed in subsection (c) of this section, the lessor shall disclose the following information withrespect to the goods that are the subject of the transaction in a clear, conspicuous and easily understood manner:
(1) Retail value;
(2) Cash price;
(3) Amount of periodic payments;
(4) Rental period;
(5) Number of periodic payments required for ownership;
(6) Total of all payments; and
(7) Whether the goods are new or have been previously rented or are otherwise used.
(c) The lessor shall make the disclosures required in this section:
(1) On a label attached or posted on top of the goods displayed to any potential lessee;
(2) In any written agreement entered pursuant to section three of this article;
(3) In any telephone communication with a potential lessee; and
(4) In any radio, television or printed advertisement for the goods when the price for the item is included in the advertisement.
Any oral communications concerning the terms and conditions of the transaction shall be incorporated into a written agreement which shall govern the transaction.
(d) In any transaction involving more than one lessor, only one lessor may make the disclosures required by this article: Provided, That when the name of the lessor is required to be disclosed, all lessors shall be disclosed.
(e) A lessor may disclose information that is not required by this section only when the additional information is not stated, used or placed in a manner that may contradict, obscure or distract attention from the information required by this section.
§46B-1-10. Prohibition for rent-to-own transactions.
No lessor may:
(a) Require any initial payment in any transaction except the payment for the first rental period, taxes, insurance or delivery fees;
(b) Charge any fee at the conclusion of a transaction except rental payments, taxes, insurance, delivery fees and the fee charged by a government entity;
(c) Raise the amount of any payment or charge after the execution of the written agreement without both parties voluntarily entering into a second written agreement;
(d) Take any action to collect a payment which is prohibited by this chapter;
(e) Accept a cosigner unless that person is a lessee;
(f) Take any security interest in any property owned by the lessee other than the goods that are the subject of the transaction;
(g) Require a damage waiver, insurance or form of insurance for any goods except a lessor may require insurance on goods when the lessor requires the insurance for all goods of that type and value;
(h) Require insurance from a particular insurer; or
(i) Seek to collect any charge not authorized by thissection or disclosed in a written agreement.
§46B-1-11. Limitations on charges and fees.
(a) Any lessee seeking to fulfill obligations pursuant to section six of this article may be charged a fee no greater than the retail value divided by the total of payments multiplied by the amount of the periodic payments which have not yet become due.
(b) A lessor may not charge a fee for delivery or pickup unless the charge is provided for in the written agreements, the parties agree that the lessor shall deliver or pick up the good, and the charge is reasonably related to the costs of delivery: Provided, That no delivery or pick up charge may be assessed in any transaction when the transaction took place in any place other than the premises of the lessor.
(c) The total of payments in a rent-to-own transaction shall not be greater than two hundred forty percent of the retail value.
§46B-1-12. Attorney general; promulgation of rules.
The attorney general may adopt, amend and repeal such reasonable rules and regulations, in accordance with the provisions of chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, as are necessary and proper to effectuate the purposes of this chapter and to prevent circumvention or evasion thereof. In addition, the attorney general shall adopt, amend and repeal such reasonable rules and regulations, in accordance with the provisions of said chapter, as are necessary and proper to determine formula or method of ascertaining retail value as defined in this article and as are necessary and proper to detailthe requirements for disclosure set forth in this article.
ARTICLE 2. PROHIBITED CONDUCT.
§46B-2-1. Extortionate in rent-to-own transaction.
If the court finds as a matter of fact that it was the understanding of the lessor and the lessee at the time a rental agreement for a rent-to-own transaction was made that delay in making a payment could result in the use of violence or other criminal means to cause harm to the person, reputation or property of any person, the agreement of the extension of credit is unenforceable through civil judicial process against the lessor and the lessee, at his or her option, may rescind the agreement and retain the goods without any obligation to pay for them.
§46B-2-2. Referral sales or leases.
