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SB-683 Hotels and short-term rentals: advertised rates: mandatory fees.(2023-2024)

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Date Published: 09/07/2023 09:00 PM
SB683:v95#DOCUMENT

Amended  IN  Assembly  September 07, 2023
Amended  IN  Assembly  June 28, 2023
Amended  IN  Senate  April 13, 2023
Amended  IN  Senate  March 30, 2023

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION

Senate Bill
No. 683

Introduced by Senator Glazer
(Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Berman)
(Coauthors: Senators Allen, Newman, Wiener, and Wilk)
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Friedman, Gipson, Lee, and McCarty)

February 16, 2023

An act to add Section 17568.51 to the Business and Professions Code, relating to business.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


SB 683, as amended, Glazer. Hotels and short-term rentals: advertised rates: mandatory fees.
The False Advertising Law (FAL) makes it a crime for a person or a firm, corporation, or association, or any employee thereof, to engage in specified false or misleading advertising practices. The Unfair Competition Law (UCL) makes various unfair competition practices unlawful, including any unlawful, unfair, or fraudulent business act or practice and unfair, deceptive, untrue, or misleading advertising.
Existing law requires every keeper of a hotel, inn, or lodginghouse to post a statement of rates by the day for lodging and prohibits collection of a sum greater than that amount, as specified.
This bill would, beginning July 1, 2024, require a person or an internet website, application, or other similar centralized platform that advertises a hotel room rate or short-term rental rate before the public in this state, or from this state before the public in any state, to include in the advertised hotel room rate or short-term rental rate all mandatory fees, as defined, that will be charged in order for the consumer to stay in the hotel room or short-term rental. The bill would require a hotel or a short-term rental to clearly and conspicuously disclose on its internet website a list of all mandatory fees and any payment surcharges imposed on consumers. The rental and include in the total price to be paid, before the consumer reserves the stay, all taxes and fees imposed by a government on the stay.
This bill would authorize certain public attorneys, including the Attorney General, to bring an enforcement action action against a person or an internet website, application, or other similar centralized platform that knew or should have known that it has advertised a hotel room rate or short-term rental rate in violation of these provisions, and would require a court to impose a civil penalty of not more than $10,000 for each violation after consideration of specified factors. The bill would also provide that a violation of its provisions constitutes a false or misleading statement under the FAL. By expanding the scope of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: YESNO  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 Section 17568.51 is added to the Business and Professions Code, immediately following Section 17568.5, to read:

17568.51.
 (a) For purposes of this section:
(1) (A) “Hotel” means a hotel, motel, bed and breakfast inn, or other similar transient lodging establishment.
(B) “Hotel” does not include a residential hotel, as defined in Section 50519 of the Health and Safety Code.
(2) (A) “Mandatory fees” means any fees, taxes, costs, or other charges that a consumer is required to pay in order to stay in a hotel or short-term rental.
(B) “Mandatory fees” does not include taxes and fees imposed by a government on the stay or a charge for any optional service or amenity that a consumer elects to pay. For purposes of this section, assessments under Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 13995) of Part 4.7 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code or under Part 6 (commencing with Section 36500) or Part 7 (commencing with Section 36600) of Division 18 of the Streets and Highways Code are fees imposed by a government on the stay.
(3) “Short-term rental” means a residential dwelling, or any portion of a residential dwelling, that is rented to a person for 30 or fewer consecutive days.
(b) A person or an internet website, application, or other similar centralized platform that advertises a hotel room rate or short-term rental rate before the public in this state, or from this state before the public in any state, shall do both of the following:
(1) Include in the advertised hotel room rate or short-term rental rate all mandatory fees that will be charged in order for the consumer to stay in the hotel room or short-term rental.

(2)Clearly and conspicuously disclose in the advertised hotel room rate or short-term rental rate and the total price displayed at the time of booking the amount of any payment surcharge that will be applied.

(c)A hotel or short-term rental shall clearly and conspicuously disclose on its internet website a list of all mandatory fees and any payment surcharges imposed on consumers.

(2) Include in the total price to be paid, before the consumer reserves the stay, all taxes and fees imposed by a government on the stay and clearly and conspicuously disclose as a subitem of the total price all taxes and fees imposed by a government on the stay.
(c) (1) An action for a violation of this section may be brought against a person or an internet website, application, or other similar centralized platform that knew or should have known that it has advertised a hotel room rate or short-term rental rate in violation of this section.

(d)(1)

(2) An action for a violation of this section may be brought only by any of the following:
(A) The Attorney General.
(B) A district attorney.
(C) A city attorney of a city having a population in excess of 750,000.
(D) A county counsel of any county within which a city has a population in excess of 750,000.
(E) With the consent of the district attorney, a city prosecutor in a city that has a full-time city prosecutor.

(2)

(3) In an action alleging a violation of this section, the court shall impose a civil penalty of not more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for each violation of this section. In determining the amount of the civil penalty, the court shall consider all of the relevant circumstances presented by any of the parties to the case, including, but not limited to, all of the following:
(A) The nature and seriousness of the misconduct.
(B) The number of violations.
(C) The persistence of the misconduct.
(D) The length of time over which the misconduct occurred.
(E) The willfulness of the misconduct.
(F) The assets, liabilities, and net worth of the defendant.

(3)Each day that a defendant remains in violation of this section shall constitute a single violation.

(4) The penalties provided by this subdivision are in addition to any other civil, criminal, and administrative penalties or sanctions provided by law and do not supplant, but are cumulative to, other penalties or sanctions.
(5) The duties and obligations imposed by this section are cumulative with any other duties or obligations imposed under other law and shall not be construed to relieve any party from any duties or obligations imposed under other law.

(e)A violation of this section constitutes a false or misleading statement under Section 17500 and may be enforced under Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 17200) of Part 2 and Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 17500).

(d) The provisions of this section are severable. If any provision of this section or its application is held invalid, that invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application.

(f)

(e) This section shall become operative on July 1, 2024.

SEC. 2.

No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.