State Senator trying to ban 'robocalls'

Move afoot to block automated phone calls by charities and political organizations

Email | Print By Ken Whitehouse

You know those phone calls you get right before an election that are recordings of former Tennessee Senator Fred Thompson, former Vice President Al Gore, or even sports figures like Eddie George and Darrell Waltrip asking you to vote for their candidate? Well, a move is afoot to ban those calls and similar ones from charitable organizations.

State Sen. Tim Burchett (R-Knoxville) wants to add those types of calls, also known as "robocalls," to ones prohibited by Tennessee's "Do Not Call" registry. Burchett's proposed legislation has made it out of the Senate Commerce, Labor and Agriculture Committee.

Burchett, who told NashvillePost.com prior to the vote that he would be surprised if the bill made it out of committee, also stated: "My constituents are tired of getting these annoying phone calls. What's good for the goose is good for the gander. These types of calls need to stop."

Prior to the vote, it was widely believed that the bill would be killed in committee largely due to a bipartisan desire for self-preservation. Should this bill become law, phone calls advocating for or against any candidate that have been pre-recorded would become illegal in Tennessee.

One particular robocall that made news during the last election cycle was an automated call of which NashvillePost.com was able to capture audio that was generated by an independent group supporting the candidacy of now U.S. Sen. Bob Corker (R). The resulting story was picked up by blogs nationwide and became our second-most popular article of 2006, according to site traffic statistics.

Ironically, Burchett himself recorded calls for Corker this past election cycle, advocating his fellow Republican's election.

The constitutionality of this law was discussed in today's committee hearing, and the legal staff of the Tennessee General Assembly said that a similar law was passed by the North Dakota legislature and upheld by a federal court.