US States Urge Phone Carriers to Put an End to Robocalls

State law enforcement officials are urging US phone carriers to end one of the most complained-about consumer annoyances: the automated telemarketing call. A coalition of 45 state attorneys general sent a letter to AT&T, Sprint, Verizon, T-Mobile and CenturyLink asking them to put in place technology that would allow consumers to block so-called robocalls, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said.

Companies earlier hesitated to implement a fix over concerns it may violate federal law, but the Federal Communications Commission in June made it clear there are “no legal barriers” to such a move. “Every year, our offices are flooded with consumer complaints pleading for a solution to stop intrusive robocalls,” attorneys general including Schneiderman, Tom Miller of Iowa and Connecticut’s George Jepsen said in the letter. “Your organizations are now poised to offer your customers the help they need.”