With respect to a rent-to-own transaction lease, the lessor may not give or offer to give a rebate or discount or otherwise pay or offer to pay value to the lessee as an inducement for a sale or lease in consideration of his giving to the lessor the names of prospective purchasers or lessees, or otherwise aiding the lessor in making a lease to another person, if the earning of the rebate, discount or other value is contingent upon the occurrence of an event subsequent to the time the lessee agrees to lease. If a lessee is induced by a violation of this section to enter into a rent-to-own transaction, the agreement is unenforceable against the lessee, at his or her option, may rescind the agreement and retain the goods without any obligation to pay for them.

§46B-2-3. Unconscionability; inducement by unconscionable

conduct.
(1) With respect to a rent-to-own transaction, if the court as a matter of law finds:
(a) The agreement or transaction to have been unconscionable at the time it was made or to have been induced by unconscionable conduct, the court may refuse to enforce the agreement; or
(b) Any term or part of the agreement or transaction to have been unconscionable at the time it was made, the court may refuse to enforce the agreement or may enforce the remainder of the agreement without the unconscionable term or part or may so limit the application of any unconscionable term or part as to avoid any unconscionable result.
(2) If it is claimed or appears to the court that the agreement or transaction or any term or part thereof may be unconscionable, the parties shall be afforded a reasonable opportunity to present evidence as to its setting, purpose and effect to aid the court in making the determination.
(3) For the purpose of this section, a charge or practice expressly permitted by this chapter is not unconscionable.
§46B-2-4. Practice of law by debt collectors.
Unless a licensed attorney in this state, no debt collector shall engage in conduct deemed the practice of law. Without limiting the general application of the foregoing, the following conduct is deemed the practice of law:
(a) The performance of legal services, furnishing of legal advice or false representation, direct or by implication, that any person is an attorney;
(b) Any communication with lessees in the name of anattorney or upon stationery or other written matter bearing an attorney's name; and
(c) Any demand for or payment of money constituting a share of compensation for services performed or to be performed by an attorney in collecting a claim.
§46B-2-5. Threats or coercion.
No debt collector shall collect or attempt to collect any money alleged to be due and owing by means of any threat, coercion or attempt to coerce. Without limiting the general application of the foregoing, the following conduct is deemed to violate this section:
(a) The use, or express or implicit threat of use, of violence or other criminal means to cause harm to the person, reputation or property of any person;
(b) The accusation or threat to accuse any person of fraud, any crime or any conduct which, if true, would tend to disgrace such other person or in any way subject him to ridicule or any conduct which, if true, would tend to disgrace such other person or in any way subject him to ridicule or contempt of society;
(c) False accusations made to another person, including any credit reporting agency, that a lessee is willfully refusing to pay a just debt or the threat to so make false accusations;
(d) The threat to sell or assign to another the obligation of the lessee with an attending representation or implication that the result of such sale or assignment would be that the lessee would lose any defense to the claim or would be subjected to harsh, vindictive or abusive collection attempts;
(e) The threat that nonpayment of an alleged claim willresult in the:
(1) Arrest of any person; or
(2) Garnishment of any wages of any person or the taking of other action requiring judicial sanction, without informing the lessee that there must be in effect a judicial order permitting such garnishment or such other action before it can be taken; and
(f) The threat to take any action prohibited by this chapter or other law regulating the debt collector's conduct.
§46B-2-6. Oppression and abuse.
No debt collector shall unreasonably oppress or abuse any person in connection with the collection of or attempt to collect any claim alleged to be due and owing by that person or another. Without limiting the general application of the foregoing, the following conduct is deemed to violate this section:
(a) The use of profane or obscene language or language that is intended to unreasonably abuse the hearer or reader;
(b) The placement of telephone calls without disclosure of the caller's identity and with the intent to annoy, harass or threaten any person at the called number;
(c) Causing expense to any person in the form of long distance telephone tolls, telegram fees or other charges incurred by a medium of communication, by concealment of the true purpose of the communication; and
(d) Causing a telephone to ring or engaging any person in telephone conversation repeatedly or continuously, or at unusual times or at times known to be inconvenient, with intent to annoy, abuse, oppress or threaten any person at the called number.
§46B-2-7. Unreasonable publication.
