Paul D.S. Edwards

The name might not ring a bell, but judging from the reaction of our readers to the story he generated, many in the ARM industry want to make their voices heard.

In January of this year, Paul D.S. Edwards filed a petition with the FCC for “an expedited clarification and declaratory ruling regarding the Commission’s rules under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA).” Specifically, Edwards is asking whether creditors and debt collectors are allowed to use autodialers and prerecorded messages to reach consumers on cell phone numbers that were originally associated with landline service, but then converted to wireless service by the consumer.

Now, the FCC is asking for comment on the matter (“FCC Asks for Comments on a Challenge to Collectors’ Use of Autodialers to Contact Cell Phones,” March 26). NOTE: If you want to comment, hurry: the deadline is April 2.

Public comment periods are standard practice for government regulatory agencies. But in this case, it’s very important that the industry speak loudly. Many collection agency executives have bemoaned the regulatory environment as it relates to debt collection and cell phones. Autodialed calls and prerecorded messages have complicated the matter. Now the FCC is specifically asking for collectors to weigh in on an important piece of regulation.