If Law Passes Georgia Sellers Will Have to Put Personal Info in Every Listing

[Julie B]

Received an email from Ebay asking Georgia sellers to contact their state reps as there is a bill currently in the Georgia senate that if it passes, will require “online marketplaces like eBay, Etsy, or dozens of small online marketplaces to annually verify each of their “high volume third-party sellers,” defined as those who have 200+ annual sales totaling $5,000 or more. Additionally, the legislation requires the high volume sellers’ full name and full contact information be displayed on each listing.  Under the bills, sellers would have to:

• provide online marketplaces with extensive personal information, including tax ID numbers and even their government-issued identification cards in order to be verified to sell on the platform;
• certify annually – at the risk of account suspension – that their information has not changed; and
• prominently display their full name and contact information, including address, email and phone number, on each product listed for sale.”

If it passes, I’m going to get a 2nd phone number because I do not want to field calls from potential buyers.  Also, hopefully I won’t have to use the address that is on my ID.  I’d rather every Tom, Dick and Harry not have my address.  A person with a lot of high end merchandise could be a target for burglars, especially since any buyer can search by zip code.

I wonder what is behind this push and if it passes in Georgia will Amazon, Walmart, etc push other states to follow suit?

[Jay]

What’s the reasoning for this law? What problem are they trying to solve?

[Antique Frog]

eBay UK business sellers have to have their name, a postal address, ‘phone number on their listings, which is why I don’t link to any of my listings here, because my postal address is my domestic address. Private sellers don’t have their info on the listings.

[MyCottage]

Jay, Good question. I think in the UK and EU, it has to do with their much stricter Consumer Protection Regulations. But this being the US, I suspect it ahs much less to do with that and more to do with 1. State Tax Collections and 2. maybe the ability to regulate sales of items banned in Georgia?

Guess I might be going down the research rabbit hole later tonight….unless someone knows for sure what’s behind this. Because if Georgia is doing it, my own state of Pennsylvania is likely going to follow suit at some point….

[MyCottage]

Julie, Does ebay provide the Senate Bill #?

[Julie B]

Here is the intro to the email I received from ebay.  It mentions the House Bill 327.  However, it also mentions that the language was removed from the House Bill 327 but has now been added back into the Senate Bill.  I don’t know if the House Bill and Senate Bill are the same thing/number.

“eBay’s purpose of enabling economic opportunity has never been more important as e-commerce is keeping America connected during COVID-19. But, even as the country is relying more heavily on online goods, unprecedented legislation is moving through your Georgia General Assembly. This bill would negatively impact Georgia small businesses and individuals who sell products online. Though the Georgia House removed the harmful language from House Bill 327, big box retailers have aggressively lobbied to have it added back into the bill in the Senate. ”

What irks me somewhat, is that the “big box retailers” are pushing for it.  It almost feels like they want the little guys to get bullied out of the marketplace.  They don’t have to worry about their personal phone and address getting published since they have headquarters, offices, departments, warehouses, etc.  While us small guys are working out of our homes.

[Julie B]

It looks like Part 3 of the House Bill is the specific area where you’ll find it, according to this quote that ebay sent in it’s email.

“As a long-time eBay seller, Part 3 of HB 327 has me really concerned. This bill could require that sellers of all sizes provide their personal info – like name, street address and phone number – in every single listing. This could jeopardize my privacy and my safety and that’s not OK. If you’re a Georgia resident I urge you to join me and tell your state legislators to amend this bill and protect sellers who make a living online.”

 

[MyCottage]

OK, thanks. https://www.legis.ga.gov/api/legislation/document/20212022/201373

It appears to relate to retail crime….is an online selling selling stolen merchandise, etc? I think most states have similar laws for pawn brokers, but this seems like overkill for ebay sellers….

[Antique Frog]

Line 192- the word ‘new’ has been crossed out.

192 (1) ‘Retail property’ means any new article, product, commodity, item, or component
193  intended to be sold in retail commerce.

Sentences for indulging in “organised retail crime” on eBay to be between one (1) and ten (10) years.

Somewhere down the bottom, it introduces the concept of “organised retail theft”- removing property to the retail value of $30,000 per year from a location inside a “retail property fence”, the retail value to be determined by the price tags on the loot.

The law appears to be targeted towards protecting large retailers, not consumers.

 

[MyCottage]

Julie,

I’d guess big box retailers are pushing for it because they feel it could cut down on shoplifting for online resale…..but also because it could also cut down on people wanting to do legit “retail arbitrage”, they probably see those sellers as competitors…..

[workhorse]

Some of the stuff in this bill doesn’t even sound constitutional.  I bet somewhere along the lines it gets knocked down, even if it passes it will probably get people so upset it will get rescinded.  Major overreach.

[So Cal Joe]

Wow, a high volume seller is one who has $5000 in sales.

It’s one thing to require Ebay to collect all that personal information, but to require it to be publicly disclosed is not a good idea.

I wonder how many resellers Georgia will lose if this passes.

[Author]

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