Bill Would Amend ‘Do Not Call Law’
TRENTON – Senator Richard J. Codey announced today that he will introduce legislation to amend the state’s Do Not Call Law to prohibit unwanted ‘ringless’ telemarketing calls, which go directly to an individual’s voicemail:
“The Do Not Call law is supposed to stop many of these communications, but as technology changes, companies continue to look for ways around the prohibitions. I’m mad as hell that not only are telemarketers targeting people in their homes, but now on cell phones. This has to stop. It’s a quality of life issue.
“I will be introducing legislation aimed at combating this latest tactic used by telemarketers and banning unwanted ringless voicemails so that residents of this state don’t have to be bothered with them. Not only are they a nuisance but they could prevent people from accessing messages that are actually important.
“We’ve seen reports of these calls increasing, so we need to stop this problem before it completely spirals out of control.”
The senator’s announcement follows action by New York Senator Chuck Schumer who recently sent a letter to the Federal Communications Commission calling on it not to allow an exemption to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act by allowing telemarketers to leave ringless voicemails. The FCC was reviewing whether to do so at the request of a ringless voicemail provider, according to reports.