Cortez Masto, Kustoff, Ross Introduce Legislation to Crack Down on Illegal Robocalls and Robotexts

Washington, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Congressman David Kustoff (R-Tenn.-08), and Congresswoman Deborah Ross (D-N.C.-02) introduced the Deter Obnoxious, Nefarious, and Outrageous Telephone (DO NOT) Call Act, which would crack down on illegal robocalls and robotexts.

In 2023, Americans received more than 59 billion robocalls and 160 billion robotexts. Seniors and other vulnerable Americans lost an estimated $69 billion to robocall scams and $33 billion to robotext scams. In these calls and texts, scammers posed as health insurance providers, medical professionals, debt collectors, financial service providers, and pharmacists.

"Spam calls and texts are not just a nuisance - they erode public trust and have real consequences for everyday Nevadans," said Senator Cortez Masto. "I fought them on behalf of consumers as Attorney General, and it's past time to protect the seniors and vulnerable Americans that these scammers prey on and give our law enforcement the tools they need to bring them to justice."

"Americans are receiving these disruptive robocalls every day. Scammers are using artificial intelligence to mimic voices and spoof Caller ID, making these calls even harder to detect," said Congressman Kustoff. "This bipartisan bill gives our justice system more power to crack down on these bad actors and protect vulnerable people from fraud."

"Robocalls are becoming more aggressive, and North Carolinians are feeling the impact every day," said Congresswoman Ross. "As technology advances, scammers find new ways to misuse personal information and to deceive the public- particularly targeting seniors and other vulnerable people. Congress has a responsibility to step up with stronger protections and clear consequences for those who profit from these harmful tactics. I am proud to reintroduce this bipartisan bill with Representative Kustoff and will keep working with our partners in the Senate to see it signed into law."

The DO NOT Call Act would improve enforcement and enhance penalties for robocallers and texters who violate the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). Under this legislation, willful and knowing violation of the TCPA could result in a prison sentence of up to one year. The DO NOT CALL Act also increases the maximum penalty for falsifying Caller ID, creates longer prison sentences for scammers involved in repeat offenses, and gives Attorneys General across the country more resources to combat these robocallers and texters.

Read the bill here. Additional Senate co-sponsors include Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), and Angus King (I-Maine).

As the former top law enforcement official in Nevada, Senator Cortez Masto has been a leading voice fight fraud throughout her career. She sounded the alarm on increasing check fraud scams, which cost consumers millions of dollars each year. Earlier this year, she called out the Trump Administration's former Internal Revenue Service Commissioner for his involvement in a tax fraud scheme in which he encouraged people to claim a fake Tribal tax credit. The Senator also introduced the Stop the Scammers Act to restore critical Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) funding and authorize the CFPB to reward whistleblowers who report wrongdoing.

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