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2002 North Carolina Attorney General Reports and Opinions 1 (2002)

handle is hein.sag/sagnc0039 and id is 1 raw text is: REPLY TO: Thomas J. Ziko Education Scction Tcic: (919) 716-6920 FAX: (919) 716-6764 January 8, 2002 M. Jackson Nichols Allen & Pinnex, P.A. P.O. Drawer 1270 Raleigh, North Carolina 27602 Re: Advisory Opinion; Fitting and Selling of Hearing Aids in UNC Speech and Hearing Clinics; N.C.G.S. §§ 116-1(b); 66-58 (Umstead Act) Dear Jack: On behalf of the North Carolina State Hearing Aid Dealers and Fitters Board (NCHADFB), you have written to request an Attorney General's opinion regarding the application of G.S. § 66-58 (Umstead Act) to the fitting and sale of hearing aids through hearing and speech pathology clinics operated by the University of North Carolina (UNC) in conjunction with speech, hearing and communication disorders degree programs offered at its constituent institutions. You have also specifically questioned the propriety of the UNC Greensboro (UNCG) Speech and Hearing Center advertising reduced prices for hearing tests. The Umstead Act generally prohibits the State of North Carolina or any agency thereof from rendering services or selling goods ordinarily and customarily rendered by private enterprise. In re Appeal of University ofNorth Carolina, 300 N.C. 563, 268 S.E.2d 472 (1980). The Umstead Act is a criminal statute; persons who violate or participate in violations of the Act are guilty of a Class I misdemeanor. G.S. §66-58(e). Well established rules of statutory construction require criminal statutes to be strictly construed so as not to extend their scope to activities and transactions that the General Assembly did not intend to subject to criminal punishment. See, Vogel v. Reed Supply Co., 277 N.C. 119, 131, 177 S.E.2d 273, 281-81 (1 970)(holding that G.S. § 87-1, which makes it a misdemeanor to engage in general contractor activities without a license, must be strictly construed); see also, Elliott v. North Carolina Psychology Bd., 348 N.C. 230, 498 S.E.2d 616 (1998) (holding that

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