No debt collector shall unreasonably publicize information relating to any alleged indebtedness of lessee. Without limiting the general application of the foregoing, the following conduct is deemed to violate this section:
(a) The communication to any employer or his agent before judgment has been rendered of any information relating to an employee's indebtedness other than through proper legal action, process or proceeding;
(b) The disclosure, publication or communication of information relating to a lessee's indebtedness to any relative or family member of the lessee if such person is not residing with the lessee, except through proper legal action or process or at the express and unsolicited request of the relative or family member;
(c) The disclosure, publication or communication of any information relating to a lessee's indebtedness to any other person other than a credit reporting agency, by publishing or posting any list of lessees, commonly known as "deadbeat lists"; and
(d) The use of any form of communication to the lessee, which ordinarily may be seen by any other persons, that displays or conveys any information about the alleged claim other than the name, address and phone number of the debt collector.
§46B-2-8. Fraudulent, deceptive or misleading representations.
No debt collector shall use any fraudulent, deceptive or misleading representation or means to collect or attempt to collect claims or to obtain information concerning lessees. Without limiting the general application of the foregoing, thefollowing conduct is deemed to violate this section:
(a) The use of any business, company or organization name while engaged in the collection of claims, other than the true name of the debt collector's business, company or organization;
(b) The failure to clearly disclose in all communications made to collect or attempt to collect a claim or to obtain or attempt to obtain information about a lessee, that the debt collector is attempting to collect a claim and that any information obtained will be used for that purpose;
(c) Any false representation that the debt collector has in his possession information or something of value for the lessee that is made to solicit or discover information about the lessee;
(d) The failure to clearly disclose the name and full business address of the person to whom the claim has been assigned for collection, or to whom the claim is owed, at the time of making any demand for money;
(e) Any false representation or implication of the character, extent or amount of a claim against a lessee or of its status in any legal proceeding;
(f) Any false representation or false implication that any debt collector is vouched for, bonded by, affiliated with or an instrumentality, agent or official of this state or any agency of the federal, state or local government;
(g) The use or distribution or sale of any written communication which simulates or is falsely represented to be a document authorized, issued or approved by a court, an official or any other legally constituted or authorized authority, or which creates a false impression about its source, authorizationor approval;
(h) Any representation that an existing obligation of the lessee may be increased by the addition of attorney's fees, investigation fees, service fees or any other fees or charges when in fact such fees or charges may not legally be added to the existing obligation; and
(i) Any false representation or false impression about the status or true nature of or the services rendered by the debt collector or his business.
§46B-2-9. Unfair or unconscionable means.
No debt collector shall use unfair or unconscionable means to collect or attempt to collect any claim. Without limiting the general application of the foregoing, the following conduct is deemed to violate this section:
(a) The seeking or obtaining of any written statement or acknowledgment in any form that specifies that a lessee's obligation is one incurred for necessaries of life where the original obligation was not in fact incurred for such necessaries;
(b) The seeking or obtaining of any written statement or acknowledgment in any form containing an affirmation of any obligation by a lessee who has been declared bankrupt without clearly disclosing the nature and consequences of such affirmation and the fact that the lessee is not legally obligated to make such affirmation;
(c) The collection or the attempt to collect from the lessee all or any part of the debt collector's fee or charge for services rendered;
(d) The collection of or the attempt to collect any interest or other charge, fee or expense incidental to the principal obligation unless such interest or incidental fee, charge or expense is expressly authorized by the written rental agreement and by statute; and
(e) Any communication with a lessee whenever it appears that the lessee is represented by an attorney and the attorney's name and address are known, or could be easily ascertained, unless the attorney fails to answer correspondence, return phone calls or discuss the obligation in question or unless the attorney consents to direct communication.
§46B-2-10. Postal violations.
No debt collector shall use, distribute, sell or prepare for use any written communication which violates or fails to conform to United States postal laws and regulations.
ARTICLE 3. ASSIGNMENT AND RECEIPT OF PAYMENT.
§46B-3-1. Notice of assignment.
