PRINTER'S NO. 1757

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

No.

1594

Session of

2021

INTRODUCED BY TOMLINSON, SANKEY, THOMAS, MILLARD, TOPPER,

SCHROEDER, FARRY, STAATS, POLINCHOCK, KAIL, MOUL, BURNS,

QUINN AND DELOZIER, JUNE 10, 2021

District Attorneys certain powers and duties and providing

penalties," providing for disclosure of information by online

marketplaces to inform customers.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1. The act of December 17, 1968 (P.L.1224, No.387),

known as the Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law,

is amended by adding a section to read:

Section 9.4. Disclosure of Information by Online

Marketplaces to Inform Customers.--(a) The following shall

confirmed directly by the online marketplace, a payment

processor or other third party contracted by the online

marketplace. If the high-volume third-party seller does not have

a bank account, the name of the payee for payments issued by the

online marketplace to the high-volume third-party seller. The

high-volume third-party seller may provide the bank account or

payee information under this subclause to the online

marketplace, a payment processor or other third party contracted

by the online marketplace to maintain the information. The

online marketplace may obtain the bank account or payee

individual that includes the individual's name and physical

address.

(B) If the high-volume third-party seller is not an

individual, all of the following:

(I) A copy of a government-issued photo identification for

an individual acting on behalf of the high-volume third-party

seller that includes the individual's name and physical address.

(II) A copy of a government-issued record or tax document

that includes the business name and physical address of the

high-volume third-party seller.

number, a taxpayer identification number.

(D) Whether the high-volume third-party seller is

exclusively advertising or offering the consumer product on the

online marketplace or currently advertising or offering for sale

the same consumer product on any other Internet websites other

than the online marketplace.

(2) The online marketplace shall verify the information

provided by the high-volume third-party seller under clause (1)

and each change to the information within three days. If the

high-volume third-party seller provides a copy of a valid

marketplace that the high-volume third-party seller must inform

the online marketplace of each change to the information

provided by the high-volume third-party seller under clause (1)

within three days of receiving the notice under this clause. As

part of the notice under this clause, the online marketplace

shall instruct the high-volume third-party seller to

electronically certify that the high-volume third-party seller's

information under clause (1) is unchanged or that the high-

volume third-party seller is providing a change to the

information. If the online marketplace becomes aware that the

with the provisions of this clause.

(b) The following shall apply:

(1) Except as provided under clause (2), an online

marketplace shall require a high-volume third-party seller on

the online marketplace to provide all of the following

information:

(i) The identity of the high-volume third-party seller,

including all of the following information:

(A) The full name of the high-volume third-party seller.

(B) The full physical address of the high-volume third-party

email address to the high-volume third-party seller by the

online marketplace.

(ii) Any other information determined to be necessary by the

online marketplace to address any potential circumvention or

evasion of the requirements under this clause.

(2) Subject to clause (3), upon the request of the high-

volume third-party seller, the online marketplace may provide

for partial disclosure of the identity information required

under clause (1) in any of the following situations:

(i) If the high-volume third-party seller demonstrates to

only the country and, if applicable, the state where the high-

volume third-party seller resides on the product listing; and

(B) inform consumers that there is no business address

available for the high-volume third-party seller and that

consumer inquiries should be submitted to the high-volume third-

party seller by telephone or email.

(ii) If the high-volume third-party seller demonstrates to

the online marketplace that the seller is a business that has a

physical address for product returns, the online marketplace may

direct the high-volume third-party seller to disclose the high-

is no telephone number available for the high-volume third-party

seller and that consumer inquiries should be submitted to the

high-volume third-party seller's email.

(3) If an online marketplace becomes aware that a high-

volume third-party seller has made a false representation to the

online marketplace in order to justify the provision of a

partial disclosure under clause (2) or that a high-volume third-

party seller who has requested and received a provision for a

partial disclosure under clause (2) has not provided responsive

answers within a reasonable time period to consumer inquiries

information required under clause (1) within three business

days' notice to the high-volume third-party seller.

(4) The online marketplace shall disclose to a consumer, in

a conspicuous manner on the product listing of the high-volume

third-party seller, a reporting mechanism that allows for

electronic and telephonic reporting of suspicious marketplace

activity to the online marketplace and a message encouraging

the consumer to report suspicious activity to the online

marketplace.

(c) In addition to the requirements under subsection (b), an

under section 3 of this act and shall be subject to the

penalties imposed under this act.

(e) A political subdivision may not establish, mandate or

otherwise require an online marketplace to verify information

from a high-volume third-party seller on a one-time or ongoing

basis or disclose information to consumers.

(f) The Bureau of Consumer Protection within the Office of

Attorney General may promulgate regulations regarding the

collection and verification of information from high-volume

third-party sellers under subsections (a) and (b).

property intended to be attached to or installed in real

property without regard to whether the tangible personal

property is attached or installed.

"High-volume third-party seller" means a participant in an

online marketplace who is a third-party seller and who, in any

continuous twelve-month period during the previous twenty-four

months, has entered into two hundred or more discrete sales or

transactions of new or unused consumer products resulting in the

accumulation of an aggregate total of five thousand dollars

($5,000) or more in gross revenues.

"Seller" means a person who sells, offers to sell or

contracts to sell a consumer product through an online

marketplace.

"Third-party seller" means a seller, independent of an

operator, facilitator or owner of an online marketplace, who

sells, offers to sell or contracts to sell a consumer product in

the United States through an online marketplace. The term shall

not include a seller who:

(1) is operating as a business entity that has made the

business entity's name, business address and working contact

consumer products; and

(3) has provided verified information under subsection (a).

"Verify" means to confirm information provided to an online

marketplace by the use of any of the following:

(1) A third-party or proprietary identity verification

system that has the capability to confirm a seller's name, email

address, physical address and telephone number.

(2) A combination of a two-factor authentication, a public

records search and the presentation of a government-issued

identification.