GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
1987 SESSION
CHAPTER 456
AN ACT TO AMEND THE BEDDING LAW.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
Section 1. G.S. 130A-261(1) reads as rewritten:
"(1) 'Bedding' means any mattress, upholstered spring, sleeping bag, pad, comforter, cushion, pillow , decorative pillow, and any other item used principally for sleeping. This definition includes only those items which have a thickness of more than one inch. This definition also includes dual purpose furniture such as studio couches and sofa beds. The term 'mattress' does not include water bed liners, bladders or cylinders but does include padding or cushioning material which has a thickness of more than one inch."
Sec. 2. G.S.130A-262(c) reads as rewritten:
"(c) A person who
sanitizes bedding shall attach to the bedding a yellow tag containing
information required by the rules of the Commission and shall affix to the
bedding the adhesive stamp required by G.S. 130A-269."
Sec. 3. G.S. 130A-265(a) reads as rewritten:
"(a) A tag of durable
material approved by the Commission shall be sewed securely to all
bedding. The tag shall be at least two inches by three inches in size and
shall have affixed to it the adhesive stamp or have a printed stamp exemption
permit number provided for in G.S. 130A-269. The stamp shall be affixed
so as not to interfere with the wording on the tag."
Sec. 4. G.S. 130A-265(b) reads as rewritten:
"(b) The following shall be plainly stamped or printed upon the tag with ink in English:
(1) The name and kind of material or materials used to fill the bedding which are listed in the order of their predominance;
(2) A registration number obtained from the Department; and
(3) In letters at least
one-eighth inch high the words 'made of new material', if the bedding contains
no previously used material; or the words 'made of previously used materials',
if the bedding contains any previously used material; or the word 'secondhand'
on any bedding which has been used but not remade; and
(4) A stamp
exemption permit number when requirements of G.S. 130A-269 are met ."
Sec. 5. G.S.130A-267(a) reads as rewritten:
"(a) No person shall sell any bedding in this State
(whether manufactured within or without this State) which has not been
manufactured, tagged, and labeled and stamped in the manner
required by this Part and which does not otherwise comply with the provisions
of this Part."
Sec. 6. G.S. 130A-268 reads as rewritten:
"§ 130A-268. Registration numbers;
licenses.-(a) All persons manufacturing or
sanitizing bedding in this State or manufacturing bedding to be sold in this
State shall apply for a registration number on a form prescribed by the
Secretary. Upon receipt of the application completed application and
applicable fees, the Department shall issue to the applicant a certificate
of registration showing the person's name and address, registration number and
other pertinent information required by the rules of the Commission.
(b) For the purpose of
defraying expenses incurred in the enforcement of the provisions of this Part,
the following license fees are to be paid to the Department, deposited in the
"bedding law fund" and expended in accordance with the provisions of
G.S. 130A-270. Unless exempted, no person shall sanitize any bedding until the
person has received a "sanitizer's license" upon the payment of
twenty-five dollars ($25.00) for the calendar year to the Department. Unless
exempted, no person shall manufacture any bedding in this State or manufacture
bedding to be sold in this State until that person has secured a
"manufacturer's license" upon the payment of twenty-five dollars
($25.00) for the calendar year to the Department.
(c) If a bedding
manufacturing or sanitizing business is established after June 30, the license
shall be furnished at half the annual fee and shall be valid for the remainder
of the calendar year. The license may be transferred upon the sale of the
business in accordance with the rules of the Commission.
(d) Licenses shall be
kept conspicuously posted in the place of business of the licensee at all
times.
(e) The Secretary may
suspend a license of a person for up to six months for two or more serious
violations of this Part or the rules of the Commission within any 12-month
period. "
Sec. 7. G.S.130A-269 reads as rewritten:
"§ 130A-269. Enforcement funds;
stamps; stamp exemption permit Payment of fees; licenses.-(a) The Department shall administer and enforce
this Part. The Department shall provide specially designated adhesive stamps
for use under the provisions of this Part. Upon request and payment the
Department shall furnish stamps at a rate of eighteen dollars ($18.00) per 500
stamps.
(b) A person
manufacturing bedding in North Carolina or manufacturing bedding to be sold in
this State may, in lieu of purchasing and affixing the adhesive stamps,
annually secure from the Department a stamp exemption permit and print the
stamp exemption number on the label.
(c) A stamp exemption
permit may be issued to a person who has done business in this State throughout
the preceding calendar year at a cost determined annually by the total number
of bedding units manufactured or sold in this State by the applicant during the
calendar year immediately preceding the issuance of the permit at the rate of
eighteen dollars ($18.00) for each 500 bedding units or fraction of 500 units. The
Department shall administer and enforce this Part. A person who has done
business in this State throughout the preceding calendar year shall obtain a
license by paying a fee to the Department in an amount determined by the total
number of bedding units manufactured, sold, or sanitized in this State by the
applicant during the calendar year immediately preceding, at the rate of five
and two tenths cents (5.2¢) per bedding unit. However, if this amount is
less than fifty dollars ($50.00), a minimum fee of fifty dollars ($50.00) shall
be paid to the Department.
