Guam Regulation of Telemarketing
5 G.C.A. § 32301, et seq.
Guam Statutes
5 GCA GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS
CH. 32 TRADE PRACTICES AND CONSUMER PROTECTION
Article 3. Regulation of Telemarketing.
§ 32301. Definitions.
§ 32302. Registration Procedures.
§ 32303. Notice to Consumer.
§ 32304. Contracts Required.
§ 32305. Charges not Collectible.
§ 32306. Filing Information.
§ 32307. Violation Remedies.
§ 32308. Violation of a Deceptive Practice.
§ 32301. Definitions.
(a) The term telemarketing means a plan, program, or campaign to induce the purchase of goods, services, or investment opportunities by means of telephone calls but does not include any transaction in which there has been any personal meeting or discussion concerning the matter before or after the transaction between the seller (or the seller’s agent) of the goods, services, or investment opportunities and the intended purchaser (or the purchaser’s agent) before the consummation of the sale.
Telemarketing does not include any situation where telephonic contact was initiated or requested by the consumer, or where the transaction was later reduced to a written contract signed by the consumer. Telemarketing does not include any solicitation by a seller if the seller and the consumer have transacted business or negotiations though any means other than telemarketing during the preceding eighteen (18) months.
(b) A telephonic seller or seller as used in this article means a person, association, partnership, firm, corporation or other business entity that engages in telemarketing.
§ 32302. Registration Procedures.
(a) Not less than ten (10) days prior to doing business in the Territory of Guam a telephonic seller shall register by filing with the Attorney General’s Office the information required by § 32306 of this article and by paying a filing fee of Fifty Dollars ($50). A seller shall be deemed to do business in Guam if the seller solicits prospective purchasers from locations in Guam or solicits prospective purchasers who are located in Guam.
(b) The information required by § 32306 shall be submitted on a form provided by the Attorney General and shall be verified by a declaration signed by each principal of the telephonic seller under penalty of perjury. The declaration shall specify the date and location of signing. Information submitted pursuant to this article shall be clearly identified and appended to the filing. The information submitted pursuant to § 32306 shall become part of the investigatory records and intelligence information compiled by the Department for Law for enforcement purposes.
(c) Registration of a telephonic seller shall be valid for one (1) year from the effective date thereof and may be annually renewed by making the filing required by § 32306 and paying a filing fee of Fifty Dollars ($50).
(d) Whenever, prior to expiration of a seller’s annual registration, there is a material change in the information required by this article, the seller shall, within ten (10) days, file an addendum updating the information with the Attorney General’s Office; provided however, that changes in salespersons soliciting on behalf of a seller shall be updated by addendum filed, if necessary, in quarterly intervals computed from the effective date of registration. The addendum shall provide the required information for all salespersons who are currently soliciting or have solicited on behalf of the seller at any time during the period between the filing of the registration, or the last addendum, and the current addendum, and shall include salespersons no longer soliciting for the seller as of the date of the filing of the current addendum.
(e) Upon receipt of a filing and filing fee pursuant to subsections (a) or (b) of this section, the Attorney General’s Office shall send the telephonic seller a written confirmation of receipt of the filing. If the seller has more than one (1) business location, the written confirmation shall be sent to the principal business location identified in the seller’s filing.
§ 32303. Notice to Consumer.
When tangible goods are delivered to a consumer which have been ordered from a telephonic seller as a part of a telemarketing scheme, there shall also be delivered a written notice on a page by itself in at least 14 point type informing the consumer that the consumer may return the goods anytime within thirty (30) days after actual receipt by the consumer (unless a longer period is given by the seller), and may receive a full refund of all amounts paid, including all shipping and handling charges and all shipping charges paid by the consumer to return the goods. The notice shall indicate the name, address, and preferred method of return; provided, that return by the U.S. Postal Service, return in person by the consumer, or return by the same manner as shipped to the consumer shall always be appropriate, at the option of the consumer. The goods shall be considered returned as of the date delivered to the addressee if delivered directly to the seller, or the date delivered by the consumer to the U.S. Postal Service or other appropriate common carrier. Upon actual receipt of such returned goods, the seller shall within five (5) working days return the full purchase price, including all handling and all shipping charges.
Any seller who fails to make such refund when due shall be jointly liable with the individual salesperson who actually made the sale for three times the total amount of the sale, including all shipping and handling charges.
§ 32304. Contracts Required.
No sale or contract for sale of services, intangible goods, stocks, bonds, or investment opportunities by a telemarketing seller is final or enforce able until the consumer has signed a contract to purchase the same and delivered a signed copy of the contract to the seller. In the case of stocks, bonds, intangible goods, or investment opportunities the signature of the consumer must be acknowledged by a notary public to be enforce able. If a consumer has actually received stocks, bonds, intangible goods, or the investment opportunity prior to signing the required acknowledged contract, the consumer shall return whatever he received if the consumer disavows the transaction.
