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TRACED Act gets some teeth: What businesses need to know

On Behalf of | Jan 8, 2021 | Marketing Law

President Donald Trump signed the Telephone Robocall Abuse Criminal Enforcement and Deterrence Act (TRACED) into law near the end of 2019. The law limits the number of calls that businesses can make, even if those calls are exempt from the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA).

What is the TCPA?

The TCPA essentially limits a business’ ability to make a telephone call using an artificial or recorded voice or using an automatic dialing system to deliver a message unless they have approval to make such contact from the recipient.

What calls are exempt from the TCPA?

In most cases, calls made from tax-exempt non-profit organizations, calls that are not made for commercial purposes, or those that do not include an unsolicited advertisement are exempt. The law is complex, and discussed in further detail in a previous post, available here.

What is TRACED?

As noted above, lawmakers passed this law last year to limit the number of calls made by those who fit within an exception to the TCPA. Congress scheduled this law to go into effect December 30, 2020.

What does this mean for small businesses?

Those who use these methods to reach out to clients and potential customers may need to reevaluate their marketing strategy to make sure they are not in violation as a result of these changes. Although lawmakers note that the change may result in a hindrance for businesses, they claim the sixth-month time period to make the changes is sufficient. As such, the feds may not give much grace to those in violation of these new requirements.