H. B. 4129
(By Delegates Tabb, Wysong, Doyle, Amores,
Poling, Williams, Long, Campbell and Webster)
[Introduced January 26, 2006; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §29-19-13 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to providing that a professional
solicitor may not solicit a person over the telephone for a
contribution on behalf of a charitable organization without
first providing a full disclosure to that person of the
percentage of the contribution that will go to the
professional solicitor and the percentage of the contribution
that will go to the charitable organization.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §29-19-13 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 19. SOLICITATION OF CHARITABLE FUNDS ACT.
§29-19-13. Prohibited acts.
(a) No charitable organization, professional fund-raising
counsel or professional solicitor subject to the provisions of this article may use or exploit the fact of registration so as to lead
the public to believe that such registration in any manner
constitutes an endorsement or approval by the state.
(b) No person may, in connection with the solicitation of
contributions for or the sale of goods or services of a person
other than a charitable organization, misrepresent to or mislead
anyone by any manner, means, practice or device whatsoever, to
believe that the person on whose behalf such solicitation or sale
is being conducted is a charitable organization or that the
proceeds of such solicitation or sale will be used for charitable
purposes, if such is not the fact.
(c) No person may, in connection with the solicitation of
contributions for charitable purposes, misrepresent, mislead, or
omit information concerning how the proceeds will be used.
Proceeds gathered from any given solicitation must be used for the
charitable purposes represented in the materials sent or the
presentation given by the solicitor. Violations of this section
will be considered to be both a violation of the reasonable donor
expectation standard of section eight and may be subject to
prosecution for fraud pursuant to section fifteen of this article.
(d) No person may in connection with the solicitation of
contributions or the sale of goods or services for charitable
purposes represent to or lead anyone by any manner, means, practice
or device whatsoever, to believe that any other person sponsors or endorses such solicitation of contributions, sale of goods or
services for charitable purposes or approves of such charitable
purposes of a charitable organization connected therewith when such
other person has not given consent to the use of his or her name
for these purposes:
Provided, That any member of the board of
directors or trustees of a charitable organization or any other
person who has agreed either to serve or to participate in any
voluntary capacity in the campaign shall be deemed thereby to have
given his or her consent to the use of his or her name in said
campaign.
(e) No person may make any representation that he or she is
soliciting contributions for or on behalf of a charitable
organization or shall use or display any emblem, device or printed
matter belonging to or associated with a charitable organization
for the purpose of soliciting or inducing contributions from the
public without first being authorized to do so by the charitable
organization.
(f) No professional solicitor may solicit in the name of or on
behalf of any charitable organization unless such solicitor:
Has obtained the written authorization of two officers of such
organization, a copy of which shall be filed with the Secretary of
State. Such written authorization shall bear the signature of the
solicitor and shall expressly state on its face the period for
which it is valid, which shall not exceed one year from the date issued.
(g) No professional solicitor may solicit a person over the
telephone for a contribution in the name or on behalf of a
charitable organization without first providing a full disclosure
to that person of the percentage of the contribution that will go
to the professional solicitor and the percentage of the
contribution that will go to the charitable organization.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide that a
professional solicitor may not solicit a person over the telephone
for a contribution on behalf of a charitable organization without
first providing a full disclosure to that person of the percentage
of the contribution that will go to the professional solicitor and
the percentage of the contribution that will go to the charitable
organization.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.