The Direct Marketing Association has reaffirmed its support for the federal Do Not Call list and has rejected claims by some consumer groups that businesses are trying to take advantage of loopholes in the law that would let them contact consumers who had signed up for the DNC.
“The Direct Marketing Association believes the federal Do Not Call law appropriately sets a unified national standard,” said the DMA in a statement. “We believe that a patchwork of state laws is impractical and unworkable for legitimate marketers and nonprofit organizations that routinely work across state lines.”
Currently five states: Florida, New Jersey, Indiana, Wisconsin and North Dakota have even stricter laws than the national DNC law and that the FCC may be trying to “make the Do-Not-Call registry irrelevant,” said the Electronic Privacy Information Council.
Furthermore, the DMA said it agrees with the Federal Trade Commission it its belief that national preemption of the Do-Not-Call list would not lead to a sharp increase in telemarketing calls.
“We just don’t see that happening,” said DMA spokeswoman Stephanie Hendricks.
The whole issue arises as several organizations ranging from the DMA to the National Children’s Cancer Society jointly petitioned the Federal Communications Commission in April to declare that it has “exclusive jurisdiction over interstate telemarketing calls,” according to news reports.
In a related matter, Indiana Attorney General Steve Carter earlier this month asked a coalition of telemarketing firms to drop its support of a second petition filed with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) he felt would increase telemarketing calls in the state (Direct Newsline, July 8). Thirty-three groups were listed on the petition asking the FCC to declare that states can only regulate calls that originate in Indiana, said Carter. He noted that such a declaration would allow telemarketers to skirt Indiana’s Do Not Call law merely by calling from outside the state.
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