Congress Moves to Defend Do-Not-Call List
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Sep 25, 11:04 AM (ET)
By DAVID HO
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WASHINGTON (AP) - Lawmakers are moving swiftly to defend the popular national do-not-call list from a court ruling that may jeopardize the promise of peace and quiet for people fed up with telemarketers.
The Senate and House were expected to consider legislation Thursday that would ensure the free government service goes into effect as scheduled next week, deflecting unwanted sales pitches to more than 50 million registered phone numbers.
White House spokesman Scott McClellan would not firmly commit President Bush to signing legislation on the registry, but he said Thursday that the administration disagrees with the ruling and supports the do-not-call list.
"We also support congressional efforts that would ensure timely implementation of the do-not-call registry," McClellan said. "These are telemarketing calls that are intrusive, annoying and all too common."
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Consumers may continue signing up for the list despite the ruling, FTC spokeswoman Cathy MacFarlane said.
Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, who is chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, and Rep. Billy Tauzin, R-La., chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, introduced bills late Wednesday to give the FTC explicit authority to create and operate the list.
Tauzin spokesman Ken Johnson said the House would waste no time in considering the measure and "if the Senate follows suit we'll have this problem solved by the close of business on Thursday."
Other lawmakers said they would introduce more proposals to clarify the FTC's authority through amendments to existing legislation.
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Federal Communications Commission Chairman Michael Powell said that despite the ruling, "we will work closely with the FTC and Congress to ensure that the do-not-call registry becomes a reality."
West said recently adopted rules that allowed the FTC to create such a list were invalid. But he did not issue an order directing the FTC to stop the list.
"This is the goofiest decision that I've seen in a long time," said Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y. "There is no question that Congress intended for the FTC to have this authority and will quickly make any correction that the court, in its arcane logic, deems necessary."
Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass., added, "If this decision is not reversed quickly, I suspect the courthouse in Oklahoma would want to add itself to the do-not-call database in order to protect itself from the millions of consumers who feel deeply about the right to be left alone."
After the ruling, angry consumers posted the judge's office and home telephone numbers on Web sites and encouraged people to call and complain. Calls to the West home seeking comment were blocked by busy signals.
The Direct Marketing Association, one of the groups that challenged the registry, said it hadn't decided whether its members would stop calling people on the list starting next Wednesday.
Since the FTC opened the do-not-call list for registration in June, people have submitted 31.1 million phone numbers at the Web site www.donotcall.gov and 10.9 million by calling toll-free at 1-888-382-1222. An additional 8.6 million numbers were transferred from existing state lists.
There are about 166 million residential phone numbers in the United States and an additional 150 million cell phone numbers.
The FTC's rules require telemarketers to check the list every three months to see who doesn't want to be called. Those who call listed people could be fined up to $11,000 for each violation. Consumers would file complaints to an automated phone or online system.
The FTC expects the list to block 80 percent of telemarketing calls. Exemptions include calls from charities, pollsters and on behalf of politicians.
The lawsuit West ruled on Tuesday was filed by the Direct Marketing Association, Chartered Benefit Services Inc., Global Contact Services Inc., InfoCision Management Corp. and U.S. Security, which is based in Oklahoma City.
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On the Net:
National Do Not Call Registry: http://www.donotcall.gov