The authority citation for part 0 continues to read as follows: Authority: Former callers at both TPFE and Politicause said they were given scripts and FAQs that required them to mention that the groups were political action committees but were told by managers to glide past the disclosures about who was calling and how the money would be used. It is further ordered after OMB completes its review, and directs the Enforcement Bureau to cause 64.1204 and 64.1606 to be revised accordingly. For example, in two enforcement actions, a medical paging company was a key source; it informed the Bureau that the paging company's phone lines were being bombarded by spoofed robocalls. For instance, the operation raised $16.8 million for PACs founded by Robert Piaro of Fredonia, Wisconsin, which purported to support police, veterans and people with breast cancer. More information and documentation can be found in our A web of new political action committees raised nearly $6 million in recent months under the guise of supporting police, veterans and . (Super PACs are a type of political action committee that faces no limits on spending or contributions, by virtue of court decisions a decade ago.). The Public Inspection page may also Reuters obtained FTC complaint records, with names redacted, through a Freedom of Information Act request. In recent years, some telemarketers have used technology to bombard consumers with hundreds of millions of prerecorded calls that are often unwanted and frequently deceptive. This document has been published in the Federal Register. the material on FederalRegister.gov is accurately displayed, consistent with from 36 agencies. The OFR/GPO partnership is committed to presenting accurate and reliable This Report and Order establishes a streamlined process for private entities to submit information about unlawful, unwanted calls. Private entity submissions of spoofing violations. 1503 & 1507. We enforce federal competition and consumer protection laws that prevent anticompetitive, deceptive, and unfair business practices. Drug abuse was a problem at both call centers, ex-employees said. 21. If the potential donors suspected they had given to the group before, the callers were instructed to say: I have no way of knowing because we feel that donations are given from the heart, not the hand, so we keep all donation records confidential, according to the FAQ. include documents scheduled for later issues, at the request informational resource until the Administrative Committee of the Federal Add 64.1204 to subpart L to read as follows: (a) Any private entity may submit to the Enforcement Bureau information related to a call made or a text message sent that the private entity has reason to believe was in violation of 64.1200(a) or 47 U.S.C. About 82% of the money, $13.8 million, went to Zeitlins firms, while Piaro collected $190,613 in salary from the PACs, according to the records. Federal campaign records tell part of the story. website. Stephanie T. Nguyen, Chief Technology Officer, Competition and Consumer Protection Guidance Documents, HSR threshold adjustments and reportability for 2023, A Century of Technological Evolution at the Federal Trade Commission, National Consumer Protection Week 2023 Begins Sunday, March 5, FTC at the 65th Annual Heard Museum Guild Indian Fair & Market - NCPW 2023, Jason Cardiff (Redwood Scientific Technologies, Inc.), Telemarketer Fees to Access the FTCs National Do Not Call Registry to Increase in 2023, FTC Extends its Crackdown on Subscription Scam That Fleeced Consumers and Harassed Them Over the Phone, Federal Trade Commission Proposes Small Business Protections Against Telemarketing Tricks and Traps, FTC Takes Action to Stop Voice over Internet Provider from Facilitating Illegal Telemarketing Robocalls, Including Scams Relating to the Pandemic, Federal Court Rules in Favor of FTC, Halting Illegal Tactics Used to Promote Smoking Cessation, Weight-Loss, and Sexual-Performance Aids, FTC Issues Biennial Report to Congress on the National Do Not Call Registry, FTC Issues Refunds Totaling More Than $1.8 Million to Consumers Defrauded by Lifewatch, Inc.s Deceptive Medical Alert Telemarketing Scheme, FTC Releases 2021 Do Not Call Registry Data Book; Reports Registrations and Consumer Complaints Both Increased in FY 2021, FTC to Ramp up Enforcement against Illegal Dark Patterns that Trick or Trap Consumers into Subscriptions, FTC Returns $1.1 Million to Consumers Who Lost Money to Alleged Scammers Selling Bogus Income Opportunities, FTC Testifies before the Senate Special Committee on Aging About the Agencys Work to Halt Practices that Prey on Older Americans, Seven Remaining Defendants in Massive Grand Bahama Cruise Line Operation Banned from Making Telemarketing Robocalls; Principals will Pay $100,000 in Civil Penalties, Telemarketer Fees to Access the FTCs National Do Not Call Registry to Increase in 2022, FTC Takes Action against Septic Tank Cleaning Company that Made Millions of Illegal Robocalls to Consumers Nationwide, FTC, 38 States, and D.C. Act to Shut Down Massive Charity Fraud Telefunding Operation, Scammers Who Used Robocalls to Target Cash-Strapped Consumers Banned from Selling Debt Relief Services and Telemarketing, FTC and FCC Send Joint Letters to Additional VoIP Providers Warning against Routing and Transmitting