A new state bill will now allow homeowners leasing liquified petroleum gas tanks to receive emergency deliveries from any supplier during times of an emergency.

The legislation amends the agriculture and markets law to allow, during a qualified emergency, a customer running low on propane who reasonably believes their supply is insufficient to meet their heating needs to purchase liquid petroleum gas (LPG) from any temporary emergency supplier if their good faith effort to purchase the LPG from their regular supplier does not materialize.

Both the regular and temporary emergency suppliers may not charge additional fees or penalties during qualifying emergencies to a customer that they don’t usually charge when an emergency is not in effect.

The state defines a qualifying emergency as a federal, state, or local emergency declaration, or severe weather or similar circumstances that may result in death, injury, or damage to a building structure due to lack of residential heat caused by lack of sufficient LPG to produce the heat. After April 7, 2023, individuals can safely switch suppliers without penalty, or if a qualified emergency occurs before such date.

The bill also requires the Commissioner of Agriculture and Markets and Attorney General to develop a propane consumer bill of rights and post it on the Department of Agriculture and Markets website. It will also be provided to customers who sign a contract for the provision of LPG, detailing when a customer can purchase from a temporary emergency supplier.

Attorney General Letitia James joined a coalition of 50 attorneys general to form a nationwide, bipartisan Anti-Robocall Litigation Taskforce to investigate and take legal action against telecommunications companies responsible for enabling a majority of foreign robocalls into the United States. The taskforce will work to cut down on illegal robocalls made to consumers nationwide.

According to the National Consumer Law Center and Electronic Privacy Information Center, over 33 million scam robocalls target Americans every day. These scam calls include Social Security Administration fraud against seniors, Amazon scams against consumers, and many other scams often targeting vulnerable groups. These calls typically involve scammers falsely impersonating government agencies or well-known companies to deceive recipients.

An estimated $29.8 billion dollars was stolen through scam calls in 2021. Most of this scam robocall traffic originates overseas. The Task Force is focused on shutting down the providers that profit from this illegal scam traffic and refuse to take steps to otherwise mitigate these scam calls.

The Task Force has issued 20 civil investigative demands to 20 gateway providers and other entities that are allegedly responsible for a majority of foreign robocall traffic. Gateway providers that bring foreign traffic into the U.S. telephone network have a responsibility to ensure the traffic is legal. But the task force says these providers are not taking sufficient action to stop robocall traffic, and, in many cases, appear to be intentionally turning a blind eye in return for steady revenue.

Attorney General James offers the following tips to avoid scams and unwanted calls:
– Be wary of callers who specifically ask you to pay by gift card, wire transfer, or cryptocurrency. For example, the Internal Revenue Service does not accept iTunes gift cards.
– Look out for prerecorded calls from imposters posing as government agencies. Typically, the Social Security Administration does not make phone calls to individuals.
– If you suspect fraudulent activity, immediately hang up and do not provide any personal information.

To report a scam, file an online complaint with the Office of the Attorney General’s (OAG) Bureau of Consumer Frauds. The link can be found here: https://formsnym.ag.ny.gov/OAGOnlineSubmissionForm/faces/OAGCFCHome;jsessionid=QvRoTYt-WvSYVuWNm3oot4Y0w_8AeOllSC9_7E7iTSI1RwV17vjA!148611564

Letitia James

New York Attorney General Letitia James is urging any New Yorkers deceived by cryptocurrency platforms to contact the Office of the Attorney General.

According to the OAG, “many high-profile cryptocurrency businesses have frozen customer withdrawals, announced mass layoffs, or filed for bankruptcy, while investors have been left in financial ruin.”

If you have been impacted, you are urged to report the issues to the OAG by filling out this form: https://ag.ny.gov/investor-protection/submit-complaint. The OAG also encourages workers who may have witnessed misconduct or fraud to file anonymous whistleblower complaints here: https://ag.ny.gov/whistleblower

Letitia James

The State Office of Attorney General has its Election Protection Hotline available now for early voting through the June 28 Primary.