§ 32305. Charges Not Collectible.
No telemarketing seller nor its successor in interest (including a bona fide purchaser for value) nor any credit card company may collect any sums due for telemarketing sales made in violation of this article. Any charges collected in violation of this section shall be returned by the person receiving the payment from the consumer.
§ 32306. Filing Information.
Each filing pursuant to this article shall contain the following information:
(a) The name or names of the seller, including the name under which the seller is doing or intends to do business, if different from the name of the seller, and the name of any parent or affiliated organization
(1) that will engage in business transactions with purchasers relating to sales solicited by the seller or
(2) that accepts responsibility for statements made by, or acts of, the seller relating to sales solicited by the seller.
(b) The seller’s business form and place of organization and, if the seller is a corporation, a copy of its articles of incorporation, bylaws, and amendments thereto, or, if a partnership, a copy of the partnership agreement, or if operating under a fictitious business name, the location where the fictitious name has been registered. All the same information shall be included for any parent or affiliated organization disclosed pursuant to subsection (a).
(c) The complete street address or addresses of all locations, designating the principal location from which the telephonic seller will be conducting business. If the principal business location of the seller is not in Guam, then the seller shall also designate a statutory agent within Guam who is authorized to accept service of process.
(d) A listing of all telephone numbers to be used by the seller and the address where each telephone using each of these telephone numbers is located.
(e) The names of, and the offices held by, the seller’s officers, directors, trustees, general and limited partners, sole proprietor, and owners, as the case may be, and the names of those persons who have management responsibilities in connection with the seller’s business activities.
(f) The complete address of the principal residence, the date of birth, and the driver’s license number and state of issuance of each of the persons whose names are disclosed pursuant to subsection (e).
(g) A statement, meeting the requirements of this subsection, as to both the seller, whether a corporation, partnership, firm, association, joint venture, or any other type of business entity (and whether or not identified pursuant to subsection (e)), and as to any person identified pursuant to subsection (e) who:
(1) Has been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor. For the purposes of this subsection, a plea of nolo contender is a conviction.
(2) Has at any time during the past seven (7) years filed in bankruptcy or been adjudged a bankrupt.
(3) For purposes of paragraphs (1) and (2) above, the statement shall identify the seller or person, the court rendering the conviction or judgment, and the docket number and date of the conviction or judgment.
(h) A list of the names and principal residence addresses of salespersons who solicit on behalf of the telephonic seller and the names the salespersons use while so soliciting.
(i) A description of the items the seller is offering for sale and a copy of all sales scripts the telephonic seller requires salespersons to use when soliciting prospective purchasers, or if no sales script is required to be used, a statement to that effect.
(j) A copy of all sales information and literature (including, but not limited to, scripts, outlines, instructions, and information regarding how to conduct telephonic sales, sample introductions, sample closings, product information, and contest or premium- award information) provided by the telephonic seller to salespersons or of which the seller informs salespersons, and a copy of all written materials the seller sends to any prospective or actual purchaser.
(k) If the telephonic seller represents or implies, or directs salespersons to represent or imply, to purchasers that the purchaser will receive certain specific items (including a certificate of any type which the purchaser must redeem to obtain the item described in the certificate) or one (1) or more items from among designated items, whether the items are denominated as gifts, premiums, bonuses, prizes, or otherwise, the filing shall include the following:
(1) A list of the items offered.
(2) The value or worth of each item described to prospective purchasers and the basis for the valuation.
(3) The price paid by the telephonic seller to its supplier for each of these items and the name, address, and telephone number of each item’s supplier.
(4) If the purchaser is to receive fewer than all of the items described by the seller, the filing shall include the odds a single prospective purchaser has of receiving each item and the name and address of each recipient who has, during the preceding twelve (12) months (or if the seller has not been in business that long, during the period the telephonic seller has been in business) received the item having the greatest value and the item with the smallest odds of being received.
§ 32307. Violation Remedies.
In addition to all other remedies permitted by this chapter, the Attorney General on behalf of the government of Guam, may bring an action against any person, firm, corporation, partnership or association, or officer or owner of any corporation who fails to comply with the registration requirements of this article for a civil penalty of not more than Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000) per violation, for a temporary restraining order, and for a temporary and permanent injunction to enjoin the telemarketing activities in Guam of the violator. Any penalty collected shall be paid into the Consumer Protection Fund.
§ 32308. Violation a Deceptive Practice.
Violation of any of the provisions of this article shall be deemed a deceptive trade practice pursuant to Articles 1 and 2 of this chapter, and is subject to action by the Attorney General.
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