A lessee is authorized to pay the original lessor until he receives notification of assignment of rights to payment pursuant to a rent-to-own transaction and that payment is to be made to the assignee. A notification which does not reasonably identify the rights assigned is ineffective. If requested by the lessee, the assignee must seasonably furnish reasonable proof that the assignment has been made and unless he does so the lessee may pay the original lessor.
§46B-3-2. Receipts; statements of account; evidence of payment.
(1) The lessor shall deliver or mail to the lessee, without request, a written receipt for each payment by coin or currencyon an obligation pursuant to a written rental agreement. A periodic statement showing a payment received complies with this subsection.
(2) Upon written request of a lessee, the lessor shall provide a written statement of the dates and amounts of payments made within the past twelve months and the total amount unpaid. The requested statement shall be provided without charge once during each year of the term of the agreement. If additional statements are requested the creditor may charge not in excess of three dollars for each additional statement.
(3) After a lessee has fulfilled all obligations with respect to a rent-to-own transaction, the lessor shall, upon the request of the lessee, deliver or mail to the lessee written evidence acknowledging payment in full of all obligations with respect to the transaction.
§46B-3-3. Notification.
(1) Every person engaged in this state in making rent-to-own transactions and every person having an office or place of business in this state who takes assignments of and undertakes direct collection of payments from or enforcement of rights against debtors arising from such transactions shall file notification with the state tax department within thirty days after commencing business in this state, and, thereafter, on or before the thirty-first day of January of each year. A notification shall be deemed to be in compliance with this section if the information hereinafter required is given in an application for a business registration certificate provided for in section four, article twelve, chapter eleven of this code. The state tax commissioner shall make any information required by this section available to the attorney general or commissioner upon request. The notification shall state:
(a) Name of the person;
(b) Name in which business is transacted if different from subdivision (a) of this subsection;
(c) Address of principal office, which may be outside this state;
(d) Address of all offices or retail stores, if any, in this state at which rent-to-own transactions are made or, in the case of a person taking assignments of obligations, the offices or places of business within this state at which business is transacted; and
(e) Address of designated agent upon whom service of process may be made in this state.
(2) If information in a notification becomes inaccurate after filing, accurate information must be filed within thirty days.
ARTICLE 4. LIMITATIONS ON COLLECTIONS AND RELATED PROVISIONS.
§46B-4-1. Assignment of earnings.
(1) The maximum part of the aggregate disposable earnings of an individual for any workweek which may be subjected to any one or more assignments of earnings for the payment of a debt or debts arising from one or more rent-to-own transactions, may not exceed twenty-five percent of his disposable earnings for that week.
(2) As used in this section:
(a) "Disposable earnings" means that part of the earnings ofan individual remaining after the deduction from those earnings of amounts required by law to be withheld; and
(b) "Assignment of earnings" includes all forms of assignments, deductions, transfers or sales of earnings to another, either as payment or as security and whether stated to be revocable or nonrevocable and includes any deductions authorized under the provisions of section three, article five, chapter twenty-one of this code, except deductions for union or club dues, pension plans, payroll savings plans, charities, stock purchase plans and hospitalization and medical insurance.
(3) Any assignment of earnings and any deduction under section three, article five, chapter twenty-one of this code shall be revocable by the employee at will at any time, notwithstanding any provision to the contrary.
(4) The priority of multiple assignments of earnings shall be according to the date and time of each such assignment.
§46B-4-2. Authorization to confess judgment prohibited.
A lessee may not authorize any person to confess judgment on a claim arising out of a rent-to-own transaction. An authorization in violation of this section is void. The provisions of this section shall not be construed as in any way impliedly authorizing a confession of judgment in any other type of transaction.
§46B-4-3. No garnishment before judgment.
Prior to entry of judgment in an action against the lessee for debt arising from a rent-to-own transaction, the lessor may not attach unpaid earnings of the lessee by garnishment or like proceedings. The provisions of this section shall not beconstrued as in any way impliedly authorizing garnishment before judgment in any other type of transaction.
§46B-4-4. Limitation on garnishment.
