ENGROSSED
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
Senate Bill No. 34
(By Senator Hunter and Caldwell)
____________
[Originating in the Committee on Banking and Insurance;
reported February 25, 2004.]
____________
A BILL to amend the code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by
adding thereto a new section, designated §31A-4-46, relating
to credit card fraud; limiting liability of a West Virginia
merchant for credit card fraud for card-not-present
transactions; limiting rates charged; and requiring certain
entities to report annually to the attorney general concerning
credit card fraud committed against businesses in this state.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended
by adding thereto a new section, designated §31A-4-46, to read as
follows:
ARTICLE 4. BANKING INSTITUTIONS AND SERVICES GENERALLY.
§31A-4-46. Fraudulent credit card transactions; annual reports to
attorney general.
(a) A banking institution that acts as an intermediary between a merchant bank and a bank issuing a credit card that is presented
to a person or entity licensed to do business in West Virginia and
engaged in card-not-present business activity may not charge the
West Virginia merchant more than two hundred fifty dollars for each
fraudulent card-not-present transaction, unless the banking
institution issuing the credit card cooperates in investigation of
the fraudulent credit card transaction and prosecutes criminal
charges against the person or persons involved in the credit card
fraud.
(b) A banking institution that acts as an intermediary between
a merchant bank and a bank issuing a credit card that is presented
to a person or other entity licensed to do business in West
Virginia may not charge rates for businesses engaged in credit card
sales by card-not-present service charges that are more than one
tenth of a percent greater than similar charges to merchants who
are engaged in credit card sales by card-not-present transactions
in other states.
(c) Any banking institution that acts as an intermediary
between a merchant bank and a bank issuing a credit card that is
presented to a person or entity that is licensed to do business in
West Virginia and is engaged in card-not-present business activity
must provide the attorney general of West Virginia with an annual
report prior to the next regular session of the Legislature
relating to transactions involving fraudulent card-not-present
credit card sales by state businesses.