A Monthly Review of Issues Affecting Commercial Telemarketing by Copilevitz & Canter, LLC, Attorneys at Law

November, 2002

FCC
The FCC comment period for revisions to the regulations implementing the Telephone Consumer Protection Act will expire on November 22nd. The FCC has requested comments on all aspects of these regulations including "do-not-call" lists, caller ID and delivery of recordings.

COMPTROLLER OF CURRENCY
The office of the Comptroller of Currency has issued a regulation regarding disclosures required in telemarketing of debt cancellation or debt suspension agreements by banks to their customers. The rule states that banks may use short disclosures orally provided that they mail written disclosures within three days to the consumer after the telephone solicitation. These products are often offered in conjunction with other types of loans such as credit cards or residential mortgage loans.

INDIANA
The Indiana Attorney General has passed a regulation increasing the fees charged for purchase of the "do-not-call" list to $750.

KENTUCKY
The Attorney General in the state of Kentucky has published rules regarding persons who change addresses and whose names are included on the state's zero call list. The regulation provides that the local exchange carrier shall transfer the telephone number to reflect the applicant's change of address or the consumer's termination of telephone service.

The Attorney General has also proposed administrative regulations to modified "zero do-not-call" lists to permit interaction with any national registry established by the FTC or the FCC so that the zero call list will be part of the national data base.

The state of Kentucky has also continued to aggressively enforce its "do-not-call" list. The Attorney General has announced that it has recovered more than $100,000 in fines since the implementation of the list.

MAINE
The state of Maine still has information concerning application of its transient sellers of consumer merchandise registration to telemarketers on its website. This law requires most telemarketers to register unless they have a location in the state of Maine. The most troublesome part of the application is that it requires a fee for each employee of the transient seller in the amount of $75.

MASSACHUSETTS
The Massachusetts Office of Consumer Affairs held a public hearing on October 30, 2002 regarding implementation of the state "do-not-call" list.

The Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation has proposed regulations necessary to implement the Massachusetts "do-not-call" list. The proposed list would not apply to the solicitation of donations and would also prohibit unsolicited telephone facsimiles. The rule would prohibit installation of any device to block caller ID and would require certain disclosures be made at the beginning of the telephonic sales call. The rule states that anyone applying for a list must pay an annual registration fee to access the names and numbers.

MISSOURI
The state of Missouri has collected more than $600,000 in penalties against telemarketers for alleged violations of the state "do-not-call" list. Most recently, the Attorney General announced two settlements, one against a carpet cleaning company and one against a credit advice and repair organization.

MONTANA
A bill has been proposed in the Montana legislature which would substantially revise its telemarketing registration law in that state. The bill would require a one-time $500 registration fee and would allow fines of between $1,000 and $10,000 for each instance in which a violation of the law has occurred. The bill would delete several exemptions to registration including catalog seller, supervised financial institutions, insurance companies, satellite television sellers, telephone companies and telemarketing service bureaus which provide more than 50% of their services to exempt entities. Passage of this bill would require almost every telemarketer to register and post a bond in the state of Montana.

NEW JERSEY
The New Jersey Senate has passed a "do-not-call" list law which now must be reconciled with a version passed by the New Jersey of Assembly. The list would involve a fee based on the size of the telemarketing company purchasing the list and prohibits intentional blocking of caller ID devices.

Also in New Jersey, a bill has been proposed in the New Jersey Senate which would prohibit telephone solicitations for charitable contributions by law enforcement agencies, law enforcement associations or on behalf of law enforcement personnel. This law would be struck down very shortly after it was passed if enacted.

The Assembly in New Jersey is considering a "do-not-call" list law. The law would require telemarketers to purchase a "do-not-call" list and pay a fee based on the size of the telemarketing business. The law exempts calls to established customers, as well.

NORTH CAROLINA
The state of North Carolina has appropriated up to $700,000 to administer the state's "do-not-call" registry during the coming fiscal year.

OHIO
Abill has been introduced in the Ohio Senate which would create a "do-not-call" list and also prohibit callers from intentionally blocking consumer caller ID devices. The Attorney General is directed to contract with a nonprofit organization to administer and maintain the "do-not-call" list.

OKLAHOMA
The Oklahoma Attorney General has promulgated regulations to implement the state "do-not-call" list on an emergency basis. The regulation sets a schedule of administrative fines beginning at $1,000 for the first and second violations up to $10,000 per violation for subsequent violations.

WASHINGTON
The state of Washington has promulgated rules regarding how mortgage brokers and lenders advertise and solicit in this state. The regulations require that all mortgage licensees retain copies of all telemarketing scripts for a period of twenty-five months. The rules also prohibit representing that the licensee is affiliated with any state or federal agency or bank which it does not actually represent.