STATEMENT OF 
COMMISSIONER ROBERT M. MCDOWELL
Re: Rules and Regulations Implementing the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991, CG Docket 
No. 02-278
We initiated a rulemaking proceeding last December to require telemarketers to honor on a 
permanent basis residential telephone numbers that were submitted to the National Do-Not-Call registry.  
This registry has become an effective vehicle to prevent consumers from receiving unwanted telephone 
solicitations from telemarketers.  In the meantime, Congress passed the Do-Not-Call Improvement Act of 
2007 that prohibits the automatic removal of telephone numbers on the registry.  Also, the Federal Trade 
Commission, our sister agency that maintains and administers the registry, has taken steps to retain 
numbers on a permanent basis.  
By taking this action to amend our rules, we are preserving telephone consumers’ peace of mind 
in avoiding unwanted interruptions by telemarketers at all hours of the day and night.   We are also 
avoiding imposing a burden on consumers to re-register their numbers on the Do-Not-Call registry.  I am 
pleased to support this decision that protects telephone consumers’ privacy.