Bipartisan legislation sponsored by U.S. Rep. Bob Latta (R-OH) recently became law as part of a larger bill to protect Americans against robocalls, which totaled almost 48 billion nationwide in 2018, compared to over 30 billion in 2017, according to the congressman’s office.
The president on Dec. 30 signed into law the bipartisan Pallone-Thune Telephone Robocall Abuse Criminal Enforcement and Deterrence (TRACED) Act, S. 151, which included Rep. Latta’s Support Tools to Obliterate Pesky (STOP) Robocalls Act, H.R. 2386.
“Our phones that connect us to the world should be used for good, not for manipulative and illegal spam calls that have tricked countless people out of time and money,” Rep. Latta said last week. “The TRACED Act takes significant steps to protect consumers from scams and fraud.”
The TRACED Act is a collaborative legislative package authored by members in both chambers of Congress, including Rep. Latta, U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee Ranking Member Greg Walden (R-OR), and U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone (D-NJ).
“This is a shining example of when members of Congress are committed to working together in order to solve real problems facing our country, progress can be made that will better the lives of Americans in every state,” said Rep. Latta.
Among numerous provisions, the TRACED Act will implement penalties for violating prohibitions on certain robocalls; requires voice service providers to develop call authentication technologies; directs the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to develop rules establishing when a provider may block a voice call; and requires the U.S. Department of Justice and the FCC to create an interagency working group to study and report to Congress on the enforcement of the prohibition of certain robocalls, according to the congressional record summary.
Included in the bill is Rep. Latta’s H.R. 2386, which ensures consumers will be able to identify which calls to block and aims to improve information sharing so the FCC can track and stop illegal robocall and spoofing operations, according to a bill summary provided by Rep. Latta’s office.
U.S. Reps. Mike Doyle (D-PA) and Bill Flores (R-TX) were among the cosponsors of the STOP Robocalls Act.