FTC eyes Plan B on junk calls

Federal Trade Commission Chairman Timothy J. Muris will propose an alternative to the national Do Not Call Registry tomorrow so consumers may block unsolicited telemarketing calls, sources close to the dispute said yesterday.

Officials at the regulatory agency declined to confirm they had plans for an alternative to the do-not-call list, but Mr. Muris said he would seek every recourse to give consumers “a choice to stop unwanted telemarketing calls.”

The alternative that Mr. Muris will propose is an acknowledgement that legal issues surrounding the national registry won’t be resolved by Wednesday, when the list was supposed to take effect.

U.S. District Judge Edward W. Nottingham put the do-not-call registry in legal limbo late Thursday when he said the FTC’s plan was unconstitutional because it violated the First Amendment.

The FTC will appeal Judge Nottingham’s (303/844-5018) decision in the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver.

“We are concerned it could be up to a two-year back-and-forth. We do think we will prevail, but it could take awhile,” FTC spokeswoman Cathy MacFarlane said.

On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Lee R. West invalidated the do-not-call list. He said Congress failed to give the agency the authority it needs to establish and enforce the list, which contains 50.6 million phone numbers.

Congress reacted swiftly on Thursday, and legislation giving the FTC the authority Judge West said it lacked sailed through the House and Senate.

But Judge Nottingham’s decision presented a significantly greater hurdle than the problem raised by Judge West because Congress can’t pass a law to fix a constitutional issue.

Despite that, legislators promised yesterday they would search for a solution that lets consumers block unsolicited telemarketing calls next week.

“Rest assured, we will examine the judge’s opinion closely and will take whatever steps we can to ensure that the do-not-call registry is open for business as scheduled,” Reps. Billy Tauzin, Louisiana Republican, and John D. Dingell, Michigan Democrat, said in a joint statement.

Robert Jackson, a telecommunications lawyer in the District, said Judge Nottingham’s decision raised important issues.

“It’s a well-reasoned order. There’s some substance there,” he said.

In its new telemarketing rules, the FTC planned to let consumers block calls from commercial telemarketers, but not from noncommercial telemarketers, who represent pollsters, politicians and charitable groups.

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