I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2355 

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 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 25, 2019 

Ms. ESHOO introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Energy and Commerce 

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. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Regulatory Oversight 

5 Barring Obnoxious Calls and Texts Act of 2019’’ or the 

6 ‘‘ROBO Calls and Texts Act of 2019’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. ROBOCALL DIVISION IN FCC ENFORCEMENT BU2 REAU. 

3 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 1 year after 

4 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Commission 

5 shall establish within the Enforcement Bureau of the 

6 Commission a division, to be known as the ‘‘Robocall Divi7 sion’’, that specifically addresses the issue of robocalls. 

8 (b) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Division shall have the 

9 following responsibilities: 

10 (1) Ensure consumer protection and compliance 

11 with Federal laws relating to public safety and 

12 robocalls. 

13 (2) Serve as a line of communication between 

14 the Federal Government and the communications in15 dustry to coordinate efforts to combat robocalls on 

16 both sides. 

17 (3) Actively manage consumer complaints re18 garding robocalls and address those complaints in a 

19 timely manner. 

20 (4) Serve as a line of communication between 

21 the Commission and other related Federal agencies, 

22 including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the 

23 Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, the Fed24 eral Trade Commission, the Department of Justice, 

25 and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Admin26 istration, regarding the issue of robocalls. 


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1 (5) Any other responsibility that the Commis2 sion determines— 

3 (A) is necessary to prevent robocalls; and 

4 (B) does not unnecessarily— 

5 (i) block benign calls or text mes6 sages; or 

7 (ii) complicate the user experience. 

8 SEC. 3. OTHER FCC RESPONSIBILITIES RELATING TO 

9 ROBOCALLS. 

10 (a) TECHNOLOGICAL STANDARDS.—Not later than 

11 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

12 Commission shall promulgate regulations under section 

13 227 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 227) 

14 that would compel telecommunications providers to adopt 

15 technological standards to prevent robocalls. The Commis16 sion shall periodically update such regulations as the Com17 mission considers appropriate. 

18 (b) RESEARCH.—The Commission shall dedicate a 

19 portion of the staff of the Commission to conducting re20 search that— 

21 (1) advances technology to prevent robocalls; 

22 (2) investigates technology that facilitates the 

23 origination of robocalls; and 

24 (3) otherwise assists the Division in carrying 

25 out its responsibilities under section 2(b). 


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1 (c) EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES AND MATERIALS.— 

2 The Commission shall develop, and provide to the general 

3 public, educational resources and materials that inform 

4 users of a voice service or text messaging service of the 

5 risks associated with robocalls. 

6 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 

8 (1) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 

9 means the Federal Communications Commission. 

10 (2) DIVISION.—The term ‘‘Division’’ means the 

11 Robocall Division established under section 2(a). 

12 (3) ROBOCALL.—The term ‘‘robocall’’ means a 

13 call made (including a text message sent)— 

14 (A) using equipment that makes a series of 

15 calls to stored telephone numbers, including 

16 numbers stored on a list, or to telephone num17 bers produced using a random or sequential 

18 number generator, except for a call made using 

19 only equipment that the caller demonstrates re20 quires substantial additional human interven21 tion to dial or place a call after a human initi22 ates the series of calls; or 

23 (B) using an artificial or prerecorded voice. 

Æ 


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