REPORT TITLE:
Pawnbrokers


DESCRIPTION:
Requires all pawn transactions to be on a computerized form.

 
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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES                H.B. NO.           
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 1999                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
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                   A  BILL  FOR  AN  ACT

RELATING TO PAWNBROKERS.



BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 1      SECTION 1.  Section 445-134.13, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 2 amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:
 
 3      "(a)  No pawnbroker shall:
 
 4      (1)  Charge or receive any pawn finance charge exceeding
 
 5           twenty per cent a month;
 
 6      (2)  Contract for or receive any amounts other than the pawn
 
 7           finance charge in connection with a pawn transaction;
 
 8      (3)  Accept a pledge or purchase of property from a person
 
 9           under the age of eighteen years;
 
10      (4)  Accept any waiver, in writing or otherwise, of any
 
11           right or protection accorded a customer under this
 
12           part;
 
13      (5)  Fail to exercise reasonable care to protect pledged
 
14           goods from loss or damage;
 
15      (6)  Fail to return pledged goods to a customer within three
 
16           business days of payment of the full amount due the
 
17           pawnbroker on the pawn transaction;
 
18      (7)  Make any charge for insurance, storage, or handling in
 
19           connection with a pawn transaction;
 

 
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 1      (8)  Enter into a pawn transaction which has a maturity date
 
 2           more than one month after the date the pawn transaction
 
 3           agreement is signed;
 
 4      (9)  Accept pledged goods or buy merchandise from a person
 
 5           unable to supply verification of identity by photo
 
 6           identification card, a state-issued identification
 
 7           card, driver's license, or federal government-issued
 
 8           identification card; provided that in addition to such
 
 9           verification, the pawnbroker shall take the person's
 
10           thumbprint, and retain the thumbprint on file;
 
11     (10)  Make any agreement requiring the personal liability of
 
12           a customer in connection with a pawn transaction or
 
13           creating any obligation on the part of the customer to
 
14           redeem pledged goods or make any payment on a pawn
 
15           transaction;
 
16     (11)  Allow a customer's pawn account to exceed $10,000.  For
 
17           purposes of this paragraph, "pawn account" means the
 
18           total accumulation of unpaid pawn finance charges for
 
19           any single customer; or
 
20     (12)  Accept motor vehicles, vessels, or negotiable
 
21           instruments as pledged goods, or certificates of title
 
22           or registration of motor vehicles or vessels as
 
23           evidence of possession of pledged goods."
 

 
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 1      SECTION 2.  Section 445-134.11, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 2 amended by amending subsections (a) and (b) to read as follows:
 
 3      "(a)  All pawn transaction agreements shall be in
 
 4 writing[.]; provided that the chief of police in each county may
 
 5 require that all pawn transaction agreements and all purchases of
 
 6 merchandise for resale shall be on a computerized form authorized
 
 7 by the chief of police.  The chief of police in each county may
 
 8 prescribe the necessary time period for the change-over to
 
 9 computerized forms and select the computer system to be used."
 
10      (b)  The pawnbroker shall provide the customer with a signed
 
11 copy of the pawn transaction agreement[.], or with a signed copy
 
12 of the purchase for resale agreement."
 
13      SECTION 3.  Section 486M-2, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
14 amended to read as follows:
 
15      "§486M-2 Record of transactions.  Every dealer, or the
 
16 agent, employee, or representative of the dealer shall,
 
17 immediately upon receipt of any article, record the following
 
18 information, on a form authorized by the chief of police in each
 
19 county:
 
20      (1)  The name and address of the dealer;
 
21      (2)  The name, residence address, date of birth, and the age
 
22           of the person from whom the article was received;
 
23      (3)  The date and time the article was received by the
 

 
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 1           dealer;
 
 2      (4)  The signature of the person from whom the article was
 
 3           received;
 
 4      (5)  The Hawaii driver's license number, or if the person
 
 5           does not possess a Hawaii driver's license, the number
 
 6           of and description of any identification which bears a
 
 7           photograph of the person from whom the article was
 
 8           received;
 
 9      (6)  A complete and accurate description of the article
 
10           received, including all markings, names, initials, and
 
11           inscriptions;
 
12      (7)  A reasonable estimate of the fineness and weights of
 
13           the precious and semiprecious metals and precious and
 
14           semiprecious gems received; and
 
15      (8)  The price paid by the dealer for each article.
 
16      Upon request and at the discretion of the chief of police of
 
17 each county, copies of all completed forms required by this
 
18 section shall be surrendered, mailed, or electronically inputted
 
19 and transmitted via modem or by facsimile transmittal to the
 
20 chief of police or to the chief of police's authorized
 
21 representative.  The method of submittal to the chief of police
 
22 shall be at the option of the [dealer.] chief of police of each
 
23 county."
 

 
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 1      SECTION 4.  This Act does not affect rights and duties that
 
 2 matured, penalties that were incurred, and proceedings that were
 
 3 begun, before its effective date.
 
 4      SECTION 5.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed.
 
 5 New statutory material is underscored.
 
 6      SECTION 6.  This Act shall take effect upon its approval.
 
 7 
 
 8                           INTRODUCED BY:  _______________________
 

 
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