GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 2019

SESSION LAW 2019-188

HOUSE BILL 724

AN ACT to prohibit the use of misleading telephone identification methods for telephone solicitations by voice or text.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  G.S. 75‑101 reads as rewritten:

"§ 75‑101.  Definitions.

The following definitions apply in this Article:

…

(9)        Telephone solicitation. – A voice or text communication, whether prerecorded, live, or a facsimile, over a telephone line or wireless telephone network or via a commercial mobile radio service that is made by a telephone solicitor to a telephone subscriber for the purpose of soliciting or encouraging the purchase or rental of, or investment in, property, goods, or services; obtaining or providing information that will or may be used for that purpose; soliciting or encouraging a telephone subscriber's participation in any contest, sweepstakes, raffle, or lottery, whether legal or illegal; or obtaining a charitable donation. "Telephone solicitation" also includes those transactions that are defined as "telemarketing" under the Telemarketing Sales Rule.

…

(12)      Unsolicited telephone call. – A voice or text communication, whether prerecorded, live, or a facsimile, over a telephone line or wireless telephone network or via a commercial mobile radio service that is made by a person to a telephone subscriber without prior express invitation or permission."

SECTION 2.  G.S. 75‑102 reads as rewritten:

"§ 75‑102.  Restrictions on telephone solicitations.

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(i)         No telephone solicitor shall knowingly use any method to block or otherwise circumvent a telephone subscriber's use of a caller identification service. cause misleading information to be transmitted to users of caller identification technologies or otherwise block or misrepresent the origin of the telephone solicitation. No provider of telephone caller identification services shall be held liable for violations of this subsection committed by other individuals or entities. It is not a violation of this subsection for a telephone solicitor to utilize the name and number of the entity the solicitation is being made on behalf of rather than the name and number of the telephone solicitor.

…."

SECTION 3.  This act becomes effective December 1, 2019.

In the General Assembly read three times and ratified this the 23^rd day of July, 2019.

                                                                    s/  Ralph E. Hise

                                                                         Presiding Officer of the Senate

                                                                    s/  Tim Moore

                                                                         Speaker of the House of Representatives

                                                                    s/  Roy Cooper

                                                                         Governor

Approved 12:28 p.m. this 1^st day of August, 2019