II 

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. 

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’’. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
2 

•S 1239 IS

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 Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Federal 

24 Trade Commission, the Department of Justice, and 

25 the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administra26 tion, regarding the issue of robocalls. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
3 

•S 1239 IS

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.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 

12 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Commis13 sion shall promulgate regulations under section 227 

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

15 that compel telecommunications providers to adopt 

16 technological standards to prevent robocalls. 

17 (2) UPDATES.—The Commission shall periodi18 cally update the regulations promulgated under 

19 paragraph (1) as the Commission considers appro20 priate. 

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

22 portion of the staff of the Commission to conducting re23 search that— 

24 (1) advances technology to prevent robocalls; 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
4 

•S 1239 IS

1 (2) investigates technology that facilitates the 

2 origination of robocalls; and 

3 (3) otherwise assists the Division in carrying 

4 out its responsibilities under section 2(b). 

5 (c) EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES AND MATERIALS.— 

6 The Commission shall develop, and provide to the general 

7 public, educational resources and materials that inform 

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

9 risks associated with robocalls. 

10 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 

11 In this Act: 

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

13 means the Federal Communications Commission. 

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

15 Robocall Division established under section 2(a). 

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

17 call made (including a text message sent)— 

18 (A) using equipment that makes a series of 

19 calls to stored telephone numbers, including 

20 numbers stored on a list, or to telephone num21 bers produced using a random or sequential 

22 number generator, except for a call made using 

23 only equipment that the caller demonstrates re24 quires substantial additional human intervenVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:32 May 02, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1239.IS S1239

kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
5 

•S 1239 IS

1 tion to dial or place a call after a human initi2 ates the series of calls; or 

3 (B) using an artificial or prerecorded voice. 

Æ 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS