Print
House Resolution 5 - Introduced
An Act 1recognizing and supporting the federal
2government’s efforts to combat illegal robocalling
3and spoofing.
4WHEREAS, cellular phones have become a vital part
5of everyday life, and Iowans rely on them for ease of
6communication and accessing information;and
7WHEREAS, the abuse of this technology by scam
8artists using malicious robocalling tactics causes
9significant disruptions and leads to substantial
10financial losses;and
11WHEREAS, scam robocallers are becoming increasingly
12sophisticated, using spoofing technology to fool the
13call recipient into believing that a call is coming
14from a friend, neighbor, local business, or government
15organization;and
16WHEREAS, in 2018 the Federal Trade Commission
17(FTC) received nearly 3.8 million complaints about
18robocalls, and the Federal Communications Commission
19(FCC) received more than 52,000 complaints about
20spoofing;and
21WHEREAS, a recent study found that 26.3 billion
22robocalls were made to United States telephone numbers
23in 2018, up 46 percent from 18 billion robocalls in
242017;and
25WHEREAS, another recent study found that Americans
26are defrauded $9.5 billion each year from illegal
27robocalls;and
28WHEREAS, listing a telephone number on the
-1-1national Do Not Call Registry does little to prevent
2or discourage the growing onslaught of illegal
3robocalls;and
4WHEREAS, new phone verification systems, including
5the Secure Telephone Identity Revisited (STIR) and
6Signature-based Handling of Asserted information
7using toKENs (SHAKEN) protocols, show great promise as
8technological solutions to stop illegal robocalling and
9spoofing;and
10WHEREAS, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai recently stated
11that combatting illegal robocalling and spoofing is
12his top consumer protection priority and called on
13telecommunication carriers to adopt the STIR and SHAKEN
14protocols;and
15WHEREAS, the FTC and FCC are taking steps to protect
16consumers from illegal robocalling and spoofing,
17including by pursuing law enforcement actions,
18implementing policy initiatives, and proposing
19technological solutions;NOW THEREFORE,
20BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, That
21the House of Representatives extends its appreciation
22and offers its support to the federal government in its
23efforts to stop the abuse of national telecommunication
24networks, to combat the scourge of illegal robocalling
25and spoofing, and to protect Iowans from fraud;and
26BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Chief Clerk of the
27House of Representatives shall forward a copy of this
28resolution to the Chairman of the FCC, the Chairman of
29the FTC, and to the members of the Iowa congressional
30delegation.
-2-gh/rn
An Act 1recognizing and supporting the federal
2government’s efforts to combat illegal robocalling
3and spoofing.
4WHEREAS, cellular phones have become a vital part
5of everyday life, and Iowans rely on them for ease of
6communication and accessing information;and
7WHEREAS, the abuse of this technology by scam
8artists using malicious robocalling tactics causes
9significant disruptions and leads to substantial
10financial losses;and
11WHEREAS, scam robocallers are becoming increasingly
12sophisticated, using spoofing technology to fool the
13call recipient into believing that a call is coming
14from a friend, neighbor, local business, or government
15organization;and
16WHEREAS, in 2018 the Federal Trade Commission
17(FTC) received nearly 3.8 million complaints about
18robocalls, and the Federal Communications Commission
19(FCC) received more than 52,000 complaints about
20spoofing;and
21WHEREAS, a recent study found that 26.3 billion
22robocalls were made to United States telephone numbers
23in 2018, up 46 percent from 18 billion robocalls in
242017;and
25WHEREAS, another recent study found that Americans
26are defrauded $9.5 billion each year from illegal
27robocalls;and
28WHEREAS, listing a telephone number on the
-1-1national Do Not Call Registry does little to prevent
2or discourage the growing onslaught of illegal
3robocalls;and
4WHEREAS, new phone verification systems, including
5the Secure Telephone Identity Revisited (STIR) and
6Signature-based Handling of Asserted information
7using toKENs (SHAKEN) protocols, show great promise as
8technological solutions to stop illegal robocalling and
9spoofing;and
10WHEREAS, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai recently stated
11that combatting illegal robocalling and spoofing is
12his top consumer protection priority and called on
13telecommunication carriers to adopt the STIR and SHAKEN
14protocols;and
15WHEREAS, the FTC and FCC are taking steps to protect
16consumers from illegal robocalling and spoofing,
17including by pursuing law enforcement actions,
18implementing policy initiatives, and proposing
19technological solutions;NOW THEREFORE,
20BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, That
21the House of Representatives extends its appreciation
22and offers its support to the federal government in its
23efforts to stop the abuse of national telecommunication
24networks, to combat the scourge of illegal robocalling
25and spoofing, and to protect Iowans from fraud;and
26BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Chief Clerk of the
27House of Representatives shall forward a copy of this
28resolution to the Chairman of the FCC, the Chairman of
29the FTC, and to the members of the Iowa congressional
30delegation.
-2-gh/rn