The United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit issued an opinion today upholding the national Do-Not-Call Registry. The Court held that the First Amendment does not prevent the government from establishing a registry. The Court stated, "We hold that the do-not-call registry is a valid commercial speech regulation because it directly advances the government’s important interest in safeguarding personal privacy and reducing the danger of telemarketing abuse without burdening an excessive amount of speech."
The Court cited four aspects of the Do-Not-Call Registry that it found convincing:
- "The list restricts only core commercial speech - i.e., commercial sales calls."
- "The do-not-call registry targets speech that invades the privacy of the home."
- "The do-not-call registry is an opt-in program that puts the choice of whether or not to restrict commercial calls entirely in the hands of consumers."
- "The do-not-call registry materially furthers the government’s interests in combating the danger of abusive telemarketing and preventing the invasion of consumer privacy, blocking a significant number of the calls that cause these problems."
Additionally the Court held:
- That the registry fees telemarketers must pay to access the list are a permissible regulatory measure designed to offset the projected expenses affiliated with the registry;
- It is not "arbitrary and capricious" for the FCC to adopt an established business relationship exception; and
- The FTC has statutory authority to establish and implement the national Do-Not-Call Registry.
A more detailed analysis of the opinion will be posted in the next several days.
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