Robocall crackdown tops agenda for FCC March meeting

The Federal Communications Commission will take up a proposal to crack down on robocalls from fraudulent numbers at its March open meeting, according to a tentative agenda released Thursday by Chairman Ajit Pai.

{mosads}As part of a pilot project to improve the FCC’s transparency, Pai released the text of all six items that will be considered at the March 23 meeting.

Included in that agenda is a notice of proposed rulemaking that would allow phone service providers to block calls from “spoofed” numbers, which disguise the source of certain robocalls.

“The American people have long made it clear — and industry, consumer groups, and government are unified behind them — that they want unwanted robocalls to stop,” Pai wrote in a blog post on Medium. “This month, we’ll hopefully take an important step toward combating this scourge.”

The FCC will also be considering a measure to make it easier for prisons to obtain permission to use devices that help detect contraband cellphones. Also on tap, a proposal to overhaul video relay services which help deaf people communicate.

“I look forward to collaborating with my colleagues on the important issues that are teed up for the FCC’s March meeting,” Pai wrote in his post.

“From helping protect Americans from unwanted robocalls to stopping the crime that results from inmates’ use of contraband cellphones to aiding those with disabilities who simply wish to communicate more easily, we will be working hard to advance the public interest.”