(1) For the purposes of the provisions in this chapter relating to garnishment:
(a) "Disposable earnings" means that part of the earnings of an individual remaining after the deduction from those earnings of amounts required by law to be withheld; and
(b) "Garnishment" means any legal or equitable procedure through which the earnings of an individual are required to be withheld for payment of a debt.
(2) The maximum part of the aggregate disposable earnings of an individual for any workweek which is subjected to garnishment to enforce payment of a judgment arising from a rent-to-own transaction may not exceed the lesser of:
(A) Twenty percent of his disposable earnings for that week;
(B) The amount by which his disposable earnings for that week exceed thirty times the federal minimum hourly wage prescribed by Section 6(a)(1) of the "Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938", U.S.C. Title 19, Section 206(a)(1), in effect at the time the earnings are payable; or
(C) In the case of earnings for a pay period other than a week, the commissioner shall prescribe by rule a multiple of the federal minimum hourly wage equivalent in effect to that set forth in subdivision (B) of this subsection.
(3) No court may make, execute or enforce an order or process in violation of this section. Any time after a lessee's earnings have been executed upon pursuant to article five-a orfive-b, chapter thirty-eight of this code by a creditor resulting from a rent-to-own transaction, such lessor may petition any court having jurisdiction of such matter or the circuit court of the county wherein he resides to reduce or temporarily or permanently remove such execution upon his earnings on the grounds that such execution causes or will cause undue hardship to him or his family. When such fact is proved to the satisfaction of such court, it may reduce or temporarily or permanently remove such execution.
(4) No garnishment governed by the provisions of this section will be given priority over a voluntary assignment of wages to fulfill a support obligation, a garnishment to collect arrearages in support payments or a notice of withholding from wages of amounts payable as support, notwithstanding the fact that the garnishment in question or the judgment upon which it is based may have preceded the support-related assignment, garnishment or notice of withholding in point of time or filing.
§46B-4-5. No discharge or reprisal because of garnishment.
No employer shall discharge or take any other form of reprisal against an employee for the reason that a creditor of the employee has subjected or attempted to subject unpaid earnings of the employee to garnishment or like proceedings directed to the employer for the purpose of paying a judgment arising from a rent-to-own transaction.
§46B-4-6. Personal property exemptions.
Any lessee residing in this state may set apart and hold personal property to be exempt from execution or other judicial process resulting from rent-to-own transactions, except for thepurchase money due on such property, in such amounts as follows: Clothing and other wearing apparel of the lessee, his spouse and any dependents of such lessee, not to exceed the fair market value of two hundred dollars; furniture, appliances, furnishings and fixtures regularly used for family purposes in the lessee's residence, to the extent of the fair market value of one thousand dollars; children's books, pictures, toys and other such personal property of children; all medical health equipment used for health purposes by the lessee, his or her spouse and any dependent of such lessee; tools of trade, including any income- producing property used in the lessee's principal occupation, to the extent of the fair market value of one thousand dollars; and any policy of life or endowment insurance which is payable to the spouse or children of the insured lessee or to a trustee for their benefit, except the cash value of any accrued dividends thereon. When a lessee claims personal property as exempt under the provisions of this section, he shall deliver a list containing all the personal property owned or claimed by him and all items of such property he claims as exempt hereunder, with the value of each separate item listed according to his best knowledge, to the officer holding the execution or other such process. Such list shall be sworn to by affidavit. If the value of the property named in such list exceeds the amounts specified in this section, the lessee shall state at the foot thereof what part of such property he claims as exempt. If such value does not exceed the amounts specified in this section, the claim of exemption shall be held to extend to the whole thereof without stating more and, if no appraisement is demanded, the property soclaimed shall be set aside as exempt. Where the lessee owning exempt property is absent or incapable of acting or neglects or declines to act hereunder, the claim of exemption may be made, the list delivered and the affidavit made by his spouse with the same effect as if the lessee had done so. Upon receipt of such a list, the officer to whom it is given shall immediately exhibit such list to the lessor or his agent or attorney. The rights granted and procedures provided for in article eight, chapter thirty-eight of this code shall apply to any proceeding under this section, except that the provisions of sections one and three of such article shall not apply.
