2026 -- S 2609

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2026

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO COMMERCIAL LAW--GENERAL REGULATORY PROVISIONS --

DECEPTIVE TRADE PRACTICES

     Introduced By: Senator Pamela J. Lauria

     Date Introduced: February 13, 2026

     Referred To: Senate Judiciary

     (by request)

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Section 6-13.1-1 of the General Laws in Chapter 6-13.1 entitled "Deceptive

Trade Practices" is hereby amended to read as follows:

     6-13.1-1. Definitions. [Effective March 31, 2026.]

     As used in this chapter:

     (1) “Documentary material” means the original or a copy of any book, record, report,

memorandum, paper, communication, tabulation, map, chart, photograph, mechanical

transcription, or other tangible document or recording wherever situated.

     (2) “Examination” of documentary material includes the inspection, study, or copying of

any documentary material, and the taking of testimony under oath or acknowledgment in respect

of any documentary material or copy of any documentary material.

     (3) “Person” means natural persons, corporations, trusts, partnerships, incorporated or

unincorporated associations, and any other legal entity.

     (4) “Rebate” means the return of a payment or a partial payment that serves as a discount

or reduction in price.

     (5) “Trade” and “commerce” mean the advertising, offering for sale, sale, or distribution

of any services and any property, tangible or intangible, real, personal, or mixed, and any other

article, commodity, or thing of value wherever situate, and include any trade or commerce directly

or indirectly affecting the people of this state.

     (6) “Unfair methods of competition and unfair or deceptive acts or practices” means any

one or more of the following:

     (i) Passing off goods or services as those of another;

     (ii) Causing likelihood of confusion or of misunderstanding as to the source, sponsorship,

approval, or certification of goods or services;

     (iii) Causing likelihood of confusion or of misunderstanding as to affiliation, connection,

or association with, or certification by, another;

     (iv) Using deceptive representations or designations of geographic origin in connection

with goods or services;

     (v) Representing that goods or services have sponsorship, approval, characteristics,

ingredients, uses, benefits, or quantities that they do not have or that a person has a sponsorship,

approval, status, affiliation, or connection that the person does not have;

     (vi) Representing that goods are original or new if they are deteriorated, altered,

reconditioned, reclaimed, used, or secondhand; and if household goods have been repaired or

reconditioned, without conspicuously noting the defect that necessitated the repair on the tag that

contains the cost to the consumer of the goods;

     (vii) Representing that goods or services are of a particular standard, quality, or grade, or

that goods are of a particular style or model, if they are of another;

     (viii) Disparaging the goods, services, or business of another by false or misleading

representation of fact;

     (ix) Advertising goods or services with intent not to sell them as advertised;

     (x) Advertising goods or services with intent not to supply reasonably expectable public

demand, unless the advertisement discloses a limitation of quantity;

     (xi) Making false or misleading statements of fact concerning the reasons for, existence of,

or amounts of price reductions;

     (xii) Engaging in any other conduct that similarly creates a likelihood of confusion or of

misunderstanding;

     (xiii) Engaging in any act or practice that is unfair or deceptive to the consumer;

     (xiv) Using any other methods, acts, or practices that mislead or deceive members of the

public in a material respect;

     (xv) Advertising any brand name goods for sale and then selling substituted brand names

in their place;

     (xvi) Failure to include the brand name and/or manufacturer of goods in any advertisement

of the goods for sale, and, if the goods are used or secondhand, failure to include the information

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in the advertisement;

     (xvii) Advertising claims concerning safety, performance, and comparative price unless

the advertiser, upon request by any person, the consumer council, or the attorney general, makes

available documentation substantiating the validity of the claim;

     (xviii) Representing that work has been performed on or parts replaced in goods when the

work was not in fact performed or the parts not in fact replaced;

     (xix) Failing to separately state the amount charged for labor and the amount charged for

services when requested by the purchaser as provided for in § 44-18-12(b)(3);

     (xx) Advertising for sale at a retail establishment the availability of a manufacturer’s rebate

by displaying the net price of the advertised item (the price of the item after the rebate has been

deducted from the item’s price) in the advertisement, unless the amount of the manufacturer’s

rebate is provided to the consumer by the retailer at the time of the purchase of the advertised item.

It shall be the retailer’s burden to redeem the rebate offered to the consumer by the manufacturer;

     (xxi) Advertising, displaying, or offering a price for live-event tickets or short-term lodging

in violation of 16 C.F.R. Part 464; or

     (xxii) Engaging in any act or practice that is unfair or deceptive by a person advising or

assisting any veteran filing a claim for disability benefits with the Department of Veterans Affairs.;

or

     (xxiii) Selling, offering for sale, transporting into this state with the intent to sell, or

transferring any motor vehicle used in a crime of violence as defined in § 12-1.3-1, or which has

been exposed to biohazardous contamination, without notifying the buyer in writing prior to sale,

of the vehicle's use in or involvement with a crime of violence, or of exposure to biohazardous

contamination. For purposes of this subsection, "biohazardous contamination" means

contamination to any motor vehicle that has been exposed to blood, bodily fluids, human remains,

infectious disease materials, or other biological contaminants arising from a crime scene, accident,

natural disaster, or other incident, or a vehicle that has been exposed to, or contains observable

matter or materials, odors or damage that a reasonable person could easily identify and recognize

as a biohazard, such that professional biohazard remediation is required before the vehicle may be

safely operated or resold.

     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO COMMERCIAL LAW--GENERAL REGULATORY PROVISIONS --

DECEPTIVE TRADE PRACTICES

***

     This act would provide protections for a purchaser from unknowingly purchasing a vehicle

used in a crime of violence or that has been exposed to a biohazard, and ensures that written notice

of the vehicle's use in a crime of violence or exposure to biohazardous contamination be disclosed

to the purchaser in writing prior to sale, with any violation of the act declared an unfair or deceptive

trade practice.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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