(815 ILCS 402/1)
Sec. 1. Short title. This Act may
be cited as the Restricted Call Registry Act.
(Source: P.A. 92-795, eff. 8-9-02.)
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(815 ILCS 402/5)
Sec. 5. Definitions. As used in
this Act:
(a) "Residential subscriber" means
a person or spouse who has subscribed to either residential telephone
service from a local exchange company or public mobile services,
as defined by Section 13-214 of the Public Utilities Act,
a guardian of the person or the person's spouse, or an individual
who has power of attorney from or an authorized agent of the
person or the person's spouse.
(b) "Established business
relationship" means the existence of an oral or written
transaction, agreement, contract, or other legal state of affairs
involving a person or entity and an existing customer under which
both parties have a course of conduct or established pattern
of activity for commercial or mercantile purposes and for the
benefit or profit of both parties. A pattern of activity does
not necessarily mean multiple previous contacts. The established
business relationship must exist between the existing customer
and the person or entity directly, and does not extend to any
related business entity or other business organization of the
person or entity or related to the person or entity or the person
or entity's agent including but not limited to a parent corporation,
subsidiary partnership, company or other corporation or affiliate.
(c) "Existing customer" means
an individual who has either:
(1) entered
into a transaction, agreement, contract,
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or other legal state of affairs between
a person or entity and a residential subscriber
under which the payment or exchange of consideration
for any goods or services has taken place within
the preceding 18 months or has been arranged to
take place at a future time; or
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(2)
opened or maintained a debit account, credit
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card account, or other credit or discount
program offered by or in conjunction with the person
or entity and has not requested the person or entity
to close such account or terminate such program.
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(d) "Registry" means
the Restricted Call Registry established under this Act.
(e) "Telephone solicitation" means
any voice communication over a telephone line from a live operator,
through the use of an autodialer or autodialer system, as defined
in Section 5 of the Automatic Telephone Dialers Act, or by other
means for the purpose of encouraging the purchase or rental of,
or investment in, property, goods, or services, or for the purposes
of soliciting charitable contributions but does not include communications:
(1) to
any residential subscriber with that
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subscriber's prior express invitation
or permission when a voluntary 2-way communication
between a person or entity and a residential subscriber
has occurred with or without an exchange of consideration.
A telephone solicitation is presumed not to be
made at the express request of a subscriber if
one of the following occurs, as applicable:
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(A)
The telephone solicitation is made 30
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business days after the last date on
which the subscriber contacted a business with
the purpose of inquiring about the potential purchase
of goods or services.
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(B)
The telephone solicitation is made 30
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business days after the last date on
which the subscriber consented to be contacted.
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(C)
The telephone solicitation is made 30
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business days after a product or service
becomes available where the subscriber has made
a request to the business for that product or service
that is not then available, and requests a call
when the product or service becomes available;
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(2)
by or on behalf of any person or entity with
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whom a residential subscriber has an
established business relationship which has not
been terminated in writing by either party and
which is related to the nature of the established
business relationship;
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(3)
by or on behalf of any person or entity with
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whom a residential subscriber is an
existing customer, unless the customer has stated
to the person or entity or the person or entity's
agent that he or she no longer wishes to receive
the telemarketing sales calls of the person or
entity, or unless the nature of the call is unrelated
to the established business relationship with the
existing customer;
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(4)
by or on behalf of an organization that is
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exempt from federal income taxation
under Section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code,
but only if the person making the telephone solicitation
immediately discloses all of the following information
upon making contact with the consumer:
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(A)
the caller's true first and last name; and
(B)
the name, address, and telephone number of
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(5)
by or on behalf of an individual licensed under
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the Real Estate License Act of 2000
or as an insurance producer under the Illinois Insurance
Code who either:
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(A)
is setting or attempting to set a face to
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face appointment for actions relating
to that individual's real estate or insurance business;
or
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(B)
is encouraging or attempting to encourage
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the purchase or rental of, or investment
in, property, goods, or services, which cannot
be completed, and for which payment or authorization
of payment is not required, until after a written
or electronic agreement is signed by the residential
subscriber; or
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(6)
until July
1, 2005, by or on behalf of any
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entity over which the Federal Communications
Commission or the Illinois Commerce Commission
has regulatory authority to the extent that, subject
to that authority, the entity is required to maintain
a license, permit, or certificate to sell or provide
telecommunications service, as defined in Section
13-203 of the Public Utilities Act, while
the entity is engaged in telephone solicitation
for inter-exchange telecommunications service,
as defined in Section 13-205 of the Public
Utilities Act, or local exchange telecommunications
service, as defined in Section 13-204 of
the Public Utilities Act or to the extent, subject
to the regulatory authority of the Federal Communications
Commission, the entity is defined by Title 47 Section
522(5) of the United States Code, or providers
of information services as defined by Title 47
Section 153(20) of the United States Code.
