The US House of Representatives Judiciary Committee this week heard
criticism of The Unsolicited Commercial Electronic Mail Act, a bill
which had previously been passed unanimously by a Congress
committee. The bill puts restrictions on the sending of spam which
is not currently regulated in US federal law.
The bill would give US consumers the option of telling marketing
companies to remove their e-mail addresses from e-mailing lists – a
so-called “opt-out” rule. Companies failing to comply with such a
request risk regulatory action by the Federal Trade Commission. In
addition, ISPs are given a right to sue the spammers for the sum of
$500 for each violation, up to a maximum of $50,000. Consumers can
sue the spammers who fail to comply with their requests, but class
actions are prohibited.
The bill was attacked this week by politicians and industry
representatives alike. Among the fears expressed were that it could
open the floodgates to frivolous litigation and that it could
interfere with legitimate uses of e-mail.
More spam emanates from the US than any other country, so those
outside the US could see indirect benefit if the US passes spam
laws. The biggest problem with such laws is that the senders of
spam already break other laws with many of their e-mails, such as
those on advertising and fraud, so they are unlikely to take heed
of new laws.
The House Judiciary Committee can vote against the Bill or amend
it. In the absence of further action, it will be put to the House
floor for a vote on 5th June.
