Review the AG’s Proposed Rules
Text of Proposed Rule 15 CSR 60-16.010 Definitions
(1) Unless inconsistent with Chapter 407, RSMo, the following terms and phrases shall mean:
(A) “Abuse or threatened abuse of the legal process” shall mean the use or threatened use of a law or legal process, whether administrative, civil, or criminal, in any manner or for any purpose for which the law was not designed, in order to exert pressure on another person to cause that person to take some action or refrain from taking some action;
(B) “Commercial sexual conduct” shall mean any sexual conduct—as that term is defined in section 566.010(5), RSMo—on account of which anything of value is given to or received by any person;
(C) “Debt-bondage relationship” shall mean any agreement, arrangement, or other relationship between a debtor and another person or persons in which—
1. The debtor pledges his or her personal services, or the personal services of a person under his or her control, as security for a debt; and
2. The value of those services as reasonably assessed is not applied toward the liquidation of the debt or the length and nature of those services are not respectively limited and defined;
(D) “Involuntary servitude” shall mean a condition of servitude induced by means of—
1. Any scheme, plan, or pattern intended to cause a person to believe that, if the person did not enter into or continue in such condition, that person or another person would suffer serious harm or physical restraint; or
2. The abuse or threatened abuse of the legal process; and
(E) “Merchandise” shall have the meaning set forth in section 407.010(4), RSMo.
Summary of Proposed Rule 15 CSR 60-16.010: This proposed rule defines certain terms as those terms are used in the enforcement of the Merchandising Practices Act and regulations made under the Act. In particular, the proposed rule defines certain terms relating to human trafficking and similar forms of exploitation.
Text of Proposed Rule 15 CSR 60-16.020 Unlawful Debt-Bondage Relationships
(1) It is an unfair, deceptive, fraudulent, and otherwise unlawful practice for any person to—
(A) Collect or attempt to collect payment of any kind pursuant to a debt-bondage relationship;
(B) Receive anything of value, including services, from a debtor—or from any person under the control of such a debtor—pursuant to a debt-bondage relationship if the recipient knows that—
1. The debtor has pledged his or her personal services, or the personal services of a person under his or her control, as security for a debt; and
2. The value of those services as reasonably assessed has not been applied toward the liquidation of the debt or the length and nature of those services has not been respectively limited and defined;
(C) Compel, coerce, or persuade any person to perform personal services pursuant to a debt-bondage relationship; or
(D) Attempt to compel, coerce, or persuade any person to perform personal services pursuant to a debt-bondage relationship.
Summary of Proposed Rule 15 CSR 60-16-020: This proposed rule prohibits the collection of payments pursuant to a debt-bondage relationship; the receipt of anything of value from a debtor pursuant to a debt-bondage relationship; and compelling, coercing, or persuading any person to perform personal services pursuant to a debt-bondage relationship, or attempting to do so.
Text of Proposed Rule 15 CSR 60-16.030 Deceptively Inducing Participation in Commercial Sexual Conduct or Involuntary Servitude
(1) It is an unfair, deceptive, fraudulent, and otherwise unlawful practice for any person to offer or provide any merchandise, or to induce another person to accept any merchandise, based on the representation
that the person accepting the merchandise will be offered or provided employment other than employment involving either commercial sexual conduct or involuntary servitude, if—
(A) The person offering, providing, or inducing acceptance of the service—or any person acting in concert with him or her—requests, coerces, compels, or otherwise induces the person accepting the service to participate in any commercial sexual conduct or involuntary servitude; or
(B) 1) At the time he or she offered, provided, or induced acceptance of the service, the person offering, providing, or inducing acceptance of the service knew or expected that the person accepting the service would be requested, coerced, compelled, or otherwise induced to participate in any commercial sexual conduct or involuntary servitude, and 2) The person accepting the service actually is requested, coerced, compelled, or otherwise induced to participate in any commercial sexual conduct or involuntary servitude.
(2) It is an unfair, deceptive, fraudulent, and otherwise unlawful practice to knowingly induce—either directly or indirectly—another person to engage in conduct that violates section (1), or to conspire or knowingly act in concert with any person regarding conduct that violates section (1).
Summary of Proposed Rule 15 CSR 60-16.030: This proposed rule prohibits the use of certain deceptive and unlawful means of inducing a person to accept merchandise based on the representation that the person accepting the merchandise will be offered or provided employment other than employment involving either commercial sexual conduct or involuntary servitude.
