WASHINGTON DC (May 23, 2019) — Senator Charles "Chuck" Grassley of Iowa today released the following statement on the Senate passage of the Telephone Robocall Abuse Criminal Enforcement and Deterrence (TRACED) Act, bipartisan legislation cosponsored by Sen Grassley.
“Years ago, robocalls were merely a nuisance. Now, they can be dangerous. Scammers are using robocalls to steal money and personal information from unsuspecting victims,” Sen Grassley said. “Passage of the TRACED Act is a positive step forward in bringing some much-needed security and relief to victims of robocalls in Iowa and throughout the country.”
Currently, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) operates the Do Not Call registry, which Congress created in 2003. The online registry allows consumers to request that their phone numbers be removed from telemarketing call-lists. However, as technology has evolved, the need for more protection against robocalls has increased.
The TRACED Act, introduced by Sen John Thune of South Dakota and cosponsored by Sen Grassley, is bipartisan legislation that takes aim at telemarketers who prey on consumers. The bill would strengthen penalties by allowing the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to impose civil fines up to $10,000 per illegal call. It would also extend the length of time a lawsuit can be brought against scammers from one year to three years, and engage telecom providers by requiring them to adopt authentication tools to enable phone-carriers to disclose and verify the origin of an incoming call, which would allow consumers to choose whether or not they want to answer a call.
