Nixon - Drop in complaints, fraud due to no-call list

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The number of Missourians complaining about telemarketing fraud and unwanted telemarketing calls has dropped significantly since the state's no-call list went into effect more than two years ago, Attorney General Jay Nixon said Tuesday.

Nixon's office, which administers the list, said complaints about fraudulent telemarketers has dropped by 65 percent since the list went into effect on July 1, 2001.

And Nixon said complaints about telemarketers calling the homes of those on the no-call list have fallen from an average of about 5,000 a month to about 800 a month.

The no-call list allowed consumers to sign up with the attorney general's office to have telemarketing calls to their homes stopped.

More than 1.2 million residential phone numbers are on Missouri's no-call list, representing about 3 million people. More than $1 million in fines have been levied against firms who have violated the law since it went into effect, Nixon said.

"No call has not only made the dinner hour quieter for millions of Missourians, it also has had the very real benefit of significantly cutting down on telemarketing fraud," Nixon said in a statement. "The significant reduction of all telemarketing calls into Missouri over the past two years has meant a corresponding decrease in fraudulent calls."

Nixon said that many of the calls still being made to those on the no-call list are coming from industries that are exempt from Missouri's law including telephone companies.

Earlier this month, Nixon filed federal lawsuits against three major telephone companies, accusing them of violating federal laws by making telemarketing calls to consumers who have requested they not be called.

The lawsuits are against AT&T Corp.; MCI, a division of Worldcom Communications, Inc.; and SBC Missouri, more commonly known as Southwestern Bell.

Other businesses exempt under the law include banks, insurance companies and businesses that have an ongoing relationship with a client. Nixon said he hopes to persuade state lawmakers to close the current exemptions in the law. Efforts to end those exemptions have failed in the Legislature that last three years, Nixon said.

A federal do-not-call registry has grown to more than 28 million numbers since it was opened June 27, according to the Federal Trade Commission, which operates the service. The FTC has predicted registration to grow to 60 million telephone numbers by next summer.

Telemarketers are challenging the federal do-not-call registry in court, claiming that it will devastate business and cost millions of jobs.

There are also exemptions to the federal list including calls from charities and pollsters and calls on behalf of politicians.

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