The Kansas No-Call Act

The Kansas version of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) is the Kansas No-Call Act (KNCA), found in K.S.A. 50-670a through K.S.A. 50-675.

Kansas No-Call Act vs. the Telephone Consumer Protection Act

The goals of the KNCA and the TCPA align, as they are both designed to protect consumers from unsolicited telemarketing calls by establishing a no-call list and setting forth strict requirements and penalties for telephone solicitors.

• Telephone solicitors must consult a “no-call” list prior to making unsolicited consumer calls. It is prohibited for telephone solicitors to make unsolicited calls to numbers on the no-call list.[i]
• Telephone solicitors are liable for violations if they call numbers on the no-call list or misuse the list.[ii]
• The Kansas Attorney General enforces the KCNA. Under the TCPA, plaintiffs can seek damages in state court, and state attorneys general are empowered to seek damages, injunctive relief, and penalties in federal courts.[iii]

No-Call Lists

Consumers can register their telephone numbers on the national no-call list though the Federal Trade Commission.

Telephone solicitors must remove telephone numbers from their calling lists within thirty days from the registration of a consumer’s number on the list.

The Kansas No-Call Act designates the National Do-Not-Call list maintained by the Federal Trade Commission as the Kansas no-call list.  Kansas consumers must register on the national list to be protected under the Kansas No-Call Act.

Violations

The TCPA provides for private rights of action, allowing individuals to sue for damages and seek injunctions.

Under the Kansas No-Call Act, violations of the no-call provisions are considered unconscionable acts under the Kansas Consumer Protection Act.

Enforcement

In Kansas, the Attorney General is responsible for enforcing the KNCA, including requesting information from the Federal Trade Commission and reporting to the legislature on the Act’s implementation.  The Attorney General may also promulgate rules and regulations to implement the KNCA, including adopting federal regulations related to telemarketing.

The Kansas Consumer Protection Act

The Kansas Consumer Protection Act is often paired with the KNCA and the TCPA.  The stated policies promoted by the Kanas Consumer Protection Act are:

• To simplify, clarify, and modernize the law governing consumer transactions;
• To protect consumers from suppliers who commit deceptive and unconscionable practices;
• To protect consumers from unbargained for warranty disclaimers; and
• To provide consumers with a three-day cancellation period for door-to-door sales.[iv]

Best Practices to Comply with the KNCA and the Kansas Consumer Protection Act[v]

To ensure compliance with the KNCA, telephone solicitors making calls, including robocalls, should:

• Identify themselves;
• Identify the business for whom they are soliciting;
• Identify the purpose of the call immediately upon making contact by telephone;
• Promptly end the solicitation if the receiver gives a negative response at any time during the call;
• Hang up the phone or disconnect the automatic dialing-announcing device from the telephone line within 25 seconds of the termination of the call by the receiver;
• Answer the line within five seconds of beginning of the call;
• If the line is answered by an automated dialing-announcing device, the message provided should include only caller identification information, but should not contain any unsolicited advertisement.

Further, telephone solicitors must avoid:

• Withholding the display of the telephone solicitor’s phone number from a caller ID service when that number is being used for telemarketing purposes;
• Transmission of any written information to a consumer by fax machine or computer after the consumer requests that such transmissions cease;
• Obtaining through professional delivery or pickup service the receipt or possession of a consumer’s payment.