492
The Honorable Ajit Pai 
Chairman 
tJanitrd ~tatrs ~enate 
WASHINGTON. DC 20510 
June 14, 2017 
Federal Communications Commission 
445 12th Street SW 
Washington, DC 20554 
Dear Chairman Pai, 
We write to urge you to protect consumers from unwanted, invasive, and abusive ringless 
voicemails. In April, the Federal Communications Commission issued a Public Notice seeking 
comments on a petition to exempt ringless voicemails from key consumer protections established 
by the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). Ringless voicemails allow the calling party 
to leave automated voice messages in a consumer's voicemail without the phone actually 
ringing. 
Should this petition be granted, telemarketers, debt collectors, and other callers could bombard 
Americans with unwanted voicemails, leaving consumers with no way to block or stop these 
intrusive messages. Exempting ringless voicemails from the TCPA's autodialer protections 
would allow callers to overwhelm consumers with ringless voice messages without first 
receiving express consumer consent. Further, consumers would have no way to stop callers from 
sending ringless voice messages, and callers would have no limits on the quantity or duration of 
these messages. The Do Not Call List may not apply, and conswners would be flooded with 
unwanted voicemails, with little recourse other than sifting through their in boxes and deleting 
these unwanted communications. 
When Congress passed the TCP A, one goal was clear: whether at home or on their mobile 
phones, consumers should not be subject to intrusive and unsolicited messages. While 
technology has changed, that key goal has not. Whether by robocall, by robotext, or by ringless 
voicemail, consumers should have meaningful control over who can and cannot contact their 
mobile device. 
Thank you for your attention to this important matter. If you have any questions, please have a 
member of your stati contact Daniel Greene of Senator Markey's office at 202-224-2742. 
Sincerely, 
~~·~ 
United States Senator 
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Richard Blumenthal 
United States Senator 
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United Sates Senator 
Jeffrey A. Merkley 
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United States Senator 
Ron Wyden 
United States Senator 
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