(d) A stamp exemption
permit may be issued to a person who has not done business in this State
throughout the preceding calendar year upon an initial payment of seven hundred
twenty dollars ($720.00) per year, prorated in accordance with the quarter of
the calendar year in which the person makes application for the permit. After
submission of proof of business volume amounts in accordance with subsection
(h) for that part of the preceding calendar year in which the person used a
stamp exemption permit issued under this subsection, the Department shall
determine the cost of the permit for that time period by using a rate of
eighteen dollars ($18.00) for each 500 bedding units or fraction of 500 units.
If the person's initial payment is more than the cost of the permit, the
Department shall make a refund or an adjustment to the cost of the next permit
in the amount of the difference. If the initial payment is less than the cost
of the permit, the person shall pay the difference to the Department. Payments,
refunds and adjustments shall be made in accordance with rules adopted by the
Commission. A person who has not done business in this State throughout
the preceding calendar year shall obtain a license by paying an initial fee to
the Department in the amount of seven hundred twenty dollars ($720.00) for the
first year in which business is done in this State, prorated in accordance with
the quarter of the calendar year in which the person begins doing
business. After submission of proof of business volume in accordance with
subsection (h) of this section for the part of the preceding calendar year in
which the person did business in this State, the Department shall determine the
amount of fee for which the person is responsible for that time period by using
a rate of five and two tenths cents (5.2¢) for each bedding unit.
However, if this amount is less than fifty dollars ($50.00), then the amount of
the fee for which the person is responsible shall be fifty dollars
($50.00). If the person's initial payment is more than the amount of the
fee for which the person is responsible, the Department shall make a
refund or adjustment to the cost of the fee due for the next year in the amount
of the difference. If the initial payment is less than the amount of the
fee for which the person is responsible, the person shall pay the difference to
the Department.
(d1) Payments, refunds, and adjustments shall be made in accordance with rules adopted by the Commission.
(d2) Upon payment of the fees charged pursuant to subsections (c) and (d), or the first installment thereof as provided by rules adopted by the Commission, the Department shall issue a license to the person. Licenses shall be kept conspicuously posted in the place of business of the licensee at all times. The Secretary may suspend a license for a maximum of six months for two or more serious violations of this Part or of the rules of the Commission, within any 12-month period.
(e) A maximum charge fee
of seven hundred fifty dollars ($750.00) shall be made charged for
units of bedding manufactured in this State but not sold in this State.
(f) For the purpose
of computing the cost of stamp exemption permits only sole purpose of
computing fees for which a person is responsible, the following definitions
shall apply: One mattress is defined as one bedding unit; one upholstered
spring is defined as one bedding unit; one pad is defined as one bedding unit;
one sleeping bag is defined as one bedding unit; five comforters or pillows,
pillows or decorative pillows are defined as one bedding unit; and any
other item is defined as one bedding unit.
(g) An application for a
stamp exemption permit license must be submitted on a form
prescribed by the Secretary. No stamp exemption permit license may
be issued to a person unless the person complies with the rules of the
Commission governing the granting of stamp exemption permits licenses.
(h) The Commission shall adopt rules for the proper enforcement of this section. The rules shall include provisions governing the type and amount of proof which must be submitted by the applicant to the Department in order to establish the number of bedding units that were, during the preceding calendar year:
(1) Manufactured and sold in this State;
(2) Manufactured outside of this State and sold in this State; and
(3) Manufactured in this State but not sold in this State.
(i) The Commission may provide in its rules for additional proof of the number of bedding units sold during the preceding calendar year when it has reason to believe that the proof submitted by the manufacturer is incomplete, misleading or incorrect."
Sec. 8. G.S. 130A-271(b) reads as rewritten:
"(b) The Secretary may
prohibit sale and place an 'off sale' tag on any bedding which is not made,
sanitized, or tagged or stamped as required by this Part and the
rules of the Commission. The bedding shall not be sold or otherwise removed
until the violation is remedied and the Secretary has reinspected it and
removed the 'off sale' tag.
Sec. 9. G.S.130A-272(a) reads as rewritten:
"(a) In cases where
bedding is manufactured, sanitized or renovated in a plant or place of business
which has qualified as a nonprofit agency for the blind or severely handicapped
under P.L. 92-28, as amended, the responsible person shall satisfy the
provisions of this Part and the rules of the Commission. However, the
responsible persons at these plants or places of business shall not be required
to affix stamps or pay a license tax to pay fees in accordance with
G.S. 130A-269 . Bedding made at these plants or places of business may
be sold by any dealer without the stamps being affixed."
Sec. 10. This act shall become effective January 1, 1988.
In the General Assembly read three times and ratified this the 23rd day of June, 1987.