The TCPA Compliance Racket: Why the Government Needs to Stop Burdening Businesses

TCPA ties up businesses and consumers

Ok so I am going on a bit of a “tirade” about the TCPA lately. I will eventually recommend suggestions on solutions I see. However, I feel it’s necessary to let people know that there is a lot of stuff out there and people are paying for it dearly!

Let’s talk about the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and the web of expensive, confusing regulations that have sprung up around it. The law was supposed to protect consumers from the relentless flood of robocalls and spam, but what it’s really done is create a massive financial burden for businesses—especially small ones—while failing to address the actual problem. And the worst part? The government isn’t stepping in to fix it. Instead of providing real tools and solutions to help businesses comply without breaking the bank, they’re leaving companies to fend for themselves, all while the costs of compliance keep skyrocketing.

If we’re serious about cleaning up the industry, the solution isn’t to pile on more fees and penalties that most businesses can’t afford. The government needs to take responsibility and provide clear, affordable tools that help everyone—consumers and businesses alike—navigate this mess. Yes, no one loves getting a phone call at an inconvenient time. But if that call isn’t a scam and the person on the other end is treating you with respect, should it really be such a big deal? We’re all human beings just trying to get by. Let’s make room for that understanding in this conversation.

Shaken/Stir: A Pricey “Solution” That Misses the Mark

Take Shaken/Stir, for example. The idea behind it is sound—verify the identity of the caller to stop illegal robocalls. But instead of being a straightforward fix, it’s become a cash cow for those who implement it. Businesses are forced to pay hefty fees to prove they’re legitimate, and guess what? That cost doesn’t disappear. It’s passed on to the consumer in higher prices or, worse, businesses simply can’t afford to comply, and they fall into legal trouble.

For SHAKEN/STIR to truly be effective, we should establish a free, national database where people can register their tokens, allowing their phones to authenticate calls directly. Now that most of us use smart or VoIP phones, these devices could easily check the database to verify the legitimacy of incoming calls. If someone no longer wishes to receive calls from a particular company, they could block the number directly on their phone, which would then block all tokens from that company—no telecom involvement necessary. This keeps control in the hands of the consumer, ensuring privacy and giving individuals full control over who contacts them, all at the device level.

Caller ID Reputation: The Unnecessary Cost of Being Honest

Then there’s the issue of Caller ID Reputation. Businesses are now forced to monitor their caller ID just to make sure they aren’t being labeled as spam, even when they’re doing everything right. And this monitoring isn’t cheap—sometimes costing upwards of tens of thousands a month! Imagine paying that much money just to make sure your honest, respectful calls aren’t getting blocked. It’s absurd.

If the government truly wants to protect consumers while supporting honest businesses, why not provide a simple, government-backed system that businesses can use to ensure they aren’t unfairly flagged? This would cut out the middlemen profiting off these labeling issues and give businesses the peace of mind they need to operate fairly and effectively.

Re-Assigned Number Database: An Expensive Fix to a Stupid Problem

The Re-Assigned Number Database is another example of a good idea gone wrong. Yes, no one wants to accidentally call a number that’s been reassigned to someone who didn’t consent to receiving calls. But the price tag—upwards of $35,000 a month for high-volume users—is downright ridiculous. Why should businesses have to pay such an outrageous sum, or anything in fact, just to avoid unintentional violations?

If the government really wants to stop this issue, they should at least make this database available at a minimal cost—or better yet, free. In reality, accidentally being called because you got someone else’s old number is just a fact of life and shouldn’t be such a big deal. Phones are there to talk to people, let them know nicely that the person no longer owns the number, asked to be put on their DNC list, and then say goodbye. Simple as that…OMG!

10DLC: The Unnecessary Barrier for Small Businesses

Then there’s the whole 10DLC system, which was supposed to help regulate and improve application-to-person (A2P) messaging. But just like everything else in this compliance nightmare, it’s been turned into an endless list of fees. Businesses have to pay for brand registration, campaign setup, monthly fees, and on top of that, there’s a per-message passthrough fee that gets tacked on to every single text sent. Then they have to go through the whole vetting nightmare! For what? Spammers just go and use foreign carriers or SIM Farms where someone buys thousands of SIM cards for phones and uses a special device to send out SMS as if they were the phone.

For a small business trying to communicate with customers, these fees add up fast. And once again, it’s not necessary. Our devices are plenty smart to deal with this stuff. We dont need to offload it anywhere other than the device itself.

Do-Not-Call List Costs: Pricing Out Small Businesses

Let’s not forget the cost of complying with the Do-Not-Call List (DNC). Want to make sure you’re not calling someone on the list? You’ll have to fork over $24,000 a year just to access the database. For large corporations, maybe that’s a manageable cost, but for a small business? That’s a huge burden. And the penalty for non-compliance is steep—one wrong call and you could face a lawsuit.

This is another area where the government could step in and make a real difference. Why not offer free access to the DNC list for businesses? After all, the goal should be to encourage compliance, not price small businesses out of it.

The Real Problem: When Compliance Becomes Too Expensive, Businesses Avoid It

Here’s the harsh truth: when compliance costs are sky-high, many businesses—especially smaller ones—will find ways to avoid it. And that’s not because they want to break the rules, it’s because they can’t afford to follow them. The more expensive compliance becomes, the more likely it is that businesses will cut corners or simply not participate, which only makes the problem worse.

If the government truly wants to clean up the industry and protect consumers, the cost of compliance needs to come down. Way down. When compliance is affordable, businesses will be more likely to play by the rules. When it’s a financial nightmare, only the big corporations can afford to keep up, and smaller businesses are left struggling to survive.

We’re All Just People Trying to Get By

At the end of the day, we have to remember that we’re all just human beings trying to exist in this world. Is it annoying to get a phone call at a bad time? Sure. But if that call isn’t from a scammer, if it’s from a legitimate business or person trying to reach out, and they’re treating you with respect, is it really such a big deal?

The fact is, telemarketing and business communications are essential for many companies, especially small ones trying to make a living. Keep in mind, cumulatively they employ a lot of people. They can’t afford to advertise on massive platforms like their Fortune 500 competitors. For them, direct communication is a lifeline. And for consumers, a polite conversation with a business trying to offer a service or product should be a minor inconvenience at most.

The Government Needs to Do Better

The solution to all of this isn’t more fees and complicated systems—it’s a government that steps in to provide affordable, accessible tools for businesses to comply with the rules. If we’re serious about protecting consumers from scams and unwanted calls, we should also be serious about protecting businesses from being crushed under the weight of compliance costs.

But beyond that, the government should focus on tackling the real problem: foreign call centers that perpetuate the bulk of the scams. These centers often operate with little to no risk of being caught or facing any repercussions, leaving U.S. businesses to pay the price while the real culprits remain untouched. The government must take stronger actions to block and shut down these international bad actors, instead of making it harder for legitimate businesses to operate.

Instead of creating a landscape where only the richest companies can afford to comply, the government needs to lower the barriers. Make the databases free or low-cost. Offer tools that help businesses comply without breaking the bank. If businesses can’t afford to follow the rules, they’re more likely to break them, and that hurts everyone—consumers and businesses alike.

Let’s stop treating businesses like the bad guys. Most of them are just trying to follow the rules, reach their customers, and make a living. They just want the rules to make sense and come with the right tools; without the fear of being drowned in fees and lawsuits. And if the government steps up to provide those tools—and takes stronger action against foreign scammers—we all win.

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