Senate Committee Heard a Bill to Deter Telemarketers and Unauthorized Political Calls

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9/10/2010: Radio Story - Missouri Digital News's Theo Keith interviews Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Robin Carnahan on the economy, trailing in the polls, and those pesky robo-calls.

9/21/2010: Newspaper Story - Candidates vying for two of Missouri's statewide offices are divided on whether to use the automated telephone calls.

Intro:	A Senate committee was urged Thursday to keep telemarketers from harassing you.
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Wrap: A bill to expand eligibility on the state's No-Call-List passed through the Senate Commerce Committee Tuesday.

Missourians may now put their cell and fax numbers on the list.

The bill's sponsor, St. Charles County Republican Senator Scott Rupp, says amending the current law is common sense.

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Description: "You know when people get calls at home and they have themselves on the no call list. It really upsets them. So why do we have something if it's not working?"

Despite this, versions of the bill have failed year after year in the House.

Rupp says House members opposed this bill because they use these robo calls themselves during election season.

From the state Capitol, I'm Elizabeth Hagedorn.

Intro:	A Senate committee took no immediate action Tuesday on a bill to keep pesky telemarketers from harrassing you on your cell phone.
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Wrap: The bill in the Senate Commerce Committee would allow you to add your cell and fax numbers to the state's No Call List used by telemarketers.

It also requires political campaigns to register with the state.

The bill's sponsor, St. Charles County Republican Senator Scott Rupp, says these robo calls also cause confusion among voters.

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Description: "So when you call someone's home, and you say, you know, Bob Smith's the worst thing since sliced bread, you should never ever vote for him. Click. And who is actually paying for that?"

Rupp says that the current No-Call-List is ineffective because people are still getting calls, although on their cell phones.

From the state Capitol, I'm Elizabeth Hagedorn.

Intro:	A Missouri lawmaker attempts for the fourth year in a row to put an end to phony campaign phone calls.
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Wrap: The Senate Commerce Committee showed no objections Tuesday to Republican Scott Rupp's bill requiring campaign phone calls to include a "paid for by" statement.

Each year this bill passes unanimously in the Senate, but fails in the House.

Rupp says House members who use these calls themselves are to blame.

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Description: "There's been individuals over there that may have used robo calls a lot or maybe had ownership in companies that dealt with those and it was viewed as maybe something that would infringe on their business practices."

Rupp says requiring the "paid for by" statements would prevent confusion among voters during the election season.

Reporting from the state Capitol, I'm Elizabeth Hagedorn.