New York Attorney General Letitia James announced the hotline will be available to troubleshoot and resolve a range of issues encountered by voters, including voting by absentee ballot due to the COVID-19 crisis or in-person at their polling place.

Voters who experience problems can report issues to OAG by calling the new hotline number at (866) 390-2992, submitting complaints online at https://ag.ny.gov/voter-resources, or emailing election.hotline@ag.ny.gov. The OAG also created a guide to address frequently asked questions to assist voters.

The OAG has operated its Election Protection Hotline since November 2012. During previous elections, OAG fielded hundreds — and sometimes thousands — of complaints from voters across the state and worked with local election officials and others to address issues. The OAG has also taken legal action to protect against voter registration purges and to ensure that voters have adequate and equitable access to vote early as required under the law.

Attorney General James reminds all registered voters that they have the right to accessible elections. In addition, all registered voters have the right to vote free from coercion or intimidation, whether by election officials or any other person.

Letitia James

In response to President Biden’s announcement that the United States will ban imports of Russian oil, natural gas, and coal, New York Attorney General Letitia James is warning oil companies and gas stations that price gouging is illegal.

She reminded New Yorkers to be on alert for potential price gouging of fuel and to prepare for continued market disruptions, potentially inflated prices at the pump, and ensure that they know their rights.

New York law prohibits sellers of fuel and other vital and necessary goods from charging unconscionably excessive prices during an abnormal market disruption, including disruptions caused by world conflicts.

New York consumers who experience dramatic increases in the price of gasoline or fuel should report these incidents to the Office of the Attorney General (OAG).

When reporting price gouging to OAG, consumers should:

• Report the specific increased prices, the dates, and places that they saw the increased prices, and the types of fuel being sold;
• Provide copies of their sales receipts and photos of the advertised prices, if available; and
• Buy only as much fuel as they need and not to stock up out of fear of a potential future shortage.

The link to report price gouging incidents can be found here: https://formsnym.ag.ny.gov/OAGOnlineSubmissionForm/faces/OAGPGCHome

Letitia James

State Attorney General Letitia James is providing warnings and tips to consumers and businesses to protect themselves against potential cybersecurity threats that may develop due to the crisis in Ukraine.

While there is currently no active cybersecurity alert, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has encouraged consumers and businesses of all sizes to ensure they are taking appropriate measures to protect their systems. The State Office of Attorney General has previously investigated issues relating to cybersecurity and provided guidance to both consumers and businesses about how they can best protect themselves from cybersecurity threats.

The OAG recommends businesses use bot detection systems, multi-factor authentication, and strong password requirements for most accounts. They also recommend developing processes to manage software updates, limit employee access to systems according to their job functions, maintain the security of remote access to company systems, and identify and manage security vulnerabilities. Businesses also should implement antivirus software and technical safeguards to filter emails likely to be phishing attempts, and train employees on phishing and other potential scams.

Additionally, Attorney General James recommends consumers safeguard their online accounts against cybersecurity threats by protecting passwords, enabling two-factor authentication, watch out for online scams, regularly run antivirus software, keep software updated, and take notices of suspicious activity seriously.

Letitia James

The New York State Attorney General’s office has launched a process to crack down on illegal price gouging.

Attorney General Letitia James‘ office said Friday morning it is starting a new rule-making process to examine and address evidence that recent price hikes by major corporations were spurred by profits and not increased costs.

The AG’s office will now look into whether big corporations used the COVID-19 pandemic as an excuse to charge more for necessary goods such as fuel, cars and food.

The new process is called “Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking” or ANPR.

It outlines the evidence that some of the price increases for vital and necessary goods may violate New York law and lays out the incentive structures that can lead to price gouging.

The ANPR also discusses the unique ways price gouging harms consumers and the justifications for banning it.

