BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                    AB 2106


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          CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS


          AB  
          2106 (Irwin)


          As Amended  August 15, 2016


          Majority vote


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          |ASSEMBLY:  |78-0  |(May 12, 2016) |SENATE: |39-0  |(August 17,      |
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          Original Committee Reference:  A.,E.,S.,T., & I.M.


          SUMMARY:  Makes various changes to the Sellers of Travel law.


          The Senate amendments 


          1)Provide that the exemption from the Sellers of Travel Law  
            (Travel Law) is limited to:


             a)   Person who is an individual, 


             b)   A single-member limited liability company whose sole  
               member is an individual, or,


             c)   A single-shareholder "S" corporation whose sole  








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               shareholder is an individual that meets specified  
               conditions.


          2)Restructure and clarify the fee and fines authorized under the  
            Travel Law.


          3)Require the Attorney General (AG) to suspend the registration  
            of a Seller of Travel (SOT) who fails to make any required  
            payment or submits a check in payment of a registration fee or  
            late fee required by this section that is not honored by the  
            institution on which it is drawn, or fails to provide the file  
            number assigned them, as required.


          4)Require a SOT to provide the AG the name and contact  
            information for the sole member or the sole shareholder of a  
            limited liability company or "S" corporation, as described,  
            with which the SOT contracts, as well as their file number  
            issued by the Secretary of State or Franchise Tax Board, in  
            addition to other requirements in existing law.


          5)Extend consumer protections by allowing refund payments to  
            persons aggrieved by sellers of travel who had been paid-up  
            participants at any time during the 18 months previous to the  
            time of sale.


          6)Make additional technical, conforming and chaptering out  
            amendments.


          EXISTING LAW:  


          1)Establishes the Law which provides a comprehensive scheme for  
            the regulation of sellers of travel, as defined, and requires  
            a SOT, unless exempted, to register with the AG and to comply  
            with various requirements.  (Business and Professions Code  
            Section (BPC) 17550 et. seq.)








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          2)Defines a SOT as a person who sells, provides, furnishes,  
            contracts for, arranges, or advertises that he or she can or  
            may arrange, or has arranged, at wholesale or retail either of  
            the following:  air or sea transportation either separately or  
            in conjunction with other travel services, or land or water  
            vessel transportation, other than sea carriage, either  
            separately or in conjunction with other travel services if the  
            total charge to the passenger exceeds $300.  (BPC 17550.1(a))


          3)Excludes from the definition of a SOT the following:  an air  
            carrier; an ocean carrier; a hotel, motel, or similar lodging  
            establishment that arranges for transportation for its  
            registered guests; a motor club; or a motor or rail carrier or  
            water vessel operator operating from a state, federal, or  
            other governmental entity. (BPC 17550.1(b))


          4)Requires a SOT to register with the AG and file certain  
            information as part of registration, including the name and  
            contact information of individuals a SOT contracts with.   
            Requires the AG to suspend a SOT's registration for failure to  
            make payment to the Travel Consumer Restitution Fund (TCRF) or  
            writes a registration fee check that is not honored.   
            Authorizes the AG to contract for the processing of SOT  
            registrations.  Exempts individuals that conduct their  
            activities in accordance with specified procedures and  
            disclosures.  (BPC 17550.20, 17550.21)


          5)Establishes the Travel Consumer Restitution Corporation (TCRC)  
            which creates the TCRF as a mechanism for an aggrieved  
            passenger to be reimbursed when a SOT fails to provide for  
            travel or in the event that a SOT becomes insolvent.  (BPC  
            17550.38) 


          FISCAL EFFECT:  This bill passed out of the Senate  
          Appropriations Committee, pursuant to Rule 28.8.









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          COMMENTS:  According to the author the substantive amendments  
          came at the request of the AG's office, the state agency tasked  
          with regulation of the SOTs, in order to provide increased  
          consumer protection through greater ease of enforcement, in  
          addition to addressing technical issues and chaptering out  
          conflicts.


          Analysis Prepared by:                                             
                          Dana Mitchell / A.,E.,S.,T., & I.M. / (916)  
                          319-3450                                          
            FN:  0004452