Canada's "Do-not-call" Bill Introduced

On December 13th, 2004, the Federal Government introduced Bill C-37 which, if it becomes law, should contribute to a quieter dinner hour for many Canadian households. The Bill would amend the Telecommunications Act and authorize the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to establish, maintain and update a national and central "do-not-call list". Canadian residential telephone subscribers who choose not to receive telephone solicitation may add their names to the list. Similar registries already exist in the US and the UK. In the US, the registry is administered by the Federal Trade Commission and 65 million households have signed up. In the past, the CRTC claimed that it wasn't equipped to administer or enforce such a list. Bill C-37, however, would extend the CRTC's powers of implementation and regulation to impose fines on those who break the rules. For a telemarketer who contacts people on the registry, there will be fines of up to $1500 per individual telemarketer and $15,000 for a corporation Funds to operate the list would come from a levy imposed on telemarketing companies. The Canadian public is in favour of such a registry – a 2003 Environics survey reported that 97% of respondents had a negative reaction toward unsolicited calls and 79% supported the creation of a national list. Perhaps surprisingly, the Canadian Marketing Association (CMA) is also in favour of the registry. After the Bill was introduced, the CMA's President and CEO, John Gustavson, commented that, "…such a service will help protect the viability of a marketing medium that employs over 270,000 Canadians and generates more than $16 billion in sales each year." But for those who work in telemarketing, such as the 30,000 people in the Maritimes who are employed in the growing industry, there are concerns that the new regulatory environment may lead to significant job losses. It will likely be at least a year before the registry comes into effect. This will allow time for public hearings and to determine the extent to which some organizations would be exempt from the Bill's requirements, such as political parties and charities. For related stories on the Canadian registry, visit: http://makeashorterlink.com/?V2BE5231A; http://makeashorterlink.com/?Y3CE1531A; http://makeashorterlink.com/?Z3DE3431A; or http://makeashorterlink.com/?R2FE5231A. For the text of Bill C-37, see: http://makeashorterlink.com/?R20F1231A. For press releases from the CMA and Industry Canada: http://www.the-cma.org/media/nr_dnc2004.cfm; and http://makeashorterlink.com/?T52F3231A. More information on the US registry at: www.donotcall.gov; and www.ftc.gov/donotcall. Summary by: Clare McCurley