Issue
Will states enact legislation to create a de facto ban on the use of predictive dialers by mandating they be set to a "zero" abandonment rate?

Importance
Predictive dialing devices are used by many telemarketing companies and make operation of such businesses much more cost effective by increasing productivity. Increased efficiency in marketing products and services over the phone through the use of predictive dialers helps to reduce costs and ultimately saves consumers money. Any legislation that would render this technology unusable would result in significant, perhaps unacceptable, cost increases to business and, ultimately, the consumer.

ATA Position
ATA opposes legislation that would mandate a "zero" abandonment rate. ATA has not endorsed a set abandonment rate standard, believing each company should utilize the lowest possible rate commensurate with effective marketing. It recognizes that the optimum rate may vary according to the specific program, the product being offered, the target audience, and the time of day the call is made.

Background
At the federal level, neither the Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR) nor the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) regulates the abandonment rate of a company's predictive dialer. An abandoned call, or "dead air" call, results when the predictive dialer places a number of computer-determined calls to consumers. The number of calls placed is computed by an algorithmic program that takes into account the time of day, the targeted market, and the product being offered, together with other factors. If more consumers answer than there are operators available to take the call, a "dead air" call results.

There has been some concern expressed by consumer groups that predictive dialer technology, by its nature, generates too many "dead air" calls. A silent phone line causes anxiety among some consumers, particularly the elderly. A possible solution to this problem would be the playing of a recording announcing the identity of the caller. Currently, however, federal law prohibits the playing of a recorded message that could identify the caller.

After previous unsuccessful attempts, California has passed a predictive dialer bill that tasks the Public Utilities Commission to determine an acceptable abandoned call rate. This legislation originally provided for a recorded identification message option that was eventually stricken due to a conflict with existing law.

ATA has explored a possible solution with the FCC to implement a federal policy providing for a recorded message option. This would require a change in existing policy and, to be effective, would also require federal preemption of the states. The alternative of states being able to essentially veto use of predictive dialer technology is unacceptable.

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