Acting FCC Chair Rosenworcel Announces Anti-Robocall Agenda
Acting Chair of the Federal Communications Commission Jessica Rosenworcel has announced her first major agenda items relating to the Commission’s ongoing project to regulate robocalls.
FCC News
FCC Names Administrator for Reassigned Numbers Database
The Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) reassigned number database was supposed to be available sometime this year, after delays in 2019. With only 3 weeks left in the year, it appears unlikely that they will meet that deadline.
Simington Confirmed to FCC in Last Minute Vote
The Senate confirmed Nathan Simington as a Commissioner on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The confirmation vote, which fell along party lines 49-46, was somewhat surprising as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell had not been expected to prioritize it over other procedural moves with the Senate’s limited time remaining before the end of this year’s session.
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai Will Step Down in January
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Ajit Pai announced on Monday that he will leave the commission on January 20, 2021, the date that Joe Biden is expected to be inaugurated as president. While Pai’s term as Chairman was not set to end until June 2021, this decision to step down follows the usual precedent when the presidency changes hands between parties.
FCC Delays Implementation of Recycled Number Database Until 2020
In December 2018, the FCC announced a plan to create a reassigned number database. Callers would be able to scrub their number lists against this database in order to remove any numbers that have been reassigned to new users, thus decreasing the possibility of incurring Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) violations by calling these new users.
FCC Chairman Pai Announces SHAKEN/STIR Robocall Summit
July 11th, 2019
The FCC (Federal Communications Commission) Chairman Ajit Pai announced that he will host a summit on July 11th, 2019 to examine telco companies progress in implementing the SHAKEN (Signature-based Handling of Asserted information using toKENs) and STIR (Secure Telephony Identity Revisited) caller ID authentication standards.
ROBOCOP Act Creates Roadblock For Debt Collectors
On April 18th six U.S. Senators introduced the ROBOCOP Act which requires phone companies to offer their customers free robocall blocking technology. The bill is intended to protect consumers from overseas scammers. Unfortunately, it could also become a major headache for debt collectors.
TCPA Watch List: Issues For 2018
The TCPA continues as the statute of choice among plaintiffs and class action attorneys. Many of the problems that were inherent of the TCPA in 2017 are still with us as we move forward into what we expect to be a better year for businesses and telemarketing in particular.
Next FCC Chairman . . . Ajit Pai
As reported by Politico, an announcement is expected that current FCC Republican commissioner Ajit Pai has been chosen by President Trump as the new chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
Farewell Jessica Rosenworcel . . . Or Maybe Not?
The announcement of Jessica Rosenworcel’s departure as FCC commissioner may have been premature. On Wednesday, January 4th, President Barack Obama renominated her to serve a second term.
“I applaud President Obama’s reappointment of Jessica Rosenworcel to the FCC,” said FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler, “and hope that Congress will act quickly to confirm her nomination,”