The 1991 federal law that restricts telemarketing and automated calls and texts, requiring consent for many calls made with autodialers or prerecorded or artificial voices.
The TCPA, codified at 47 U.S.C. 227, is the primary federal law governing how businesses may place marketing and automated calls. It restricts calls made with an automatic telephone dialing system or an artificial or prerecorded voice, sets rules for telemarketing calls, and supports the national Do Not Call framework.
The FCC implements the TCPA through regulations and has stated that AI-generated voices count as artificial voices under the statute. Courts have shaped its scope significantly, including the Supreme Court's 2021 decision in Facebook v. Duguid, which narrowed the definition of an autodialer. The FCC also enforces the statute directly, and regulators have pursued both callers and, in some cases, the providers that knowingly carry their traffic.
The law includes a private right of action with statutory damages per violation, which has made it one of the most litigated consumer protection statutes in the country. State laws often add stricter requirements on top of it. Callers that operate across many states therefore need to track a patchwork of rules on consent, calling hours, and call frequency, not just the federal baseline.
Why it matters to carriers
TCPA liability falls mainly on callers, but providers whose customers run outbound campaigns are drawn into tracebacks, subpoenas, and enforcement when those customers break the rules. Understanding what your customers are doing, and having terms of service and onboarding checks that address consent and calling practices, reduces both legal exposure and network risk.