IC 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 151 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 24, 2019 

Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 

AN ACT 

To deter criminal robocall violations and improve enforcement of section 227(b) of the Communications Act of 

1934, 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, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Telephone Robocall 

3 Abuse Criminal Enforcement and Deterrence Act’’ or the 

4 ‘‘TRACED Act’’. 

5 SEC. 2. FORFEITURE. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 227 of the Communica7 tions Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 227) is amended— 

8 (1) in subsection (b), by adding at the end the 

9 following: 

10 ‘‘(4) CIVIL FORFEITURE.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Any person that is de12 termined by the Commission, in accordance 

13 with paragraph (3) or (4) of section 503(b), to 

14 have violated any provision of this subsection 

15 shall be liable to the United States for a for16 feiture penalty pursuant to section 503(b)(1). 

17 The amount of the forfeiture penalty deter18 mined under this subparagraph shall be deter19 mined in accordance with subparagraphs (A) 

20 through (F) of section 503(b)(2). 

21 ‘‘(B) VIOLATION WITH INTENT.—Any per22 son that is determined by the Commission, in 

23 accordance with paragraph (3) or (4) of section 

24 503(b), to have violated this subsection with the 

25 intent to cause such violation shall be liable to 

26 the United States for a forfeiture penalty. The 


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1 amount of the forfeiture penalty determined 

2 under this subparagraph shall be equal to an 

3 amount determined in accordance with subpara4 graphs (A) through (F) of section 503(b)(2) 

5 plus an additional penalty not to exceed 

6 $10,000. 

7 ‘‘(C) RECOVERY.—Any forfeiture penalty 

8 determined under subparagraph (A) or (B) 

9 shall be recoverable under section 504(a). 

10 ‘‘(D) PROCEDURE.—No forfeiture liability 

11 shall be determined under subparagraph (A) or 

12 (B) against any person unless such person re13 ceives the notice required by paragraph (3) or 

14 (4) of section 503(b). 

15 ‘‘(E) STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS.—No for16 feiture penalty shall be determined or imposed 

17 against any person— 

18 ‘‘(i) under subparagraph (A) if the 

19 violation charged occurred more than 1 

20 year prior to the date of issuance of the re21 quired notice or notice of apparent liabil22 ity; and 

23 ‘‘(ii) under subparagraph (B) if the 

24 violation charged occurred more than 3 

25 years prior to the date of issuance of the 


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1 required notice or notice of apparent liabil2 ity. 

3 ‘‘(F) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Notwith4 standing any law to the contrary, the Commis5 sion may not determine or impose a forfeiture 

6 penalty on a person under both subparagraphs 

7 (A) and (B) based on the same conduct.’’; and 

8 (2) by striking subsection (h) and inserting the 

9 following: 

10 ‘‘(h) TCPA ENFORCEMENT REPORT.—The Commis11 sion shall submit an annual report to Congress regarding 

12 the enforcement during the preceding year of laws, regula13 tions, and policies relating to robocalls and spoofed calls, 

14 which report shall include— 

15 ‘‘(1) the number of complaints received by the 

16 Commission during the year alleging that a con17 sumer received a robocall or spoofed call; 

18 ‘‘(2) the number of citations issued by the Com19 mission pursuant to section 503 during the year to 

20 enforce any law, regulation, or policy relating to a 

21 robocall or spoofed call; 

22 ‘‘(3) the number of notices of apparent liability 

23 issued by the Commission pursuant to section 503 

24 during the year to enforce any law, regulation, or 

25 policy relating to a robocall or spoofed call; and 


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1 ‘‘(4) for each notice referred to in paragraph 

2 (3)— 

3 ‘‘(A) the amount of the proposed forfeiture 

4 penalty involved; 

5 ‘‘(B) the person to whom the notice was 

6 issued; and 

7 ‘‘(C) the status of the proceeding.’’. 

8 (b) APPLICABILITY.—The amendments made by this 

9 section shall not affect any action or proceeding com10 menced before and pending on the date of enactment of 

11 this Act. 

