Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, January 27, 1992 TAG: 9201270150
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Medium
BILL WOULD HELP STOP `JUNK CALLS'
Does an aluminum siding salesman always seem to call just as you're sitting down to dinner?Are you a day sleeper who has to unplug the phone to keep magazine subscription peddlers from disturbing your slumber?
If so, Del. George Grayson has a bill he thinks you'll like.
Grayson, D-James City, has introduced legislation to create a state-maintained registry of folks who don't want to be bothered by what he has labeled "junk calls."
His bill is one of a handful the General Assembly is considering to make life easier for consumers. Others would prohibit the sale of consumer purchase information and regulate layaway practices.
Grayson's bill would allow any Virginian to notify the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Affairs that he does not want to receive phone solicitations. The name would be placed on the list, which would be sold to telemarketers. Any phone solicitor calling a person on the list would be in violation of the Virginia Consumer Protection Act.
The House passed the bill last year, but it was killed by a Senate committee after intense lobbying by business interests.
"What mystifies me is the opposition from business," Grayson said. "As I've said before, it's a lot more productive to fish in fertile waters. But the companies will come before the committee and say this will be the kiss of death."
Said Bill Coiner, president of the Virginia Retail Merchants Association: "We're opposed to anything that restricts the ability to do telemarketing."
Grayson said he has written columns about the legislation for newspapers, including the Roanoke Times & World-News, and asked readers to let him know whether they favor the idea. He said he received more than 200 letters, only two of them negative.
"The common theme is that we pay for the phone, we pay to rent the line coming into our house, and we shouldn't have people electronically trespassing on our property," Grayson said.
Grayson's bill applies to charitable organizations as well as businesses. However, political committees would be exempt.
While Grayson is battling "junk calls," Del. Robert Tata is fighting junk mail.
Tata, R-Virginia Beach, wants to prohibit companies from selling information about purchases without first getting the consumer's consent in writing. He said selling names without permission is an invasion of privacy.
Tata also is sponsoring the bill to regulate layaway purchases. The bill says shoppers must be informed in writing of the terms of a layaway agreement, including any penalty if the buyer decides not to complete the transaction. The bill would limit the penalty to 10 percent of the purchase price or $25, whichever is less.