[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1137 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







105th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1137

  To amend section 258 of the Communications Act of 1934 to establish 
 additional protections against the unauthorized change of subscribers 
            from one telecommunications carrier to another.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 31, 1997

  Mr. Durbin introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
   referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend section 258 of the Communications Act of 1934 to establish 
 additional protections against the unauthorized change of subscribers 
            from one telecommunications carrier to another.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Slamming Protection Act''.

SEC. 2. ADDITIONAL PROTECTIONS AGAINST UNAUTHORIZED CHANGES OF 
              PROVIDERS OF TELEPHONE SERVICE.

    Section 258 of the Communications Act of 1984 (47 U.S.C. 258) is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(c) Criminal Penalties.--
            ``(1) Persons.--Any person who executes a change in a 
        provider of telephone exchange service or telephone toll 
        service in willful violation of the procedures prescribed under 
        subsection (a)--
                    ``(A) shall be fined not more than $1,000, 
                imprisoned not more than 30 days, or both, for the 
                first offense; and
                    ``(B) shall be fined not more than $10,000, 
                imprisoned not more than 9 months, or both, for any 
                subsequent offense.
            ``(2) Telecommunications carriers.--Any telecommunications 
        carrier who executes a change in a provider of telephone 
        exchange service or telephone toll service in willful violation 
        of the procedures prescribed under subsection (a) shall be 
        fined not more than $50,000 for the first offense and shall be 
        fined not more than $100,000 for any subsequent offense.
    ``(d) Private Right of Action.--
            ``(1) In general.--A subscriber whose provider of telephone 
        exchange service or telephone toll service is changed in 
        violation of the procedures prescribed under subsection (a) 
        may, within one year after discovery of the change, bring in an 
        appropriate court an action--
                    ``(A) for an order to revoke the change;
                    ``(B) for an award of damages in an amount equal to 
                the greater of--
                            ``(i) the actual monetary loss resulting 
                        from the change; or
                            ``(ii) an amount not to exceed $2,000; or
                    ``(C) for relief under both subparagraphs (A) and 
                (B).
            ``(2) Increased award.--If the court finds that the 
        defendant executed the change in willful and knowing violation 
        of the procedures prescribed under subsection (a), the court 
        may, in its discretion, increase the amount of the award under 
        paragraph (1) to an amount equal to not more than three times 
        the maximum amount awardable under subparagraph (B) of that 
        paragraph.
    ``(e) Actions by States.--
            ``(1) Authority of states.--Whenever the attorney general 
        of a State, or an official or agency designated by a State, has 
        reason to believe that any person has engaged or is engaging in 
        a pattern or practice of unauthorized changes in providers of 
        telephone exchange service or telephone toll service of 
        residents in such State in violation of the procedures 
        prescribed under subsection (a), the State may bring a civil 
        action on behalf of its residents to enjoin such practices, to 
        recover damages equal to the actual monetary loss suffered by 
        such residents, or both. If the court finds the defendant 
        executed such changes in willful and knowing violation of such 
        procedures, the court may, in its discretion, increase the 
        amount of the award to an amount equal to not more than three 
        times the amount awardable under the preceding sentence.
            ``(2) Exclusive jurisdiction of federal courts.--The 
        district courts of the United States shall have exclusive 
        jurisdiction over all civil actions brought under this 
        subsection. Upon proper application, such courts shall also 
        have jurisdiction to award declaratory relief, or orders 
        affording like relief, commanding the defendant to comply with 
        the procedures prescribed under subsection (a). Upon a proper 
        showing, a permanent or temporary injunction or restraining 
        order shall be granted without bond.
            ``(3) Notice to commission.--A State shall serve prior 
        written notice of any civil action under this subsection upon 
        the Commission with a copy of its complaint, except in any case 
        where prior notice is not feasible, in which case the State 
        shall serve such notice immediately after instituting such 
        action.
            ``(4) Rights of commission.--Upon receiving notice of an 
        action under this subsection, the Commission shall have the 
        right--
                    ``(A) to intervene in the action;
                    ``(B) upon so intervening, to be heard on all such 
                matters arising therein; and
                    ``(C) to file petitions for appeal.
            ``(5) Venue; service of process.--Any civil action under 
        this subsection may be brought in the district wherein the 
        defendant is found or is an inhabitant or transacts business or 
        wherein the violation occurred or is occurring, and process in 
        such cases may be served in any district in which the defendant 
        is an inhabitant or where the defendant may be found.
            ``(6) Effect on state court proceedings.--Nothing contained 
        in this subsection shall be construed to prohibit an authorized 
        State official from proceeding in State court on the basis of 
        an alleged violation of any general civil or criminal statute 
        of such State.
    ``(f) Class Actions.--For any class action brought with respect to 
the violation of the procedures prescribed under subsection (a), the 
total damages awarded may not exceed an amount equal to three times the 
total actual damages suffered by the members of the class, irrespective 
of the minimum damages provided for in subsection (d).
    ``(g) No Preemption of State Law.--Nothing in this section shall 
preempt the availability of relief under State law for unauthorized 
changes of providers of intrastate telephone exchange service or 
telephone toll service.''.
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