12 (c) DEADLINE FOR REGULATIONS.—The Federal 

13 Communications Commission shall prescribe regulations 

14 to implement the amendments made by this section not 

15 later than 270 days after the date of enactment of this 

16 Act. 

17 SEC. 3. CALL AUTHENTICATION. 

18 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

19 (1) STIR/SHAKEN AUTHENTICATION FRAME20 WORK.—The term ‘‘STIR/SHAKEN authentication 

21 framework’’ means the secure telephone identity re22 visited and signature-based handling of asserted in23 formation using tokens standards proposed by the 

24 information and communications technology indus25 try. 


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1 (2) VOICE SERVICE.—The term ‘‘voice serv2 ice’’— 

3 (A) means any service that is inter4 connected with the public switched telephone 

5 network and that furnishes voice communica6 tions to an end user using resources from the 

7 North American Numbering Plan or any suc8 cessor to the North American Numbering Plan 

9 adopted by the Commission under section 

10 251(e)(1) of the Communications Act of 1934 

11 (47 U.S.C. 251(e)(1)); and 

12 (B) includes— 

13 (i) transmissions from a telephone 

14 facsimile machine, computer, or other de15 vice to a telephone facsimile machine; and 

16 (ii) without limitation, any service 

17 that enables real-time, two-way voice com18 munications, including any service that re19 quires internet protocol-compatible cus20 tomer premises equipment (commonly 

21 known as ‘‘CPE’’) and permits out-bound 

22 calling, whether or not the service is one23 way or two-way voice over internet pro24 tocol. 

25 (b) AUTHENTICATION FRAMEWORK.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraphs (2) 

2 and (3), not later than 18 months after the date of 

3 enactment of this Act, the Federal Communications 

4 Commission shall require a provider of voice service 

5 to implement the STIR/SHAKEN authentication 

6 framework in the internet protocol networks of the 

7 voice service provider. 

8 (2) IMPLEMENTATION.—The Federal Commu9 nications Commission shall not take the action de10 scribed in paragraph (1) if the Commission deter11 mines that a provider of voice service, not later than 

12 12 months after the date of enactment of this Act— 

13 (A) has adopted the STIR/SHAKEN au14 thentication framework for calls on the internet 

15 protocol networks of the voice service provider; 

16 (B) has agreed voluntarily to participate 

17 with other providers of voice service in the 

18 STIR/SHAKEN authentication framework; 

19 (C) has begun to implement the STIR/ 

20 SHAKEN authentication framework; and 

21 (D) will be capable of fully implementing 

22 the STIR/SHAKEN authentication framework 

23 not later than 18 months after the date of en24 actment of this Act. 


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1 (3) IMPLEMENTATION REPORT.—Not later than 

2 12 months after the date of enactment of this Act, 

3 the Federal Communications Commission shall sub4 mit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

5 Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on 

6 Energy and Commerce of the House of Representa7 tives a report on the determination required under 

8 paragraph (2), which shall include— 

9 (A) an analysis of the extent to which pro10 viders of a voice service have implemented the 

11 STIR/SHAKEN authentication framework, in12 cluding whether the availability of necessary 

13 equipment and equipment upgrades has im14 pacted such implementation; and 

15 (B) an assessment of the efficacy of the 

16 STIR/SHAKEN authentication framework, as 

17 being implemented under this section, in ad18 dressing all aspects of call authentication. 

19 (4) REVIEW AND REVISION OR REPLACE20 MENT.—Not later than 3 years after the date of en21 actment of this Act, and every 3 years thereafter, 

22 the Federal Communications Commission, after pub23 lic notice and an opportunity for comment, shall— 


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1 (A) assess the efficacy of the call authen2 tication framework implemented under this sec3 tion; 

4 (B) based on the assessment under sub5 paragraph (A), revise or replace the call au6 thentication framework under this section if the 

7 Commission determines it is in the public inter8 est to do so; and 

9 (C) submit to the Committee on Com10 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Sen11 ate and the Committee on Energy and Com12 merce of the House of Representatives a report 

13 on the findings of the assessment under sub14 paragraph (A) and on any actions to revise or 

15 replace the call authentication framework under 

16 subparagraph (B). 

