Such regulations may contain such additional require-
ments, classifications, differentiations, or other provisions, 
and may provide for such adjustments and exceptions for 
all or any class of transactions, as in the judgment of the 
Board are necessary or proper to effectuate the purposes of 
this title, to prevent circumvention or evasion thereof, or 
to facilitate compliance therewith. 
‘‘(b) MODEL DISCLOSURE FORMS.—The Board may 
publish model disclosure forms and clauses for common 
rental-purchase agreements to facilitate compliance with 
the disclosure requirements of this title and to aid the con-
sumer in understanding the transaction by utilizing readily 
understandable language to simplify the technical nature 
of the disclosures. In devising such forms, the Board shall 
consider the use by merchants of data processing or similar 
automated equipment. Nothing in this title may be con-
strued to require a merchant to use any such model form 
or clause prescribed by the Board under this section. A mer-
chant shall be deemed to be in compliance with the require-
ment to provide disclosure under section 1003(a) if the mer-
chant— 
‘‘(1) uses any appropriate model form or clause 
as published by the Board; or 
‘‘(2) uses any such model form or clause and 
changes it by— 
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‘‘(A) deleting any information which is not 
required by this title; or 
‘‘(B) rearranging the format, if in making 
such deletion or rearranging the format, the mer-
chant does not affect the substance, clarity, or 
meaningful sequence of the disclosure. 
‘‘(c) EFFECTIVE DATE OF REGULATIONS.—Any regu-
lation prescribed by the Board, or any amendment or inter-
pretation thereof, shall not be effective before the October 
1 that follows the date of publication of the regulation in 
final form by at least 6 months. The Board may at its dis-
cretion lengthen that period of time to permit merchants 
to adjust to accommodate new requirements. The Board 
may also shorten that period of time, notwithstanding the 
first sentence, if it makes a specific finding that such action 
is necessary to comply with the findings of a court or to 
prevent unfair or deceptive practices. In any case, mer-
chants may comply with any newly prescribed disclosure 
requirement prior to its effective date. 
‘‘SEC. 1016. ENFORCEMENT. 
‘‘(a) FEDERAL ENFORCEMENT.—Compliance with the 
requirements imposed under this title shall be enforced 
under the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 41 et 
seq.), and a violation of any requirements imposed under 
this title shall be deemed a violation of a requirement im-
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posed under that Act. All of the functions and powers of 
the Federal Trade Commission under the Federal Trade 
Commission Act are available to the Commission to enforce 
compliance by any person with the requirements of this 
title, irrespective of whether that person is engaged in com-
merce or meets any other jurisdictional test in the Federal 
Trade Commission Act. 
‘‘(b) STATE ENFORCEMENT.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An action to enforce the re-
quirements imposed by this title may also be brought 
by the appropriate State attorney general in any ap-
propriate United States district court, or any other 
court of competent jurisdiction. 
‘‘(2) PRIOR WRITTEN NOTICE.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The State attorney gen-
eral shall provide prior written notice of any 
such civil action to the Federal Trade Commis-
sion and shall provide the Commission with a 
copy of the complaint. 
‘‘(B) EMERGENCY ACTION.—If prior notice 
is not feasible, the State attorney general shall 
provide notice to the Commission immediately 
upon instituting the action. 
‘‘(3) FTC 
INTERVENTION.—The Commission 
may— 
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‘‘(A) intervene in the action; 
‘‘(B) upon intervening— 
‘‘(i) remove the action to the appro-
priate United States district court, if it was 
not originally brought there; and 
‘‘(ii) be heard on all matters arising in 
the action; and 
‘‘(C) file a petition for appeal. 
‘‘SEC. 1017. CRIMINAL LIABILITY FOR WILLFUL AND KNOW-
ING VIOLATION. 
‘‘Whoever willfully and knowingly gives false or inac-
curate information or fails to provide information which 
he is required to disclose under the provisions of this title 
or any regulation issued thereunder shall be subject to the 
penalty provisions as provided in section 112. 
‘‘SEC. 1018. RELATION TO OTHER LAWS. 
‘‘(a) RELATION TO STATE LAW.— 
‘‘(1) NO EFFECT ON CONSISTENT STATE LAWS.— 
Except as otherwise provided in subsection (b), this 
title does not annul, alter, or affect in any manner 
the meaning, scope, or applicability of the laws of 
any State relating to rental-purchase agreements, ex-
cept to the extent those laws are inconsistent with any 
provision of this title, and then only to the extent of 
the inconsistency. 
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‘‘(2) 
DETERMINATION
OF
INCONSISTENCY.— 
Upon its own motion or upon the request of an inter-
ested party, which is submitted in accordance with 
procedures prescribed in regulations of the Board, the 
Board shall determine whether any such inconsistency 
exists. If the Board determines that a term or provi-
sion of a State law is inconsistent, merchants located 
in that State need not follow such term or provision 
and shall incur no liability under the law of that 
State for failure to follow such term or provision, not-
withstanding that such determination is subsequently 
amended, rescinded, or determined by judicial or 
other authority to be invalid for any reason. 
‘‘(3) 
GREATER
PROTECTION
UNDER
STATE 
LAW.—Except as provided in subsection (b), for pur-
poses of this section, a term or provision of a State 
law is not inconsistent with the provisions of this title 
if the term or provision affords greater protection and 
benefit to the consumer than the protection and ben-
efit provided under this title as determined by the 
Board, on its own motion or upon the petition of any 
interested party. 
‘‘(b) STATE LAWS RELATING TO CHARACTERIZATION 
OF TRANSACTION.—Notwithstanding the provisions of sub-
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