ATTORNEY GENERAL HERRING FIGHTS TO STOP ROBOCALLS

RICHMOND (December 6, 2018) – Attorney General Mark R. Herring today announced he has joined a bipartisan group of 40 state attorneys general to stop or reduce annoying and dangerous robocalls. The coalition of attorneys general is reviewing the technology major telecom companies are pursuing to combat illegal robocalls.

"Robocalls have become a daily occurrence for many Virginians, including myself,” said Attorney General Herring. "We need to figure out a way to reduce or stop these annoying, and oftentimes illegal, robocalls and giving telecom companies the tools they need to combat them is an important step. I will continue to work with my colleagues to come up with solutions that will stop these calls and protect our consumers from potential scams or fraud.”

Since it was formed, the multistate group has had in-depth meetings with several major telecom companies. These productive meetings have led to greater information sharing about the technological capabilities currently in existence or in development to fight these calls.

Attorney General Herring and his colleagues are working to:

• Develop a detailed understanding of what is technologically feasible to minimize unwanted robocalls and illegal telemarketing,
• Engage the major telecom companies to encourage them to expedite the best possible solutions for consumers, and
• Determine whether states should make further recommendations to the FCC.

Back in October, Attorney General Herring joined a bipartisan coalition of 34 attorneys general in calling on the Federal Communications Commission to create new rules to allow telephone service providers to block more illegal robocalls being made to unsuspecting consumers in Virginia and across the country.

Joining Attorney General Herring in this coalition are attorneys general from Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, District of Columbia, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.

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