From left: Michael Pest and Kevin P. Allen of Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott.
On May 6, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Barr v. American Association of Political Consultants, a case that potentially could result in the demise of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, 47 U.S.C. Section 227 (TCPA).
First enacted in 1991, the TCPA generally prohibits calls to mobile phones when the caller uses an artificial or prerecorded voice or an automatic telephone dialing system (ATDS). In 2015, Congress amended the TCPA by adding an exemption for calls “made solely to collect a debt owed to or guaranteed by the United States.” See 47 U.S.C. Section 227(b)(1)(A)(iii).