Illegal Coronavirus-related Robocalls, FTC and FCC Send Joint Letters to VoIP Service Providers Warning against Routing and Transmitting Illegal Coronavirus-related Robocalls, FTC Warns Nine VoIP Service Providers and Other Companies against Assisting and Facilitating Illegal Coronavirus-related Telemarketing Calls, FTC Warns 19 VoIP Service Providers That Assisting and Facilitating Illegal Telemarketing or Robocalling Is Against the Law, 4 reasons why the latest FTC robocall cases should matter to your business, FTC goes to court to unravel robocalling net, FTC challenges robocallers false threat that small businesses will be removed from Google, Decision bolsters FTC position on soundboard tech, Working Together to Protect Midwest Consumers: A Common Ground Conference, Common Ground: Fighting Schemes and Scams in a Tough Economy, North Carolina Consumer Protection Workshop, Midwest Region 2012 Common Ground Conference, Statement of Andrew Smith, Director, Bureau of Consumer Protection, at Operation Call It Quits Press Conference, Prepared Remarks of Chairman Joseph Simons at USTelecom Forum: Turning the Tide on Illegal Robocalls, Prepared Remarks of Chairman Joseph Simons at the ABA Consumer Protection Conference, Statement Of Commissioner Rebecca Kelly Slaughter before the Committee on Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Digital Commerce and Consumer Protection, U.S. House of Representatives, Prepared Statement of the Federal Trade Commission: Abusive Robocalls and How We Can Stop Them, Before the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, United States Senate, FTC-FCC Joint Policy Forum on Fighting the Scourge of Illegal Robocalls, Prepared Statement of the Federal Trade Commission: "Still Ringing Off the Hook: An Update on Efforts To Combat Robocalls," Before the Special Committee on Aging, United States Senate, Prepared Statement of the Federal Trade Commission On Combatting Illegal Robocalls: Initiatives To End the Epidemic, Blog Post: Do Not Robocall Me: The FTC Strikes Back, Prepared Statement of the Federal Trade Commission Entitled Stopping Fraudulent Robocall Scams: Can More Be Done?, Concurring Statement of Commissioner Maureen K. Ohlhausen, Avoid Coronavirus Scams - Tip 1: Hang Up on Robocalls, Robocall Challenge Winners Press Conference, FTC Robocall Challenge: Consumer Tips & Tricks. Our PAC contributions to both the Republican and Democratic Attorneys General associations were used strictly for attorneys generals campaign purposes, the spokesperson said in a statement. In interviews, a dozen former employees of Politicause and Zeitlins TPFE described techniques they used to wrangle donations, leaving contributors with the impression they were giving to good causes. Sara Kemerer of the . Third, consumers will not be adversely affected by our decision to exclude them from the definition of private entity. Those calls used a recording of Trump's . This robocall tip line will provide a streamlined process for reporting potential violations, and will enable the Enforcement Bureau to respond quickly to disruptive robocalling events. As required by the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980, as amended (RFA), the Commission has prepared a Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (FRFA) relating to this Report and Order. And while law enforcement agencies, including the U.S. Department of Justice, have hit some alleged bad actors withfraud charges, it generally is only when they have tried to conceal where the funds were going, said Adav Noti, a former Federal Election Commission lawyer and now chief of staff at the Washington D.C.-based Campaign Legal Center, a nonpartisan organization of specialists in election law. Some fundraisers work in both worlds, raising money for charities andPACs. The Public Inspection page At Politicause, for instance, some said they initially were told to say donations would be used to help buy new police and fire equipment. Search the Legal Library instead. [email protected] by the Foreign Assets Control Office 3. The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely. The TRACED Act directs the Commission no later than June 30, 2021 to prescribe regulations to establish a process that streamlines the ways in which a private entity may voluntarily share with the Commission information relating to violations of section 227(b) or 227(e) of the Communications Act. (b) For the purposes of this section, the term private entity shall mean any entity other than a natural individual person or a public entity. Some political fundraising operations change locations frequently, operate under different names or dissolve and resurface under another name, making it difficult to trace their ownership, activities and connections to one another. 22. Although the portal will not reject submissions that fail to include the above information, such failure will make it more difficult for the Bureau to investigate fully and take appropriate enforcement action. Private entities and consumers who wish to submit information or complaints about robocalls will be directed on the FCC website to the appropriate intake process for their situationthe new portal for private entities or the existing informal consumer complaint process for consumers.
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