15 U.S.C. § 6152 — Telemarketing Sales Rule; do-not-call reg-

Page 2225 TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE § 6152 1 So in original. Probably should be ‘‘part’’. § 6152. Telemarketing Sales Rule; do-not-call reg- istry fees (a) In general The Federal Trade Commission shall assess and collect an annual fee pursuant to this sec- tion in order to implement and enforce the ‘‘do- not-call’’ registry as provided for in section 310.4(b)(1)(iii) of title 16, Code of Federal Regula- tions, or any other regulation issued by the Commission under section 6102 of this title. (b) Annual fees (1) In general The Commission shall charge each person who accesses the ‘‘do-not-call’’ registry an an- nual fee that is equal to the lesser of— (A) $54 for each area code of data accessed from the registry; or (B) $14,850 for access to every area code of data contained in the registry. (2) Exception The Commission shall not charge a fee to any person— (A) for accessing the first 5 area codes of data; or (B) for accessing area codes of data in the registry if the person is permitted to access, but is not required to access, the ‘‘do-not- call’’ registry under section 1 310 of title 16, Code of Federal Regulations, section 64.1200 of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations, or any other Federal regulation or law. (3) Duration of access (A) In general The Commission shall allow each person who pays the annual fee described in para- graph (1), each person excepted under para- graph (2) from paying the annual fee, and each person excepted from paying an annual fee under section 310.4(b)(1)(iii)(B) of title 16, Code of Federal Regulations, to access the area codes of data in the ‘‘do-not-call’’ reg- istry for which the person has paid during that person’s annual period. (B) Annual period In this paragraph, the term ‘‘annual pe- riod’’ means the 12-month period beginning on the first day of the month in which a per- son pays the fee described in paragraph (1). (c) Additional fees (1) In general The Commission shall charge a person re- quired to pay an annual fee under subsection (b) an additional fee for each additional area code of data the person wishes to access during that person’s annual period. (2) Rates For each additional area code of data to be accessed during the person’s annual period, the Commission shall charge— (A) $54 for access to such data if access to the area code of data is first requested dur- ing the first 6 months of the person’s annual period; or (B) $27 for access to such data if access to the area code of data is first requested after the first 6 months of the person’s annual pe- riod. (d) Adjustment of fees (1) In general (A) Fiscal year 2009 The dollar amount described in subsection (b) or (c) is the amount to be charged for fis- cal year 2009. (B) Fiscal years after 2009 For each fiscal year beginning after fiscal year 2009, each dollar amount in subsection (b)(1) and (c)(2) shall be increased by an amount equal to— (i) the dollar amount in paragraph (b)(1) or (c)(2), whichever is applicable, multi- plied by (ii) the percentage (if any) by which the CPI for the most recently ended 12-month period ending on June 30 exceeds the base- line CPI. (2) Rounding Any increase under subparagraph (B) shall be rounded to the nearest dollar. (3) Changes less than 1 percent The Commission shall not adjust the fees under this section if the change in the CPI is less than 1 percent. (4) Publication Not later than September 1 of each year the Commission shall publish in the Federal Reg- ister the adjustments to the applicable fees, if any, made under this subsection. (5) Definitions In this subsection: (A) CPI The term ‘‘CPI’’ means the average of the monthly consumer price index (for all urban consumers published by the Department of Labor). (B) Baseline CPI The term ‘‘baseline CPI’’ means the CPI for the 12-month period ending June 30, 2008. (e) Prohibition against fee sharing No person may enter into or participate in an arrangement (as such term is used in section 310.8(c) of the Commission’s regulations (16 C.F.R. 310.8(c))) to share any fee required by sub- section (b) or (c), including any arrangement to divide the costs to access the registry among various clients of a telemarketer or service pro- vider. (f) Handling of fees (1) In general The Commission shall deposit and credit as offsetting collections any fee collected under this section in the account ‘‘Federal Trade Commission—Salaries and Expenses’’, and such sums shall remain available until ex- pended. (2) Limitation No amount shall be collected as a fee under this section for any fiscal year except to the Page 2226 TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE § 6153 extent provided in advance by appropriations Acts. (Pub. L. 108–10, § 2, Mar. 11, 2003, 117 Stat. 557; Pub. L. 110–188, § 2, Feb. 15, 2008, 122 Stat. 635.