Tag: robocalls

Rep. Stephenson & Lawmakers get Tough on Predatory ‘Robo-Calls’

House DFL logoSAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA – Today, State Representative Zack Stephenson (DFL- Coon Rapids) announced plans to roll out legislation to crack down on invasive and predatory ‘robo-calls’. House Commerce Chair Laurie Halverson (DFL- Eagan) and Majority Leader Ryan Winkler (DFL-Golden Valley) joined Rep. Stephenson and are committed to advancing his efforts to strengthen consumer protection rights for Minnesotans.

“The explosion of fraudulent robo-calls demands a strong response, which is why I am today proposing the nation’s toughest anti-robo-call legislation,” Rep. Stephenson remarked.

According to the Minnesota Department of Commerce, Minnesotans have received over 387 million robo-calls so far in 2019, which is approximately 58 calls per impacted person. The pernicious nature of these robo-calls is dubbed as “spoofing” technology, which allows telephone calls originating from across the world to show up on a caller ID with a local area code. Eagan Police Chief Roger New reported last month that he expected telephone fraud to result in over $500,000 in losses just in his city. Continue reading “Rep. Stephenson & Lawmakers get Tough on Predatory ‘Robo-Calls’”

House clears bill to relieve onslaught of robocalls plaguing Americans

The House voted to pass a bill that would require phone companies to offer screening technology to customers at no cost

Lawmakers and their constituents are fed up with the bombardment of nuisance and scam calls plaguing their cell phones and on Wednesday the House passed a bipartisan measure to combat robocalls.

The House voted 429-3 to pass a bill that would require phone companies to offer screening technology to customers at no cost that would identify and block spam robocalls. It would also double, to four years, the time period that parties can be prosecuted for illegal robocalls.

New Jersey Democrat Frank Pallone Jr. teamed up with Oregon Republican Greg Walden to sponsor the measure, which would require the Federal Communications Commission to give Congress an annual report on its robocall enforcement activities, and provide legislative proposals to decrease their frequency.

View the complete July 24 article by Katherine Tully-McManus on The Roll Call website here.