A South Carolina legislator has come up with a new idea: getting state residents to pay for the privilege of receiving telemarketing calls.
State Rep. G. Ralph Davenport (R-Boiling Springs) has proposed that telephone customers pay "a reasonable fee, not to exceed $10, for initial inclusion of [a] listing on the Telephone Solicitation List."
They'd also have to pay a $5 renewal fee to stay on this list.
"It's a novel idea—an opt-in telemarketing list," said American Teleservices Association spokesman Kevin Brosnahan. "As far as I can tell, people would have to pay to be included on this list that would let telemarketers call them."
He said the ATA opposes this bill as it does all other state do-not-call lists, and will lobby against it if it picks up support in the South Carolina legislature.
Davenport could not be reached at deadline.
The bill also proposes that the state Public Service Commission use this list to determine South Carolina's portion of a Federal Communications Commission national do-not-call list, assuming the commission comes up with one.
The bill made no mention of what it would do in regard to a Federal Trade Commission do-not-call list.
The Telephone Solicitation List would be updated quarterly. Telemarketers who contact anyone other than those listed would be fined $500 per violation for a first-time offense, $2,500 per violation for a second offense and $5,000 per violation for subsequent offenses.
The South Carolina House reconvenes Jan. 14.