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2008—Pub. L. 110–188 amended section generally. Prior to amendment, text read as follows: ‘‘The Federal Trade Commission may promulgate regulations estab- lishing fees sufficient to implement and enforce the provisions relating to the ‘do-not-call’ registry of the Telemarketing Sales Rule (16 CFR 310.4(b)(1)(iii)), pro- mulgated under the Telemarketing and Consumer Fraud and Abuse Prevention Act (15 U.S.C. 6101 et seq.). Such regulations shall be promulgated in accordance with section 553 of title 5, United States Code. Fees may be collected pursuant to this section for fiscal years 2003 through 2007, and shall be deposited and cred- ited as offsetting collections to the account, Federal Trade Commission—Salaries and Expenses, and shall remain available until expended. No amounts shall be collected as fees pursuant to this section for such fiscal years except to the extent provided in advance in ap- propriations Acts. Such amounts shall be available for expenditure only to offset the costs of activities and services related to the implementation and enforce- ment of the Telemarketing Sales Rule, and other ac- tivities resulting from such implementation and en- forcement.’’ Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries RULEMAKING Pub. L. 110–188, § 4, Feb. 15, 2008, 122 Stat. 637, provided that: ‘‘The Federal Trade Commission may issue rules, in accordance with section 553 of title 5, United States Code, as necessary and appropriate to carry out the amendments to the Do-Not-Call Implementation Act (15 U.S.C. 6101 note) [now this chapter] made by this Act [amending this section and section 6154 of this title].’’ § 6153. Federal Communications Commission do- not-call regulations Not later than 180 days after March 11, 2003, the Federal Communications Commission shall issue a final rule pursuant to the rulemaking proceeding that it began on September 18, 2002, under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (47 U.S.C. 227 et seq.). In issuing such rule, the Federal Communications Commission shall con- sult and coordinate with the Federal Trade Commission to maximize consistency with the rule promulgated by the Federal Trade Commis- sion (16 CFR 310.4(b)). (Pub. L. 108–10, § 3, Mar. 11, 2003, 117 Stat. 557.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT The Telephone Consumer Protection Act, referred to in text, probably means the Telephone Consumer Pro- tection Act of 1991, Pub. L. 102–243, Dec. 20, 1991, 105 Stat. 2394, which enacted section 227 of Title 47, Tele- communications, amended sections 152 and 331 of Title 47, and enacted provisions set out as notes under sec- tions 227 and 609 of Title 47. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title of 1991 Amend- ment note set out under section 609 of Title 47 and Ta- bles. § 6154. Reporting requirements (a) Biennial reports Not later than December 31, 2009, and bienni- ally thereafter, the Federal Trade Commission, in consultation with the Federal Communica- tions Commission, shall transmit a report to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the House of Representa- tives Committee on Energy and Commerce that includes— (1) the number of consumers who have placed their telephone numbers on the reg- istry; (2) the number of persons paying fees for ac- cess to the registry and the amount of such fees; (3) the impact on the ‘‘do-not-call’’ registry of— (A) the 5-year reregistration requirement; (B) new telecommunications technology; and (C) number portability and abandoned telephone numbers; and (4) the impact of the established business re- lationship exception on businesses and con- sumers. (b) Additional report Not later than December 31, 2009, the Federal Trade Commission, in consultation with the Federal Communications Commission, shall transmit a report to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce that includes— (1) the effectiveness of do-not-call outreach and enforcement efforts with regard to senior citizens and immigrant communities; (2) the impact of the exceptions to the do- not-call registry on businesses and consumers, including an analysis of the effectiveness of the registry and consumer perceptions of the registry’s effectiveness; and (3) the impact of abandoned calls made by predictive dialing devices on do-not-call en- forcement. (Pub. L. 108–10, § 4, Mar. 11, 2003, 117 Stat. 557; Pub. L. 110–188, § 3, Feb. 15, 2008, 122 Stat. 637.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2008—Pub. L. 110–188 amended section generally. Prior to amendment, section related to reports on regulatory coordination between Federal Trade Commission and Federal Communications Commission and reports on ‘‘do-not-call’’ registry for fiscal years 2003 through 2007. § 6155. Prohibition of expiration date (a) No automatic removal of numbers Telephone numbers registered on the national ‘‘do-not-call’’ registry of the Telemarketing Sales Rule (16 CFR 310.4(b)(1)(iii)) since the es- tablishment of the registry and telephone num- bers registered on such registry after March 11, 2003, shall not be removed from such registry ex- cept as provided for in subsection (b) or upon the request of the individual to whom the telephone number is assigned.