Text of Proposed Rule 15 CSR 60-16.040
(1) It is an unfair, deceptive, fraudulent, and otherwise unlawful practice for any person, whether directly or indirectly, to advertise, sell, offer, or provide any merchandise if—
(A) The person advertises, sells, offers, or provides any merchandise that constitutes or involves any commercial sexual conduct; and
(B) The person does not expressly disclose that the person advertises, sells, offers, or provides the merchandise described in section (1)(A) 1) in all advertisements made by or on behalf of that person; 2) to all other persons with whom the person enters into any transaction involving trade or commerce; 3) in written form conspicuously displayed on the exterior of any structure in or from which the person conducts any activities relating in any way to the merchandise described in section (1)(A); and 4) in all filings, applications, and other representations made to any branch of state government or to any municipality, county, or other political subdivision.
(2) It is an unfair, deceptive, fraudulent, and otherwise unlawful practice for any person, whether directly or indirectly, to advertise, sell, offer, or provide any merchandise if—
(A) The merchandise constitutes or involves any commercial sexual conduct;
(B) Any individual involved in the performance or provision of the merchandise was induced, compelled, or otherwise caused to do so by means of force, abduction, coercion, fraud, deception, blackmail, actual or threatened financial harm, or a debt-bondage relationship; and
(C) The person does not expressly disclose to every other person to whom the merchandise is advertised, sold, offered, or provided that at least one (1) individual involved in the performance or provision of the merchandise was induced, compelled, or otherwise caused to do so by means of force, abduction, coercion, fraud, deception, blackmail, actual or threatened financial harm, or a debt-bondage relationship.
(3) It is an unfair, deceptive, fraudulent, and otherwise unlawful practice to knowingly induce, either directly or indirectly, another person to engage in conduct that violates section (1) or section (2), or to conspire or to knowingly, recklessly, or negligently act in concert with any person regarding conduct that violates section (1) or section (2).
(4) This rule shall not apply under the circumstances set forth in section 407.020.2(1) and (2), RSMo.
Summary of Proposed Rule 15 CSR 60-16.040: This proposed rule prohibits the advertising, sale, offering or provision of any merchandise that constitutes or involves commercial sexual conduct unless the person advertising, selling, offering, or providing the merchandise makes certain enumerated disclosures. The proposed rule also prohibits the advertising, sale, offering, or provision of merchandise that constitutes or involves certain commercial sexual conduct without making certain enumerated disclosures.
Text of Proposed Rule 15 CSR 60-16.050 Conducting Labor Trafficking Under False Pretenses
(1) It is an unfair, deceptive, fraudulent, and otherwise unlawful practice for any person, whether directly or indirectly, to advertise, sell, offer, or provide any merchandise if—
(A) Any individual involved in the performance or provision of the merchandise is in a condition of involuntary servitude; and
(B) The person does not expressly disclose that at least one (1) individual involved in the performance or provision of the merchandise is in a condition of involuntary servitude 1) in all advertisements made by or on behalf of that person; 2) to all other persons with whom the person enters into any transaction involving trade or commerce; 3) in written form conspicuously displayed on the exterior of any structure in or from which the person conducts any activities relating in any way to the merchandise described in subsection (1)(A); and 4) in all filings, applications, and other representations made to any branch of state government or to any municipality, county, or other political subdivision.
(2) It is an unfair, deceptive, fraudulent, and otherwise unlawful practice to knowingly induce, either directly or indirectly, another person to engage in conduct that violates section (1), or to conspire or knowingly act in concert with any person regarding conduct that violates section (1).
(3) This rule shall apply only where the person who is in a condition of involuntary servitude resides in Missouri, is domiciled in Missouri, or performs any work or service pursuant or relating to his or her condition of involuntary servitude in Missouri.
(4) This rule shall not apply under the circumstances set forth in section 407.020.2(1) and (2), RSMo.
Summary of Proposed Rule 15 CSR 60-16.050: This proposed rule prohibits the advertising, sale, offering, or provision of any merchandise if any individual involved in the performance or provision of the merchandise is in a condition of involuntary servitude, unless the person advertising, selling, offering, or providing the merchandise makes certain enumerated disclosures.