The Federal Trade Commission will increase the cost of accessing its do-not-call registry. Effective Oct. 1, the annual fee rises to $55 per area code, or $27 per area code during the second six months of an organization’s annual subscription period.
The maximum amount that would be charged to any single entity for accessing area codes of data will increase to $15,058.
The official language for the new fees, as found in the Code of Federal Regulations Sec. 310.8(c) and (d), follows:
(c) The annual fee, which must be paid by any person prior to obtaining access to the National Do Not Call Registry, is $55 for each area code of data accessed, up to a maximum of $15,058; provided, however, that there shall be no charge to any person for accessing the first five area codes of data, and provided further, that there shall be no charge to any person engaging in or causing others to engage in outbound telephone calls to consumers and who is accessing area codes of data in the National Do Not Call Registry if the person is permitted to access, but is not required to access, the National Do Not Call Registry under this Rule, 47 CFR 64.1200, or any other Federal regulation or law. Any person accessing the National Do Not Call
Registry may not participate in any arrangement to share the cost of accessing the registry, including any arrangement with any telemarketer or service provider to divide the costs to access the registry among various clients of that telemarketer or service provider.
(d) Each person who pays, either directly or through another person, the annual fee set forth in Sec. 310.8(c), each person excepted under Sec. 310.8(c) from paying the annual fee, and each person excepted from paying an annual fee under Sec. 310.4(b)(1)(iii)(B), will be provided a unique account number that will allow that person to access the registry data for the selected area codes at any time for the twelve month period beginning on the first day of the month in which the person paid the fee (``the annual period''). To obtain access to additional area codes of data during the first six months of the annual period, each person required to pay the fee under Sec. 310.8(c) must first pay $55 for each additional area code of data not initially selected. To obtain access to additional area codes of data during the second six months of the annual period, each person required to pay the fee under Sec. 310.8(c) must first pay $27 for each additional area code of data not initially selected. The payment of the additional fee will permit the person to access the additional area codes of data for the remainder of the annual period.