State price gouging laws bar companies from “taking advantage of a crisis to charge excessive prices for vital and necessary goods and services.” Under that law, companies cannot charge “unconscionably excessive prices or prices set through unfair leverage or unconscionable means.”

New York’s statute covers all actors in the supply chain for goods and services, including manufacturers, retailers, distributors, shipping firms and online platforms.

It also prohibits price gouging targeting small businesses and state and local governments.

The attorney general’s office said recent corporate profit spikes are evidence some companies are profiting by increasing costs for people hit hardest by the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the AG’s office:
– Beef prices rose 30% while meatpackers have been celebrating an average of 120% increase in profits.
– The cost of Proctor and Gamble diapers, toothpaste, detergent, and tampons has risen throughout the pandemic while Proctor and Gamble has boasted record-breaking profits.
– Chipotle prices are up 10% from January 2021 to January 2022, which the company blames on labor shortages, but their operating income rose 181%.
– While the cost of a basic cup of coffee at Starbucks has shot up 20%, the company profits are up 30%.
– Shipping prices are way up, while shipping company profit margins are breaking records.
– Chevron and Shell posted record profitability while energy costs soared.

The ANPR has been submitted to the State Register for publication and will be officially available on March 9.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo during his presentation of the State Budget on Jan. 19, 2021 (Mike Groll/Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo)

ALBANY – Governor Andrew Cuomo’s office is finding itself in additional hot water this week after it was learned over the weekend that a former member of his staff had requested Democratic county executives to voice their support for the embattled governor. But what brings attention to the request is that former the Cuomo aid is now in charge of vaccination distribution across the state.

Over the weekend, the New York Times and Washington Post reported that Larry Schwartz, the states vaccination coordinator, has been asking Democratic county executives to support an embattled Cuomo during calls in which he also discussed vaccine matters.

One executive, who was not named in the reports, said they feared their county’s vaccine supply might suffer if they didn’t signal support for the governor, who is facing growing calls to resign as more women come forward with sexual harassment and misconduct allegations.

The executive filed notice of an impending ethics complaint with the public integrity unit of the New York Office of Attorney General on Friday.

The governor’s acting counsel, Beth Garvey, issued a statement Monday denying that Schwartz raised the issue of vaccines on the calls and claiming he “would never link political support to public health decisions.”

Under the settlement, Charter Communications, which does business as Spectrum, is required to issue $62.5 million in refunds within 120 days.

Those refunds consist of $75 to each of more than 700,000 active subscribers who leased modems or Wi-Fi routers unable to deliver the internet speeds promised by the company.

Anyone subscribing to a Time Warner Cable legacy speed plan of 100 Mbps or higher are also eligible for the $75 refund.

In addition, Charter is required to award an additional $75 refund to each of more than 150,000 subscribers who had an inadequate modem for 24 months or longer.

Customers don’t have to do anything to get the refunds. Charter will notify subscribers of their eligibility for refunds and disburse them within 120 days.

In addition to the refunds, Charter will offer all subscribers currently receiving internet and cable television from the company a choice of either three free months of HBO or six free months of Showtime.

The agreement between the company and Attorney General Barbara Underwood settles the AG’s consumer fraud action alleging that Charter, the state’s largest internet service provider, denied customers the “blazing fast” internet service that it advertised.

The Jamestown Post-Journal says Chief Brad Meyers said in a press conference on Thursday that the Patrolman involved in the shooting was Nathan Scriven, a 15-year member of the Fredonia Police Department.

Scriven shot a male subject outside of 76 Liberty St. around 1:45 p.m. Monday while responding to a call of a man barricaded in a bathroom of the residence. When Scriven arrived on the scene, the male reportedly came at the officer with a knife. Scriven left the home but was followed by the knife-wielding subject and the officer eventually shot him, claiming self-defense.

Chief Meyers also said the State Attorney General’s office reviewed footage from a body camera and determined the incident did not require further involvement by the state in investigating the incident.

The Chautauqua County District Attorney’s office is now the lead agency in the investigation.

The name of the man who died has not been released.