In April 2001, the New York State Do Not Call (DNC) Law became effective, allowing consumers to place their personal wireless and residential telephone numbers on one central registry to reduce the number of unsolicited telemarketing calls they receive. This Law authorizes the New York State Consumer Protection Board (CPB) to impose fines of up to $11,000 per violation. In 2003, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Federal Communications Commission (FCC) created the National Do Not Call Registry.
Awareness
The CPB's DNC program educates consumers about how they can reduce the number of telemarketing calls they receive on their residential and personal phone lines.
The CPB promotes DNC awareness through a variety of methods including radio public service announcements, web postings, outreach events, and distribution of informational brochures. Increased public awareness of DNC is reflected in the number of New Yorkers who have registered their telephone numbers or who have filed complaints about alleged violations of the law. In 2009, more than 2.3 million New Yorkers registered their numbers on the DNC list, bringing the total number of New York telephone numbers registered to nearly 12 million.
The FTC, which accepts DNC registrations and complaints nationwide, reported to the CPB that the number of complaints filed by New Yorkers totaled approximately 106,233 in 2009. As recently as 2007, only 64,263 New Yorkers filed DNC complaints with the FTC. In addition, the CPB's toll free hotline received 1,612 inquires relating to the DNC Law in 2009, representing the most queries on a given subject via the Agency's hotline.
Enforcement
The CPB is the sole enforcement agency for the State DNC Law. Companies may be fined up to $11,000 per violation.
In 2009, the CPB opened 20 new enforcement cases and levied and received approximately $200,000 in penalties for violations of the DNC Law. The CPB also referred 17 cases to the Office of the New York State Attorney General for civil recovery.
To promote compliance with the DNC Law, the CPB developed and provides electronic resources to businesses and fosters greater understanding of the law and the enforcement process. The CPB's efforts to educate the industry about the DNC Law helps to further reduce the number of unwanted telemarketing calls that are made to New York residents.