FCC Robocall Draft Order Circulates on Budget Act Amendments to TCPA
A draft FCC order would implement new robocall rules and regulations under the 2015 Budget Act's amendments to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, a commission official told us Monday when asked about an item on the agency's updated circulation list…
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issued Friday. Chairman Tom Wheeler "has circulated proposed rules which abide by the Budget Act while helping consumers avoid unwanted debt collection robocalls," the official said. "His proposal includes the right of consumers to stop unwanted calls, limits on who can be called, and limits to the number of calls per month.” Earlier this month, in response to petitions from Broadnet and others, the FCC clarified that the TCPA doesn't apply to calls made by or on behalf of the federal government as part of official business, except for calls made by contractors that don't comply with government instructions (see 1607060013). Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel said then the FCC already had sought comment in an ongoing rulemaking on a narrow TCPA issue -- providing an exception for companies hired by the federal government to collect funds that are owed the government (see 1605090037), as the agency was instructed to do by Congress in last year’s budget deal. “So our actions here have an odd result. In effect, we prejudge the outcome of our narrower proceeding under the Bipartisan Budget Act,” she said July 5.