NY Gen Bus L § 899-BBB (2021)
2021 New York Laws GBS - General Business Article 39-G - Document Destruction Contractors 899-BBB - Document Destruction Contractors.

§  899-bbb.  Document  destruction contractors. 1. On or after October first, two thousand eight, no person, firm  or  corporation  shall  hold himself,  herself  or itself out to be a document destruction contractor in New York state without  first  registering  with  the  department  as provided in this section.   2.   Any   person,  firm  or  corporation  seeking  a  certificate  of registration as a document destruction contractor shall  file  with  the department  an  application  for registration in such form and detail as the department shall prescribe, including the following:  (a) the name and residence address of the applicant;  (b) the business name, if other than applicant;  (c) the place, including the city, town or village,  with  the  street and number, where the business is to be located;  (d) the business telephone of the applicant;  (e)  the  length  of  time  that  the  applicant  has  been a document destruction contractor;  (f) a statement indicating whether the applicant has:  (i) been convicted of any crime or is a debtor  on  any  unpaid  civil judgment relating to work as a document destruction contractor; and  (ii)  at  any  time in the past been issued a registration pursuant to this section, and if so, whether such registration was ever  revoked  or suspended;  (g) satisfactory evidence of good moral character;  (h)  a  statement  indicating  the  methods  of  document  destruction utilized by the applicant;  (i) a sworn statement by the applicant that the information set  forth in the application is current and accurate; and  (j)  a  complete  set  of two fingerprint cards for each principal and officer of the applicant on a standard fingerprint card approved by  the division  of  criminal justice services. Such cards shall be retained by the department  and  used  solely  for  the  purpose  of  conducting  an investigation  pursuant  to  subdivision  twelve  of  this  section.  If additional copies of  fingerprints  are  required  the  applicant  shall furnish them upon request.   3.  In  determining  whether  to  issue  or  renew a registration, the secretary of state may consider the character, competency and  integrity of the applicant.   4.  The  secretary  of state may refuse to issue a registration to any person, firm or corporation whom he or she finds has been  convicted  of any  crime,  or failed to pay any final civil judgment, relating to work as a document destruction contractor,  if  such  refusal  will,  in  the judgment  of  the  secretary of state, best promote the interests of the people of this state.   5. (a) A registration issued or renewed under the provisions  of  this section  shall  entitle  a  person  to  act  as  a  registered  document destruction contractor in the state of New York  for  a  period  of  two years  from  the  effective  date  of the registration. Any registration granted under this  section  may  be  renewed  by  the  department  upon application  and  payment  of  the  fee  for  such renewal by the holder thereof, in such form as the department may prescribe.  (b) The  secretary  of  state  shall  have  the  authority  to  assign staggered  expiration dates for registrations at the time of renewal. If the assigned date results in a term that exceeds twenty-four months, the applicant shall pay an additional pro-rated adjustment together with the regular renewal fee.  (c) The secretary of  state  shall  issue  each  document  destruction contractor a unique registration number.    6.  (a)  Each  original  application  or  application  for renewal for registration as a document destruction contractor shall  be  accompanied by a fee of fifty dollars for each biennial registration period.  (b)  Notice  in  writing  in  the  manner  and  form prescribed by the department shall be given to the department at  its  offices  in  Albany within  ten  days  of  changes of name or address by registered document destruction contractors. The fee for  filing  each  change  of  name  or address notice shall be ten dollars.  (c)  In  the  case of loss, destruction or damage, the department may, upon submission of a request in such form and manner as  the  department may  prescribe,  issue a duplicate registration upon payment of a fee of ten dollars.   7. The fees established by this section shall not be refundable.   8. Each document destruction contractor  engaged  in  making  document destruction  contracts  shall  exhibit  his  or her certificate upon the request of any interested party.   9. Every document destruction contract subject to  the  provisions  of this  article,  and  all  amendments  thereto,  shall  be evidenced by a writing and shall be signed by all the  parties  to  the  contract.  The writing shall contain the contractor's registration number issued by the secretary of state pursuant to this article.   10. No person, firm or corporation shall:  (a)  present,  or  attempt  to  present,  as  his, her or its own, the registration of another;  (b) knowingly  give  false  evidence  of  a  material  nature  to  the department for the purpose of procuring a registration;  (c)   falsely   represent  themselves  to  be  a  registered  document destruction contractor;  (d) use or attempt to use a registration which has expired;  (e) offer to perform  or  perform  any  document  destruction  without having a current registration as is required under this section; or  (f)  represent  in  any  manner  that  his,  her  or  its registration constitutes an endorsement of the quality of workmanship  or  competency of the contractor.   11. Registrations issued to document destruction contractors shall not be transferable or assignable.   12.  (a)  The  secretary  of  state  shall  promulgate  such rules and regulations as are deemed necessary to effectuate the purposes  of  this article,  and  shall  provide  written notification of the provisions of this article to all document destruction contractors registered pursuant to this article.  (b) The secretary of  state  shall  have  the  power  to  enforce  the provisions of this article and upon complaint of any person, or upon the secretary's  initiative,  to  investigate  any  violation  thereof or to investigate the business, business practices and business methods of any person, firm, limited  liability  company,  partnership  or  corporation applying  for  or  holding  a  registration  as  a  document destruction contractor,  if  in  the  opinion  of  the  secretary  of   state   such investigation  is  warranted. Each such applicant or registrant shall be obliged,  on  request  of  the  secretary  of  state,  to  supply   such information, books, papers or records as may be required concerning his, her or its business, business practices or business methods, or proposed business  practices  or methods. Failure to comply with a lawful request of the secretary shall be a ground for  denying  an  application  for  a registration,  or  for  revoking,  suspending,  or  failing  to  renew a registration issued under this article.  (c) The department shall have the  power  to  revoke  or  suspend  any registration,  or  in  lieu  thereof  to impose a fine not exceeding one  thousand dollars payable to the department, or reprimand any  registrant or deny an application for a registration or renewal thereof upon proof:  (i)  that  the  applicant  or  registrant  has  violated  any  of  the provisions of this article or  the  rules  and  regulations  promulgated pursuant to this article;  (ii)  that  the applicant or registrant has practiced fraud, deceit or misrepresentation;  (iii)  that  the  applicant  or  registrant  has   made   a   material misstatement   in   the  application  for  or  renewal  of  his  or  her registration;  (iv) that the applicant or registrant has demonstrated incompetence or untrustworthiness in his or her actions.   13.  The  department  shall,  before  denying  an  application  for  a registration  or  before  revoking  or  suspending  any registration, or imposing any fine or reprimand, and at least fifteen days prior  to  the date  set  for  the  hearing,  and upon due notice to the complainant or objector, notify in writing the applicant for, or  the  holder  of  such registration  of  any  charge  made  and  shall afford such applicant or registrant an opportunity to  be  heard  in  person  or  by  counsel  in reference thereto. Such written notice may be served by delivery of same personally  to  the  applicant  or  registrant,  or  by  mailing same by registered mail to the last known business address of such applicant  or registrant.   14. The hearing on such charges shall be at such time and place as the department  shall  prescribe  and  shall be conducted by such officer or person in the department as the secretary of state  may  designate,  who shall  have the power to subpoena and bring before the officer or person so designated any person in this state, and administer an  oath  to  and take testimony of any person or cause his or her deposition to be taken. A  subpoena  issued  under  this section shall be regulated by the civil practice law and  rules.  Such  officer  or  person  in  the  department designated  to  take  such testimony shall not be bound by common law or statutory  rules  of  evidence  or  by  technical  or  formal  rules  of procedure.   15.  In  the event that the department shall deny the application for, or revoke or suspend any  such  registration,  or  impose  any  fine  or reprimand,  its determination shall be in writing and officially signed. The original of such determinations, when so signed, shall be  filed  in the  office  of the department and copies thereof shall be mailed to the applicant or registrant and to the complainant  within  two  days  after such filing.   16.  The  department,  acting  by  the  office or person designated to conduct the hearing pursuant to subdivision fourteen of this section  or by  such  other  officer or person in the department as the secretary of state may designate, shall have the power to suspend the registration of any registrant who has been convicted in this state or any  other  state or  territory  of  a  felony  or  of  any  misdemeanor  for a period not exceeding thirty days pending a hearing and a determination  of  charges made  against him or her. If such hearing is adjourned at the request of the registrant, or by reason of any act or omission by him or her or  on his  or  her behalf, such suspension may be continued for the additional period of such adjournment.   17. The action of the department in granting or refusing to  grant  or to  renew a registration under this article or in revoking or suspending or refusing to revoke or suspend such a  registration  or  imposing  any fine  or reprimand shall be subject to review by a proceeding instituted under article seventy-eight of the civil practice law and rules  at  the instance  of  the  applicant  for  such  registration,  the  holder of a  registration so revoked, suspended, fined or reprimanded or  the  person aggrieved.   18.  The  department  shall  maintain  and  publish  a registry of all registered  document  destruction  contractors,  which  shall  list  and identify   on   a  county  by  county  basis,  all  registered  document destruction contractors doing business in  this  state.  The  department shall  make  the registry available on its website. Copies of the roster shall be made available  upon  request  and  payment  of  a  fee  to  be determined by the secretary of state and approved by the director of the division of the budget.   19.  (a)  Any  person, firm or corporation that operates as a document destruction contractor without being registered shall be required to pay a civil penalty  in  the  sum  of  one  thousand  dollars  per  document destruction contract entered into in violation of this section. However, any  such person, firm or corporation against whom such penalty has been assessed may avoid all but five  hundred  dollars  of  such  penalty  by obtaining  a  registration  as  required  by this section, provided that application for such registration is made not more than ten  days  after the  imposition  of such penalty and the document destruction contractor has never received a prior fine for failure to register in New  York  or in any other state that requires registration.  (b)  A document destruction contractor may not maintain a civil action to recover payment  for  work  under  a  document  destruction  contract performed  if  such  contractor is not registered as required under this section.   20.  Whenever  there  shall  be  a  violation  of  this  section,   an application  may  be  made  by  the  attorney general in the name of the people  of  the  state  of  New  York  to  a  court  or  justice  having jurisdiction  by  a  special proceeding to issue an injunction, and upon notice to the defendant of  not  less  than  five  days,  to  enjoin  or restrain  the  continuance  of such violation; and if it shall appear to the satisfaction of the court or justice  that  the  defendant  has,  in fact,  violated  this section, an injunction may be issued by such court or justice, enjoining and restraining  any  further  violation,  without requiring  proof  that  any person has, in fact, been injured or damaged thereby. In any such proceeding, the court may make  allowances  to  the attorney  general  as  provided  in  paragraph six of subdivision (a) of section eighty-three hundred three of the civil practice law and  rules, and   direct   restitution.   In   connection  with  any  such  proposed application, the attorney general is authorized to take proof and make a determination of the relevant facts and to issue subpoenas in accordance with the civil practice law and rules.