New York Enacts Law Addressing Telemarketing Abuses and Regulates Robo-Calls

On August 13, New York Governor David Paterson signed into law A. 8839 which updates the state’s telemarketing laws by, among other things, restricting the hours telemarketers can call state residents and by applying the federal Do Not Call Registry to robo-calls. Specifically, the bill: (i) restricts, absent expressed consent, unsolicited telemarketing calls to the hours of 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.; (ii) requires telemarketers at the outset of a call to disclose their identity and the nature of good or services they are selling; (iii) amends New York’s existing Do Not Call registry law to include robo-calls and prohibits robo-calls to customers on the federal Do Not Call registry; and (iv) gives the state’s Consumer Protection Board subpoena power with regard to telemarketing violations. The new law takes effect on December 11, 2010.