[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1239 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1239

 To require the Federal Communications Commission to establish within 
 the Enforcement Bureau of the Commission a division that specifically 
       addresses the issue of robocalls, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 30, 2019

  Mr. Merkley introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
   referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To require the Federal Communications Commission to establish within 
 the Enforcement Bureau of the Commission a division that specifically 
       addresses the issue of robocalls, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Regulatory Oversight Barring 
Obnoxious Calls and Texts Act of 2019'' or the ``ROBO Calls and Texts 
Act''.

SEC. 2. ROBOCALL DIVISION IN FCC ENFORCEMENT BUREAU.

    (a) Establishment.--Not later than 1 year after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Commission shall establish within the 
Enforcement Bureau of the Commission a division, to be known as the 
``Robocall Division'', that specifically addresses the issue of 
robocalls.
    (b) Responsibilities.--The Division shall have the following 
responsibilities:
            (1) Ensure consumer protection and compliance with Federal 
        laws relating to public safety and robocalls.
            (2) Serve as a line of communication between the Federal 
        Government and the communications industry to coordinate 
        efforts to combat robocalls on both sides.
            (3) Actively manage consumer complaints regarding robocalls 
        and address those complaints in a timely manner.
            (4) Serve as a line of communication between the Commission 
        and other related Federal agencies, including the Federal 
        Bureau of Investigation, the Consumer Financial Protection 
        Bureau, the Federal Trade Commission, the Department of 
        Justice, and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax 
        Administration, regarding the issue of robocalls.
            (5) Any other responsibility that the Commission 
        determines--
                    (A) is necessary to prevent robocalls; and
                    (B) does not unnecessarily--
                            (i) block benign calls or text messages; or
                            (ii) complicate the user experience.

SEC. 3. OTHER FCC RESPONSIBILITIES RELATING TO ROBOCALLS.

    (a) Technological Standards.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 90 days after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Commission shall promulgate 
        regulations under section 227 of the Communications Act of 1934 
        (47 U.S.C. 227) that compel telecommunications providers to 
        adopt technological standards to prevent robocalls.
            (2) Updates.--The Commission shall periodically update the 
        regulations promulgated under paragraph (1) as the Commission 
        considers appropriate.
    (b) Research.--The Commission shall dedicate a portion of the staff 
of the Commission to conducting research that--
            (1) advances technology to prevent robocalls;
            (2) investigates technology that facilitates the 
        origination of robocalls; and
            (3) otherwise assists the Division in carrying out its 
        responsibilities under section 2(b).
    (c) Educational Resources and Materials.--The Commission shall 
develop, and provide to the general public, educational resources and 
materials that inform users of a voice service or text messaging 
service of the risks associated with robocalls.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Commission.--The term ``Commission'' means the Federal 
        Communications Commission.
            (2) Division.--The term ``Division'' means the Robocall 
        Division established under section 2(a).
            (3) Robocall.--The term ``robocall'' means a call made 
        (including a text message sent)--
                    (A) using equipment that makes a series of calls to 
                stored telephone numbers, including numbers stored on a 
                list, or to telephone numbers produced using a random 
                or sequential number generator, except for a call made 
                using only equipment that the caller demonstrates 
                requires substantial additional human intervention to 
                dial or place a call after a human initiates the series 
                of calls; or
                    (B) using an artificial or prerecorded voice.
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