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(Source: P.A. 92-795, eff. 8-9-02.)
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(815 ILCS 402/10)
Sec. 10. Prohibited calls. Beginning October
1, 2003, it is a violation of this Act for any
person or entity to make or cause to be made any telephone solicitation
calls to any residential subscriber more than 45 days after the
person or entity obtains the Registry or any update of the Registry
on which the residential subscriber's telephone number or numbers
first appear.
(Source: P.A. 92-795, eff. 8-9-02; 93-49,
eff. 6-30-03.)
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(815 ILCS 402/15)
Sec. 15. Complaints. The Illinois
Commerce Commission shall receive telephone solicitation complaints
from residential subscribers to object to such calls. Complaints
shall be taken by any means deemed appropriate by the Illinois
Commerce Commission.
(Source: P.A. 92-795, eff. 8-9-02.)
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(815 ILCS 402/20)
Sec. 20. Registry.
(a) The Illinois Commerce Commission
shall establish and provide for the operation of a Restricted
Call Registry, which shall contain a list of the telephone numbers
of residential subscribers who do not wish to receive telephone
solicitation calls. The national "do-not-call" registry
established and maintained by the Federal Trade Commission, pursuant
to 16 C.F.R. 310.4 (b)(1)(iii)(B), shall serve as the Registry
provided by this Act.
(b) Residential subscribers may
cause their telephone number or numbers to appear on the Registry
in any manner prescribed by the Illinois Commerce Commission.
(c) Any person or entity conducting
telephone solicitation calls as defined by Section 5(e) of this
Act within the State of Illinois shall purchase the Restricted
Call Registry and updates no less frequently than every 3 months
exclusively from the Federal Trade Commission. Failure to do
so prior to conducting telephone solicitation calls is a violation
subject to the penalties provided for in Section 35 of this Act.
(d) The Illinois Commerce Commission
may adopt rules consistent with this Act that the Illinois Commerce
Commission deems necessary and appropriate to fully implement
this Act.
(e) Information pertaining to residential
subscribers in the Registry is confidential and shall be afforded
reasonable privacy protection except as necessary for compliance
with Sections 10 and 25 and this Section or in a proceeding or
action under Section 35 or 40. The information is not a public
record under the Freedom of Information Act.
(f) A person or entity that obtains
the Registry shall not use the Registry for any purpose other
than to comply with this Act. These unlawful purposes include,
but are not limited to, causing a subscriber to participate in
and be included in the Registry without the subscriber's knowledge
or consent, selling or leasing the Registry to a person other
than a telephone solicitor, selling or leasing by a telephone
solicitor of the Registry, and a telephone solicitor, either
directly or indirectly, persuading a subscriber with whom it
has an established business relationship to place his or her
telephone number in the Registry, if the solicitation has the
effect of preventing competitors from contacting that solicitor's
customers.
(g) No person or entity that sells,
leases, exchanges, or rents telephone solicitation lists, except
for directory assistance and telephone directories sold by telephone
companies or their affiliates, shall include in those lists those
telephone numbers that appear in the current Registry.
(Source: P.A. 92-795, eff. 8-9-02; 93-49,
eff. 6-30-03.)
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(815 ILCS 402/25)
Sec. 25. Notice of establishment
of Registry. The Illinois Commerce Commission shall provide notice
to residential subscribers of the establishment of the Registry.
(Source: P.A. 92-795, eff. 8-9-02; 93-49,
eff. 6-30-03.)
