§ 2464e.

334 words·~2 min read·/vt/title-9/chapter-63/2464e

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§ 2464e. Robocalls; prohibition; penalty

(a)Intent. It is the intent of the General Assembly in adopting this section to create State law prohibition on the placement of robocalls to Vermont consumers that is coextensive with the federal limitations created in the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, the Telemarketing and Consumer Fraud and Abuse Prevention Act, the regulations adopted under those Acts, and the judicial construction of these laws.

(b)Prohibition. A person shall not initiate an automatically dialed or prerecorded telephone call to a Vermont consumer in violation of the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act, 47 U.S.C. § 227; the federal Telemarketing and Consumer Fraud and Abuse Prevention Act, 15 U.S.C. §§ 6101–6108; and the regulations adopted pursuant to those Acts, as amended.

(c)Civil violation.

(1)A violation of this section constitutes a violation of section 2453 of this title.

(2)Each prohibited telephone call constitutes a separate violation under this subsection.

(3)(A) A person who receives a telephone call in violation of this section may bring an action in Superior Court for damages or a civil penalty, injunctive relief, punitive damages in the case of a willful violation, and reasonable costs and attorney’s fees.

(B)The court may issue an award for the greater of a person’s damages or a civil penalty of $500.00 for a first violation and $1,000.00 for each subsequent violation.

(d)Criminal penalties.

(1)A person who commits a knowing and willful violation of this section shall be imprisoned for not more than 90 days or fined not more than $1,000.00 per violation, or both.

(2)Each telephone call constitutes a separate violation under this subsection.

(e)The Attorney General shall exercise his or her authority and discretion to work cooperatively with other state and federal government entities to identify callers who initiate robocalls to consumers in violation of this section and to enforce the provisions of this section regardless of the location of the caller. (Added 2021, No. 183 (Adj. Sess.), § 57, eff. July 1, 2023.)