ARTICLE 5. NONRESIDENT DEFENDANTS.
§46B-5-1. Service of process on certain nonresidents.
Any nonresident person, except a nonresident corporation authorized to do business in this state pursuant to the provisions of chapter thirty-one of this code, who takes or holds any negotiable instrument, nonnegotiable instrument, or contract or other writing, arising from a rent-to-own lease which is subject to the provisions of this chapter, shall be conclusively presumed to have appointed the secretary of state as his attorney-in-fact with authority to accept service of notice and process in any action or proceeding brought against him arising out of such rent-to-own transaction. A person shall be considered a nonresident hereunder if he is a nonresident at the time such service of notice and process is sought. No act of such person appointing the secretary of state shall be necessary. Immediately after being served with or accepting any such process or notice, of which process or notice two copies for eachdefendant shall be furnished the secretary of state with the original notice or process, together with a fee of two dollars, the secretary of state shall file in his office a copy of such process or notice, with a note thereon endorsed of the time of service or acceptance, as the case may be, and transmit one copy of such process or notice by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested, to such person at his address, which address shall be stated in such process or notice: Provided, That such return receipt shall be signed by such person or an agent or employee of such person if a corporation, or the registered or certified mail so sent by said secretary of state is refused by the addressee and the registered or certified mail is returned to said secretary of state, or to his office, showing thereon the stamp of the U.S. postal service that delivery thereof has been refused, and such return receipt or registered or certified mail is appended to the original process or notice and filed therewith in the clerk's office of the court from which such process or notice was issued. But no process or notice shall be served on the secretary of state or accepted fewer than ten days before the return date thereof. The court may order such continuances as may be reasonable to afford each defendant opportunity to defend the action or proceeding.
The provisions for service of process or notice herein are cumulative and nothing herein contained shall be construed as a bar to the plaintiff in any action from having process or notice in such action served in any other mode and manner provided by law.
ARTICLE 6. ENFORCEMENT AND REMEDIES.
§46B-6-1. Enforcement.
For a violation of or a failure to comply with the provisions of this article by a lessor, a lessee is entitled to recover from the lessor the lessee's actual damages, reasonable attorney's fees and court costs and a civil penalty in an amount not less than one hundred dollars nor more than one thousand dollars for each violation.

§46B-6-2. Injunctions against unconscionable agreements and fraudulent or unconscionable conduct.

(1) The attorney general may bring a civil action to restrain a lessor or a person acting in his behalf from engaging in a course of:
(a) Making or enforcing unconscionable terms or provisions of rent-to-own transactions;
(b) Fraudulent or unconscionable conduct in inducing lessees to enter into rent-to-own transactions; or
(c) Fraudulent or unconscionable conduct in the collection of payments arising from rent-to-own transactions.
(2) In an action brought pursuant to this section the court may grant relief only if it finds:
(a) That the respondent has made unconscionable agreements or has engaged or is likely to engage in a course of fraudulent or unconscionable conduct;
(b) That the agreements or conduct of the respondent have caused or are likely to cause injury to lessees; and
(c) That the respondent has been able to cause or will be able to cause the injury primarily because the transactions involved are rent-to-own transactions.
(3) In applying this section, consideration shall be given to each of the following factors, among others:
(a) Belief by the lessor at the time rent-to-own transactions are made that there was no reasonable probability of payment in full of the obligation by the lessee;
(b) Knowledge by the lessor at the time of the sale of the inability of the lessee to receive substantial benefits from the transaction;
(c) Gross disparity between the price of the property or services sold that are the subject of the transaction and the value of the property measured by the price at which similar property are readily obtainable in rent-to-own transactions by like lessees;
(d) The fact that the lessor contracted for or received separate charges for insurance with respect to the goods with the effect of making the sales or loans, considered as a whole, unconscionable; and
(e) The fact that the respondent has knowingly taken advantage of the inability of the lessee reasonably to protect his interests by reason of physical or mental infirmities, ignorance, illiteracy or inability to understand the language of the agreement or similar factors.