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(815 ILCS 402/30)
Sec. 30. Public notification. The
Illinois Commerce Commission shall work with local exchange telecommunications
companies to notify their customers about the availability of
and instructions for requesting information from the Illinois
Commerce Commission. Local exchange telecommunications companies
shall provide this notice at least once per year in a message
contained in customers' bills or a notice in the information
section of all telephone directories distributed to customers
and shall include on their website a link to the ICC's web page
for the Registry. The Illinois Commerce Commission shall include,
on its Internet web site, information to customers regarding
their right to be included in the Registry and the various methods
of being included in the Registry. The Illinois Commerce Commission
shall develop language to be used by local exchange telecommunications
carriers and shall make information available on its web site
no later than July 1, 2003.
(Source: P.A. 92-795, eff. 8-9-02; 93-49,
eff. 6-30-03.)
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(815 ILCS 402/35)
Sec. 35. Violation; relief.
(a) The Illinois Commerce Commission
may initiate administrative proceedings in accordance with
rules adopted under this Act relating to a knowing and willful
violation of Section 10.
(b) If it is determined after a
hearing that a person has knowingly and willfully violated one
or more provisions of this Section, the Illinois Commerce Commission
may assess a fine not to exceed $1,000 for the first violation
and not to exceed $2,500 for a second or subsequent violation.
Each individual violation of Section 10 of this Act shall be
a separate and distinct offense under this Section. In imposing
a penalty under this Section, the Commission shall, at a minimum,
consider the following factors:
(1) whether
the offense was knowing or willful;
(2) whether
the entity committing the offense has a
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prior history of non-compliance
with this Act;
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(3)
the offender's relative ability to pay a penalty;
(4) whether
the offender has or has not cooperated
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with the Commission in pursuing the
investigation; and
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(5)
such other special, mitigating or aggravating
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circumstances as the Commission may
find to exist.
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(c) Any proceeding
conducted under this Section is subject to the Illinois
Administrative Procedure Act.
(d) Nothing in this Section may
be construed to restrict any right that any person may have under
any other law or at common law.
(e) No action or proceeding may
be brought under this Section:
(1) more
than one year after the person bringing the
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action knew or should have known of
the occurrence of the alleged violation; or
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(2)
more than one year after the termination of any
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proceeding or action arising out of
the same violation or violations by the State of
Illinois, whichever is later.
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(f) The remedies,
duties, prohibitions, and penalties in this Act are not
exclusive and are in addition to all other causes of action,
remedies, and penalties provided by law.
(g) There is created in the State
Treasury a special fund to be known as the Restricted Call Registry
Fund. All fines collected in the administration and enforcement
of this Act shall be deposited into the Fund. Moneys in the Fund
shall, subject to appropriation, be used by the Illinois Commerce
Commission for implementation, administration, and enforcement
of this Act.
(Source: P.A. 92-795, eff. 8-9-02; 93-49,
eff. 6-30-03.)
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(815 ILCS 402/40)
Sec. 40. Exemption.
(a) A person or entity may not
be held liable for violating this Act if:
(1) the
person or entity has obtained copies of the
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Registry and updates in compliance with
this Act and has established and implemented written
policies and procedures related to the requirements
of this Act;
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(2)
the person or entity has trained its personnel
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in the requirements of this Act;
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(3)
the person or entity maintains records
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demonstrating compliance with subdivisions
(1) and (2) of this Section and the requirements
of this Act; and
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(4)
any subsequent telephone solicitation is the
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result of unintentional error.
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(b) A person or
entity that has entered into a contract with another person
or entity to make telephone solicitations on its behalf
is not liable for a violation of this Act by the person
or entity making telephone solicitations under the contract
if the person or entity on whose behalf the telephone solicitations
were made has provided written notification to the person
or entity making telephone solicitations under the contract
that it is necessary to comply with the provisions of this
Act when making telephone solicitations.
(Source: P.A. 92-795, eff. 8-9-02; 93-49,
eff. 6-30-03.)
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(815 ILCS 402/90)
Sec. 90. (Amendatory provisions;
text omitted).
(Source: P.A. 92-795, eff. 8-9-02; text
omitted.)
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(815 ILCS 402/99)
Sec. 99. Effective date. This Act
takes effect upon becoming law.
(Source: P.A. 92-795, eff. 8-9-02.)
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