On September 5, 2024, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC” or “Commission”), in its continuing efforts to take “aggressive action to combat unwanted and illegal robocalls [and] texts,” released a draft of its Eighth Report & Order and Third Report & Order (collectively “Orders”), which, when adopted, will oblige voice service providers (“VSPs”) and text carriers (“TCs”) to comply with strict new rules under threat of severe fines and other sanctions. The FCC will consider the Orders in its September 26, 2024 Open Meeting and will adopt and codify most, if not all, the provisions in the Orders. Interested parties still have time to influence the final rules; ex parte filings may be submitted until September 20, 2024, and those parties may also submit petitions for reconsideration up to 30 days after the Orders are made official.
During the early stages of the subject rulemakings, we discussed the salient provisions of that were ultimately adopted in the Orders in our client alerts: Robocall NPRM and Robotext NPRM. This advisory provides a high-level overview of the new rules.
Robocall Rules
The new rules mandate the following:
- All VSPs in a call path must block calls based on a reasonable do-not-originate list, which may include unused, unallocated, or invalid numbers, as well as numbers for which a subscriber has requested blocking.
- Enable the FCC’s Enforcement Bureau to require all providers downstream from a VSP that fails to comply with an order to block illegal traffic to block all traffic from that provider.
- Impose a base forfeiture on VSPs for failure to comply with the robocall mitigation rules and authorize the Enforcement Bureau to increase this forfeiture to the maximum forfeiture allowed for non-common carriers, which could total hundreds of thousands of dollars for certain infractions. Unpaid fines can result in a collection suit by the U.S. Department of Justice.
- Require VSPs to immediately notify callers about blocked calls via session initiation protocol (“SIP”) code 603+.
Robotext Rules
TCs will be under the following obligations:
- Mobile wireless providers must block texts from a particular source following FCC notification of illegal texts and, in cases of noncompliance, enable the Enforcement Bureau to require all carriers downstream to block all traffic from the originating provider.
- Require mobile providers to only offer email-to-text services, on an opt-in basis.
What You Can Do
The FCC continues to impose new requirements on voice and text providers that hold them responsible for actions of unaffiliated nefarious entities. VSPs and TCs are already subject to numerous robocall and robotext mitigation rules, and many are implementing strict know-your-customer policies and other expensive measures to prevent illegal communications from traversing their networks. Nonetheless, the Commission persists in subjecting providers to steep fines and traffic blocking threats that, if carried out, could put many providers out of business.
Accordingly, it is incumbent upon VSPs and TCs to make their voices heard in this and other robocall/robotext proceedings. With the end of the Chevron Doctrine, courts may now inquire more deeply into the actions of the FCC and the Commission can no longer ignore the voices of those carriers who are negatively affected by its actions. It is important to note that simply complaining about the costs of compliance alone is not likely to sway a majority of the Commissioners. It is important to offer cost-effective alternatives that can block fraudulent and unwanted communications while ensuring that consumers receive all of the wanted ones. Creativity is needed.
The CommLaw Group Can Help!
The CommLaw Group is happy to assist with advising on best practices for robocall mitigation and STIR/SHAKEN compliance, as well as representing clients in FCC rulemaking proceedings and enforcement actions. Due to the FCC’s rapidly changing robocall mitigation rules and policies, it is critical that VSPs stay informed of all aspects of the moving target and take action when the Commission overreaches. Accordingly, if you would like additional regulatory updates tailored to the needs of your company, please contact one of our attorneys below, who will gladly provide additional information on signing up for these updates
CONTACT US NOW, WE ARE STANDING BY TO GUIDE YOUR COMPANY’S COMPLIANCE AND ADVOCACY EFFORTS
Michael Donahue — Tel: 703-714-1319 / E-mail: mpd@CommLawGroup.com
Rob Jackson – Tel: 703-714-1316 / E-mail: rhj@CommLawGroup.com
Ron Quirk – Tel: 703-714-1305 / E-mail: req@CommLawGroup.com
Diana James – Tel: 703-663-6757 / E-mail: daj@CommLawGroup.com
