Page:State ex rel. Bryant v. R & A Investment Co.pdf/7

Rh   are usurious. In essence, Mid South requests that we condone its open, flagrant, and continuous violation of the Arkansas Constitution. This we decline to do.

[4, 5] This court has had limited opportunity to address the DTPA, which was enacted under Act 92 of 1971. We sum.marize our rules of statutory interpretation:

"[T]he basic rule of statutory construction, to which all other interpretive guides must yield, is to give effect to the intent of the legislature [W]hen a statute is clear, it is given its plain meaning, and that we will not search for legislative intent, rather, that intent must be gathered from the plain meaning of the language used. We are also very hesitant to interpret a legislative act in a manner contrary to its express language unless it is clear that a drafting error or omission has circumvented legislative intent. In interpreting a statute and attempting to construe legislative intent, we look to the language of the statute, the subject matter, the object to be accomplished, the purpose to be served, the remedy provided, legislative history, and other appropriate means that throw light on the subject. We have recognized that changes made by subsequent amendments may be helpful in determining legislative intent."

State v. McLeod, 318 Ark. 781, 786, 888 S.W.2d 639, 642 (1994) (citations omitted). The preamble to Act 92 reveals that the legislature's remedial purpose was "to protect the interests of both the consumer public and the legitimate business community[.]" The words "and unconscionable" were added to section 4-88-107(a) and (b) by Act 587 of 1993. Section 4-88-107(b) illustrates that liberal construction of the DTPA is appropriate, as it provides that "[t]he deceptive and unconscionable trade practices listed in this section are in addition to and do not limit the types of unfair trade practices actionable at common law or under other statutes of this state." We thus refute Mid South's contention that section 4-88-107(a)(10), which prohibits "any other unconscionable, false, deceptive act or practice" is too vague for enforcement. This catch-all provision was, no doubt, included because the General Assembly could not be expected to envision every conceivable violation under the DTPA.