17 (5) EXTENSION OF IMPLEMENTATION DEAD18 LINE.—The Federal Communications Commission 

19 may extend any deadline for the implementation of 

20 a call authentication framework required under this 

21 section by 12 months or such further amount of 

22 time as the Commission determines necessary if the 

23 Commission determines that purchasing or upgrad24 ing equipment to support call authentication, or lack 

25 of availability of such equipment, would constitute a 


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1 substantial hardship in meeting such deadline for a 

2 provider or category of providers of voice service. 

3 (c) SAFE HARBOR AND OTHER REGULATIONS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Federal Communica5 tions Commission shall promulgate rules— 

6 (A) establishing when a provider of voice 

7 service may block a voice call based, in whole or 

8 in part, on information provided by the call au9 thentication framework under subsection (b); 

10 (B) establishing a safe harbor for a pro11 vider of voice service from liability for unin12 tended or inadvertent blocking of calls or for 

13 the unintended or inadvertent misidentification 

14 of the level of trust for individual calls based, 

15 in whole or in part, on information provided by 

16 the call authentication framework under sub17 section (b); and 

18 (C) establishing a process to permit a call19 ing party adversely affected by the information 

20 provided by the call authentication framework 

21 under subsection (b) to verify the authenticity 

22 of the calling party’s calls. 

23 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In establishing the safe 

24 harbor under paragraph (1), the Federal Commu25 nications Commission shall consider limiting the liVerDate Sep 11 2014 19:14 May 24, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S151.RFH S151

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1 ability of a provider of voice service based on the ex2 tent to which the provider of voice service— 

3 (A) blocks or identifies calls based, in 

4 whole or in part, on the information provided 

5 by the call authentication framework under sub6 section (b); 

7 (B) implemented procedures based, in 

8 whole or in part, on the information provided 

9 by the call authentication framework under sub10 section (b); and 

11 (C) used reasonable care. 

12 (d) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec13 tion shall preclude the Federal Communications Commis14 sion from initiating a rulemaking pursuant to its existing 

15 statutory authority. 

16 SEC. 4. PROTECTIONS FROM SPOOFED CALLS. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

18 date of enactment of this Act, and consistent with the call 

19 authentication framework under section 3, the Federal 

20 Communications Commission shall initiate a rulemaking 

21 to help protect a subscriber from receiving unwanted calls 

22 or text messages from a caller using an unauthenticated 

23 number. 


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1 (b) CONSIDERATIONS.—In promulgating rules under 

2 subsection (a), the Federal Communications Commission 

3 shall consider— 

4 (1) the Government Accountability Office report 

5 on combating the fraudulent provision of misleading 

6 or inaccurate caller identification required by section 

7 503(c) of division P of the Consolidated Appropria8 tions Act 2018 (Public Law 115–141); 

9 (2) the best means of ensuring that a sub10 scriber or provider has the ability to block calls from 

11 a caller using an unauthenticated North American 

12 Numbering Plan number; 

13 (3) the impact on the privacy of a subscriber 

14 from unauthenticated calls; 

15 (4) the effectiveness in verifying the accuracy of 

16 caller identification information; and 

17 (5) the availability and cost of providing protec18 tion from the unwanted calls or text messages de19 scribed in subsection (a). 

20 SEC. 5. INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General, in con22 sultation with the Chairman of the Federal Communica23 tions Commission, shall convene an interagency working 

24 group to study Government prosecution of violations of 


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1 section 227(b) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

2 U.S.C. 227(b)). 

3 (b) DUTIES.—In carrying out the study under sub4 section (a), the interagency working group shall— 

5 (1) determine whether, and if so how, any Fed6 eral laws, including regulations, policies, and prac7 tices, or budgetary or jurisdictional constraints in8 hibit the prosecution of such violations; 

9 (2) identify existing and potential Federal poli10 cies and programs that encourage and improve co11 ordination among Federal departments and agencies 

12 and States, and between States, in the prevention 

13 and prosecution of such violations; 

14 (3) identify existing and potential international 

15 policies and programs that encourage and improve 

16 coordination between countries in the prevention and 

17 prosecution of such violations; and 

18 (4) consider— 

19 (A) the benefit and potential sources of ad20 ditional resources for the Federal prevention 

21 and prosecution of criminal violations of that 

22 section; 

