Washington, D.C. - Energy and Commerce Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) and Communications and Technology Subcommittee Chairman Mike Doyle (D-PA) released the following statement after the Stopping Bad Robocalls Act (H.R. 3375 ) was reported to the full Energy and Commerce Committee by voice vote:
“The American people are fed up with robocalls, and thanks to the Subcommittee’s bipartisan action today we’re one step closer to putting consumers back in control of their phones," Pallone and Doyle said. “We commend the Democratic and Republican members of the Subcommittee for working together on bipartisan amendments strengthening this comprehensive legislation to end the robocall epidemic. We look forward to bringing it up before the full Committee soon."
H.R. 3375, the “Stopping Bad Robocalls Act," introduced by Pallone, Full Committee Ranking Member Greg Walden (R-OR), Doyle, and Communications and Technology Subcommittee Ranking Member Bob Latta (R-OH), was favorably forwarded to the full committee, amended, by a voice vote.
* Last week, Committee leaders announced this bipartisan deal on robocalls legislation.
Amendment offered by Reps. Yvette Clarke (D-NY) and Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) was adopted by a voice vote.
* The amendment was originally introduced in the House of Representatives as H.R. 3264, the “Ending One-Ring Scams Act of 2019." It requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to initiate a proceeding to protect consumers from one-ring-scams, including by working with foreign governments on these scams and by incentivizing carriers to stop calls made to perpetrate one-ring scams, among other things.
Amendment offered by Reps. A. Donald McEachin (D-VA) and Pete Olson (R-TX) was adopted by a voice vote.
* The amendment was originally introduced in the House of Representatives as H.R. 3325, the "Locking Up Robocallers Act of 2019." It requires the FCC to submit evidence of certain criminal robocall violations to the Department of Justice for criminal prosecution and requires the FCC to publish an annual report disclosing how frequently the FCC submitted such evidence.
Amendment offered by Reps. G.K. Butterfield (D-NC), Bill Johnson (R-OH), Darren Soto (D-FL), and Greg Gianforte (R-MN) was adopted by a voice vote.
* The amendment was originally introduced in the House of Representatives as H.R. 3434, the Tracing Back and Catching Unlawful Robocallers Act." It requires the FCC to register a consortium of companies engaged in private-led efforts to trace back the origin of suspected unlawful robocalls and creates a certification process for when carriers have or have not participated in a private-led effort to traceback the origin of a suspected unlawful robocall. It also requires the FCC to publish a report on carriers participation in private-led efforts to traceback the origin of suspected unlawful robocalls, and allows the FCC to permit some carriers to not accept calls from carriers facilitating suspected unlawful robocalls among other things.
Amendment offered by Rep. Soto, on behalf of Rep. Charlie Crist (D-FL), was adopted by a voice vote.
* The amendment was originally introduced in the House of Representatives by Rep. Crist as H.R. 721, the "Spam Calls Task Force Act of 2019." It requires the Attorney General, in consultation with the FCC, to convene an interagency working group to study the enforcement of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). Among other things, the task force shall: (1) determine how federal law and budgetary constraints inhibit enforcement of the TCPA; (2) identify existing and additional policies and programs to increase coordination between federal departments and agencies and the states for enforcing and preventing violations of the TCPA; and (3) identify existing and potential international policies and programs to improve coordination between countries in enforcing the TCPA and similar laws.
