| The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) established the National Do Not Call Registry (National Registry) for those consumers who do not wish to receive telemarketing sales calls. As of 2004, the National Registry contains about 64 million names and telephone numbers. Many people who have registered say that they want to block intrusive sales calls.
Once a consumer has registered his or her telephone numbers, including cellular telephone numbers, the registration is valid for either five years, until the telephone number is disconnected, or until the consumer asks to have the telephone number removed from the National Registry.
As of October 1, 2003, many sellers and telemarketers cannot make telephonic sales calls without having first accessed the National Registry. If a consumer's telephone number is listed on the National Registry, most telemarketers are prohibited from calling the number. If a seller calls a listed telephone number, it could be subjected to civil penalties of up to $ 11,000 per violation.
Not all telemarketers must comply with the FTC rules, however. Business-to-business sales calls are not prohibited. Calls may be made to consumers from or on behalf of charitable or political organizations or political candidates. Polling organizations that are taking surveys, without selling any products or services, do not need to comply with the rules. Another exception is made when a business or a telemarketer already had a relationship with a member of the household for which a number is registered.
Supreme Court upholds "do not call" list as safeguard of personal privacy
At the start of its new term in October 2004, the United States Supreme Court refused to hear a challenge to the legality of the National Registry. The Court let stand an earlier decision by a federal court of appeals that upheld the National Registry as a reasonable attempt by the government to safeguard personal privacy. In so doing, the Court precluded telemarketers from making further claims that their commercial free speech rights were violated by the implementation of the National Registry.
Telemarketing groups had sought the Court's review because they believed the National Registry singled out businesses, in violation of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. The federal court of appeals concluded that there was no proof that charitable or political organizations were as intrusive to consumers' privacy. By declining to hear the telemarketers' request for a review, the Court let stand the appellate ruling that the National Registry is constitutional. Some privacy and consumer rights advocates contend that telemarketers have never had a constitutional right to invade a consumer's privacy at home.
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