23 (B) whether to establish memoranda of un24 derstanding regarding the prevention and pros25 ecution of such violations between— 


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1 (i) the States; 

2 (ii) the States and the Federal Gov3 ernment; and 

4 (iii) the Federal Government and a 

5 foreign government; 

6 (C) whether to establish a process to allow 

7 States to request Federal subpoenas from the 

8 Federal Communications Commission; 

9 (D) whether extending civil enforcement 

10 authority to the States would assist in the suc11 cessful prevention and prosecution of such vio12 lations; 

13 (E) whether increased forfeiture and im14 prisonment penalties are appropriate, such as 

15 extending imprisonment for such a violation to 

16 a term longer than 2 years; 

17 (F) whether regulation of any entity that 

18 enters into a business arrangement with a com19 mon carrier regulated under title II of the Com20 munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 201 et 

21 seq.) for the specific purpose of carrying, rout22 ing, or transmitting a call that constitutes such 

23 a violation would assist in the successful pre24 vention and prosecution of such violations; and 


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1 (G) the extent to which, if any, Depart2 ment of Justice policies to pursue the prosecu3 tion of violations causing economic harm, phys4 ical danger, or erosion of an inhabitant’s peace 

5 of mind and sense of security inhibits the pre6 vention or prosecution of such violations. 

7 (c) MEMBERS.—The interagency working group shall 

8 be composed of such representatives of Federal depart9 ments and agencies as the Attorney General considers ap10 propriate, such as— 

11 (1) the Department of Commerce; 

12 (2) the Department of State; 

13 (3) the Department of Homeland Security; 

14 (4) the Federal Communications Commission; 

15 (5) the Federal Trade Commission; and 

16 (6) the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protec17 tion. 

18 (d) NON-FEDERAL STAKEHOLDERS.—In carrying 

19 out the study under subsection (a), the interagency work20 ing group shall consult with such non-Federal stake21 holders as the Attorney General determines have the rel22 evant expertise, including the National Association of At23 torneys General. 

24 (e) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 270 days 

25 after the date of enactment of this Act, the interagency 


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1 working group shall submit to the Committee on Com2 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the 

3 Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of 

4 Representatives a report on the findings of the study 

5 under subsection (a), including— 

6 (1) any recommendations regarding the preven7 tion and prosecution of such violations; and 

8 (2) a description of what progress, if any, rel9 evant Federal departments and agencies have made 

10 in implementing the recommendations under para11 graph (1). 

12 SEC. 6. ACCESS TO NUMBER RESOURCES. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

14 (1) EXAMINATION OF FCC POLICIES.—Not later 

15 than 180 days after the date of enactment of this 

16 Act, the Federal Communications Commission shall 

17 commence a proceeding to determine whether Fed18 eral Communications Commission policies regarding 

19 access to number resources, including number re20 sources for toll free and non-toll free telephone num21 bers, could be modified, including by establishing 

22 registration and compliance obligations, to help re23 duce access to numbers by potential perpetrators of 

24 violations of section 227(b) of the Communications 

25 Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 227(b)). 


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1 (2) REGULATIONS.—If the Federal Commu2 nications Commission determines under paragraph 

3 (1) that modifying the policies described in that 

4 paragraph could help achieve the goal described in 

5 that paragraph, the Commission shall prescribe reg6 ulations to implement those policy modifications. 

7 (b) AUTHORITY.—Any person who knowingly, 

8 through an employee, agent, officer, or otherwise, directly 

9 or indirectly, by or through any means or device whatso10 ever, is a party to obtaining number resources, including 

11 number resources for toll free and non-toll free telephone 

12 numbers, from a common carrier regulated under title II 

13 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 201 et 

14 seq.), in violation of a regulation prescribed under sub15 section (a) of this section, shall, notwithstanding section 

16 503(b)(5) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 

17 503(b)(5)), be subject to a forfeiture penalty under section 

18 503 of that Act. A forfeiture penalty under this subsection 

19 shall be in addition to any other penalty provided for by 

20 law. 

Passed the Senate May 23 (legislative day, May 22), 

2019. 

Attest: JULIE E. ADAMS, 

Secretary. 


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