(a) Each applicant for a sales finance company license shall pay to the system any required fees or charges and a license fee of four hundred dollars. Each such license shall expire at the close of business on December thirty-first of the year in which the license was approved, unless such license is renewed, except that any such license approved on or after November first shall expire at the close of business on December thirty-first of the year following the year in which it is approved. An application for renewal of a license shall be filed between November first and December thirty-first of the year in which such license expires. Each applicant for renewal of a license shall pay to the system any required fees or charges and a renewal fee of four hundred dollars.
(b) In accordance with section 36a-24b, the commissioner may automatically suspend any license if the licensee has received a deficiency on the system indicating that a required payment was Returned-ACH or returned pursuant to any other term as may be utilized by the system to indicate that payment was not accepted. After a license has been automatically suspended pursuant to this subsection, the commissioner shall (1) give the licensee notice of the automatic suspension pending proceedings for revocation or refusal to renew pursuant to section 36a-543 and an opportunity for a hearing on such action in accordance with section 36a-51, and (2) require such licensee to take or refrain from taking action as the commissioner deems necessary to effectuate the purposes of this section.
(c) No abatement of the license fee shall be made if the application is denied or withdrawn prior to issuance of the license or if the license is surrendered, revoked or suspended prior to the expiration of the period for which it was issued. All fees required by this section shall be nonrefundable.
(d) No person who is required to be licensed and who is subject to the provisions of sections 36a-535 to 36a-547, inclusive, and no control person shall, directly or indirectly: (1) Employ any scheme, device or artifice to defraud or mislead any person in connection with a retail installment contract or a retail installment loan; (2) engage in any unfair or deceptive practice toward any person in connection with a retail installment contract or a retail installment loan; (3) obtain property by fraud or misrepresentation; (4) solicit, advertise or offer rates or other financing terms for a retail installment contract or a retail installment loan unless those rates or terms are actually available at the time of soliciting, advertising or offering such rates or terms; (5) fail to comply with the provisions of sections 36a-535 to 36a-547, inclusive, or the rules or regulations adopted under said sections, or fail to comply with any other state or federal law, including the rules and regulations thereunder; (6) make, in any manner, any false or deceptive statement or representation, including with regard to rates or other financing terms or conditions or engage in bait and switch advertising; (7) negligently make any false statement or knowingly and wilfully make any omission of material fact in connection with any information or reports filed with a governmental agency or the system, or in connection with any investigation conducted by the commissioner or another governmental agency; (8) make any payment, threat or promise to any person for the purposes of influencing the independent judgment of the person in connection with the business of a sales finance company; (9) fail to truthfully account for moneys belonging to a party to a retail installment contract or retail installment loan; or (10) fail to establish, enforce and maintain policies and procedures for supervising employees, agents and office operations that are reasonably designed to achieve compliance with applicable laws and regulations concerning sales finance companies.
(1949 Rev., S. 5964 (3); 1953, S. 2768d; 1959, P.A. 204, S. 1; 1967, P.A. 631, S. 2; P.A. 73-392; P.A. 88-150, S. 4; P.A. 92-89, S. 6, 20; P.A. 94-104, S. 3; 94-122, S. 253, 340; P.A. 96-71, S. 4, 8; P.A. 02-111, S. 29; P.A. 04-69, S. 16; P.A. 17-233, S. 11; P.A. 18-173, S. 26.)
History: 1959 act increased fees by 50%; 1967 act added provision requiring applicant to pay fee for period ending June thirtieth next succeeding the issuance of license and specifying that fee will be returned if application is denied or withdrawn, retaining fee amounts and dates as before; P.A. 73-392 increased $150 and $75 fees previously in effect to $200 and $100, respectively; P.A. 88-150 amended the section by providing that the license fee is nonrefundable, increasing the fee to $200 and adding the provision re expiration of licenses on June thirtieth; P.A. 92-89 increased the license fee from $200 to $400; P.A. 94-104 added a $100 processing fee for a person whose license expired within 60 days of his application; P.A. 94-122 made technical changes, effective January 1, 1995; Sec. 36-257 transferred to Sec. 36a-539 in 1995; P.A. 96-71 deleted “nonrefundable” in Subsec. (a) and added Subsec. (b) to make all fees required by this section and section 36a-542 nonrefundable, effective July 1, 1996; P.A. 02-111 amended Subsec. (a) by providing that the license fee for “sales finance company” license is $800, provided if application is filed not earlier than one year before the expiration date of license, fee is $400, adding provision re license that is renewed effective July 1, 2003, shall expire on September 30, 2005, and adding provision re licenses issued pursuant to Secs. 36a-535 to 36a-546, inclusive, shall expire at the close of business on September thirtieth of the odd-numbered year following its issuance; P.A. 04-69 inserted new Subsec. (b), requiring commissioner to automatically suspend license if commissioner determines that a check filed to pay the license fee has been dishonored and requiring commissioner to give notice of the automatic suspension pending proceedings for revocation and an opportunity for a hearing in accordance with Sec. 36a-51, and redesignated existing Subsec. (b) as Subsec. (c); P.A. 17-233 added Subsec. (d) re persons who are required to be licensed and are subject to provisions of Secs. 36a-535 to 36a-546; P.A. 18-173 substantially amended Subsec. (a) including by replacing provisions re applying for license to commissioner and paying fee of $800 with provisions re paying to system fees and charges and license fee of $400, deleting provision re fee if application not filed earlier than one year before expiration date, replacing provision re license to expire September 30th of odd-numbered year following issuance with provision re license to expire December 31st of year in which license was approved, replacing provisions re license renewal and fee with provisions re same, substantially amended Subsec. (b) by replacing provisions re automatic suspension when check filed with commissioner to pay fee is dishonored with provision re automatic suspension when deficiency received on system indicating payment returned or not accepted, amended Subsec. (c) by adding reference to application denied or withdrawn prior to issuance and deleting reference to Sec. 36a-542, amended Subsec. (d) by replacing references to Sec. 36a-546 with references to Sec. 36a-547, and made technical and conforming changes.