| If you live in CA-10, you may have gotten a robocall from John Garamendi over the weekend telling you about his candidacy and encouraging you to visit his website www.Garamendi.org. The only problem is that these annoying political robocalls are illegal in California. Our state laws specifically prohibit robocalls unless the call is announced by a live operator who requests your permission to continue.
Here's what the California Public Utilities Code has to say on the subject:
2874. (a) Whenever telephone calls are placed through the use of an automatic dialing-announcing device, the device may be operated only after an unrecorded, natural voice announcement has been made to the person called by the person calling. The announcement shall do all of the following:
(1) State the nature of the call and the name, address, and telephone number of the business or organization being represented, if any.
(2) Inquire as to whether the person called consents to hear the prerecorded message of the person calling.
Garamendi's robocall had no live voice at the beginning, and no request for consent was made. And the PUC has made it very clear in a FAQ sheet (PDF) that this law explicitly extends to political campaigns:
3. What about the robocalls I get around election time about political candidates or other election issues?
Political candidates or others supporting candidates or ballot issues also must follow the
law and about using Robocalls, which is found in the California Public Utilities Code,
Sections 2871-2876.
So what can you do if you receive an annoying robocall from a candidate? Well, you have three options:
1) You can ignore them (or blog about them);
2) You can follow the PUC advice from its FAQ sheet and file a complaint with your local carrier; or
3) You can notify the National Political Do Not Call Registry through their website at StopPoliticalCalls.org and hope that they are successful in bringing your complaint before the California PUC.
In the meantime, speaking as a resident of CA-10, it sure would be nice if the other candidates in the race made the decision to abide by California law and take a pledge that they will not engage in placing these annoying and illegal calls.
X-posted at California Represent! |
