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lawmakers target business practices
The Arizona Legislature looked at the world from a very consumerist point of view Monday, taking steps, albeit small ones, toward adopting laws that could affect how we shop, buy our cell phones and prove who we are when we want to get on an airplane.
Cell Phones
A Senate panel voted Monday to allow cell-phone customers to get out of multiyear contracts without paying termination fees of up to $200 if their phone company misrepresented the coverage area or provided them with a phone that has a known history of problems and refuses to replace the phone if it conks out.
The proposed change is sponsored by a lawmaker who can relate to what cell phone users face, since she had to go through just such a problem.
Price Scanners
Legislation introduced Monday allows customers who find a store charged them more than the price marked on a item, or on the shelf where the item was stocked, to get a full refund of the difference, plus a bonus of 10 times the amount of the error — up to $5. Stores that refuse could be sued for up to $250.
Bill sponsor Rep. Steve Farley, a Tucson Democrat, also wants to be able to "deputize" regular citizens, so they can patrol businesses to stop them from overcharging.
Driver's Licenses
A Senate committee unanimously voted to prohibit the state from complying with the 2005 federal Real ID Act, which establishes federal security guidelines for state-issued driver's licenses, requiring them to have information that is not only readable by humans but also by machines.
The refusal could leave Arizona residents without an identification card required to board an aircraft or even enter federal buildings.

Tucson Region

Bills would protect Arizonans' wallets, privacy

By Daniel Scarpinato and Howard Fischer
arizona daily star Capitol Media Services
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 02.13.2007
PHOENIX — Keeping your eye on the price of your items as they fly over the store checkout scanner can be tough.
But vigilance at the register might not only save you from being overcharged, it could put a little extra cash in your pocket, under a bill sponsored by a Tucson lawmaker.
The proposal to require stores to pay shoppers who catch overcharges up to $5 is one of several consumer-related actions that occupied the Arizona Legislature as it went back to work Monday.
Other actions include:
● A Senate committee voting not to allow personal information to be electronically encoded on driver's licenses in compliance with federal law, which could affect travelers' ability to get on an airplane.
● A committee vote to allow cell phone customers to cancel their service without penalty if their phone company fails to keep certain terms of the contract.
State Rep. Steve Farley is seeking to "deputize" regular citizens, allowing them to patrol retailers and prevent businesses from overcharging at the checkout counter.
Under HB 2665, an overcharge would entitle the customer to a cash refund for the difference, plus a bonus of 10 times the overcharge, but not more than $5 or less than $1. Consumers could sue stores that refuse to make the overcharge right for up to $250.
Farley, a Democrat, is hoping to nudge his proposal through the Republican-dominated Legislature by lining up support from powerful House and Senate Republicans, including Senate President Tim Bee, Senate Majority leader Thayer Verschoor and House Majority leader Tom Boone.
Farley, who has support from Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard, says the law would allow the state to enforce existing laws without employing dozens of new inspectors.
Farley says the bill is targeted at "large chain retailers" that he says are violating current laws requiring them to clearly post prices and follow through at the register.
Michelle Ahlmer, executive director of the Arizona Retailers Association, said she fears such a law would provide an incentive for people to cheat, altering a sign or a price on an item to demand a discount, an action that would raise prices for everyone else.
Farley said the law is nearly identical to one used in Michigan for more than 30 years. The bill will be heard in committee Wednesday.
Sen. Pamela Gorman, R-Anthem, who proposed the cell- phone measure, said most companies require customers to sign a two-year agreement as a condition of getting a phone at a reasonable price.
The problem, she said, is when the phone stops working, the customer is stuck with one of two expensive options: Buy a new phone at full list price or cancel the contract and pay a $200 early termination fee.
Her legislation lets customers walk away without paying that fee if the phone company violates any part of the service contract. She said that would include providing phones with a history of problems and misrepresenting coverage areas.
Susan Bitter Smith, who represents the Arizona Competitive Telecommunications Association, called SB 1241 unnecessary because consumers already have legal rights when cellular providers don't live up to the terms of the deal.
Gorman said that's not really true, noting she had trouble getting her own cell phone company to live up to its deal. If a legislator is having trouble, someone without the same influence has no chance at all, she said.
Her proposal was approved by a Senate committee, and now goes to the full Senate.
Alessandra Meetze, state director of the American Civil Liberties Union, said Arizona joins 14 states in rebelling against the Real ID Act.
The Senate Government Committee voted unanimously Monday to prohibit the state from implementing the federal law, and to require state officials to report to the governor and Legislature if federal agencies try to force the state to comply.
Sen. Karen Johnson, R-Mesa, said she doubts rejection of the law will force a showdown with the feds because similar actions across the nation will eventually force Congress to back down.
Objections to the law surround what information is gathered and how it is stored.
Johnson said it turns a driver's license into a national ID card, with all the information stored in a single database — one she said might be hacked into, subjecting millions of Americans to identity theft.
Cydney DeModica, spokeswoman for the state Motor Vehicle Division, said her agency's concerns are more practical.
She said some of the technology for sharing copies of documents with other state departments and even agencies of other states does not exist. And what does exist, she said, is "very costly."
Federal law says a state license that does not comply with the Real ID Act must be marked as "noncompliant" and cannot be accepted by federal agencies.
● Contact reporter Daniel Scarpinato at 307-4339 or dscarpinato@azstarnet.com.
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