(4) In an action brought pursuant to this chapter, a charge or practice expressly permitted by this chapter is not unconscionable.
§46B-6-3. Civil actions by attorney general.
(a) After demand, the attorney general may bring a civil action against a lessor for making or collecting charges inexcess of those permitted by this chapter. If the court finds that an excess charge has been made, the court shall order the respondent to refund to the lessee the amount of the excess charge. If a lessor has made an excess charge in a deliberate violation of or in reckless disregard for this chapter, or if a lessor has refused to refund an excess charge within a reasonable time after demand by the lessee or the attorney general, the court may also order the respondent to pay to the lessee a civil penalty in an amount determined by the court not in excess of ten times the amount of the excess charge. Refunds and penalties to which the lessee is entitled pursuant to this subsection may be set off against the lessee's obligation. If a lessee brings an action against a lessor to recover an excess charge or civil penalty, an action by the attorney general to recover for the same excess charge shall be stayed while the lessee's action is pending and shall be dismissed if the lessee's action is dismissed with prejudice or results in a final judgment granting or denying the lessee's claim. No action pursuant to this subsection may be brought more than one year after the time the excess charge was made. If the lessor establishes by a preponderance of evidence that a violation is unintentional or the result of a bona fide error, no liability to pay a penalty shall be imposed under this subsection.
(b) The attorney general may bring a civil action against a lessor to recover a civil penalty for willfully violating this chapter and if the court finds that the defendant has engaged in a course of repeated and willful violations of this chapter, it may assess a civil penalty of no more than five thousand dollars. No civil penalty pursuant to this subsection may be imposed for violations of this chapter occurring more than four years before the action is brought.
CHAPTER 61. CRIMES AND THEIR PUNISHMENT.
ARTICLE 3. CRIMES AGAINST PROPERTY.

§61-3-32. Removal out of county of property securing claim; penalties; fraudulent disposition of personal property in possession by virtue of lease; notice to return; failure to return; penalty; right to immediate possession.

(a) Any debtor under any security instrument conveying personal property, who retains possession of such personal property, and who, without the consent of the owner of the claim secured by such security instrument, and with intent to defraud, removes or causes to be removed any of the property securing such claim out of the county where it is situated at the time it became security for such claim or out of a county to which it was removed by virtue of a former consent of the owner of the claim under this section, or, with intent to defraud, secretes or sells the same, or converts the same to his own use, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, be fined not more than five hundred dollars, or imprisoned not more than six months, or both, in the discretion of the court.
(b) Any person in possession or control of any personal property by virtue of or subject to a written lease who, with intent to defraud and without written consent of the owner, disposes of such property by sale or transfer, or, after receiving a written notice to return the property to the lessor, secretes or converts such property to his own use and in so doingplacing the property in a location other than the locations described in a written rental agreement, or removes or causes to be removed such property from the state shall be deemed guilty of the larceny of such property.
In any prosecution under the provisions of this subsection, written notice may be mailed by certified mail, addressed to the lessee at the address of the lessee stated in the lease, and served on the lessee within ten days of the expiration of the lease, which notice shall state that the lease has expired and that lessee has ten days from receipt of such notice to return the leased property. Proof that the lessee failed to return the property within ten days of receiving such notice shall in any prosecution under this subsection constitute prima facie evidence that the lessee intended to defraud the owner.
Whenever the lessee is a resident of the county in which the lease was contracted, the lessor, after written notice to the lessee within ten days after the expiration of the lease, has the right to immediate possession of the leased property, without formal process to secure return and possession of the leased property, if this can be done without breach of the peace. The lessor is not liable to the lessee for any damages for any action taken that is reasonable, necessary and incidental to the reclaiming or taking possession of the leased property.

__________

(NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide consumer protection in rent-to-own transactions regarding goods to be used for personal, family or household purposes. It creates the "West Virginia Consumer Transaction Protection Act" which provides civil penalties for violations; and it decriminalizes certain conversions of property or goods acquired in rent-to-owntransactions.)