- Committee -

SCS/SB 763 - This act regulates certain telemarketing practices. By January 1, 2001, the Attorney General must establish and provide for a "do-not-call" database which shall contain the telephone numbers of residential telephone customers who do not wish to be called by telephone solicitors.

The act requires the Attorney General to promulgate rules to implement the do-not-call list, and includes some specific issues which the rule must address. If the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) maintains such a database, the Attorney General shall include the Missouri portion in the database required in this bill.

No telephone solicitor may call any person on the list. At the beginning of a call, a telephone solicitor shall state the identity of the person or entity initiating the call. No telephone solicitor may block its telephone number from a caller identification service when that number is being used for telemarketing purposes.

The act provides that any violation of this act shall be punishable by a civil penalty of up to $5000 per violation. The attorney general may prosecute violations of this act. A person on the do-not-call list who is called more than once by or on behalf of the same entity within a twelve-month period may file a civil action to enjoin such calls and an action seeking $5000 in damages for each violation.

Telecommunications companies shall not be responsible for the enforcement of this act. The act shall not affect phone calls where the sale is not completed until after a face-to-face sales presentation, phone calls initiated by the customer, phone calls initiated by a tax-exempt, nonprofit organization, or phone calls made by any state- or federally-regulated entity that already maintains a no-call list of its own.

The Attorney General's office shall establish a Telemarketing Fraud and Nuisance Prevention Commission to educate the public on their rights regarding telemarketing.

This act is substantially similar to HB 1633.

ERIN MOTLEY