We are committed to protecting and defending law enforcement against progressive politicians, judges, and other officials that encourage the war on cops. You are not lying, but you are being extremely misleading. It was viewed 36 times while on Public Inspection. Both Politicause and TPFE had procedures to keep workers with fraud convictions from handling credit card information, former callers said, although Politicause workers said the rules were sometimes relaxed for high performers. Few other top officers at these fundraising firms and PACS would speak to Reuters on the record. Delany De Leon-Colon, postal inspector in charge of the USPS Criminal Investigation Unit, explained how the elderly are particularly likely to fall for robocall . By Laura Strickler and Lisa Cavazuti. Register (ACFR) issues a regulation granting it official legal status. And the groups they were raising money for werent charities at all, but political action committees, which normally are set up to gather funds for candidates or political causes. This feature is not available for this document. The calls always seem to come when you least expect it. It is not an official legal edition of the Federal All persons are required to submit truthful and accurate statements to the Commission. We had no knowledge of RAGAs association with the Rule of Law fund or any connection in the January 6 insurrectionists storm on the U.S. Capitol, spokesperson Brandon Scott said in a statement. When she later realized it was a PAC telemarketer, she felt exploited. The purpose of the portal is to provide private entities a streamlined method to submit information to the Bureau about suspected robocall or spoofing violations. The data in turn informs the Commission's policy work, serves as a deterrent to companies the Commission regulates and contributes to consumer protection efforts. on adopted Reuters obtained FTC complaint records, with names redacted, through a Freedom of Information Act request. Thus, if Congress had intended to include individuals, we presume that it would have used the term person. Moreover, in other statutes the term private entity is often used to refer to organizations rather than individuals. The current informal consumer complaint process is a vital tool for the Commission. As his office pursued the money trail in the Bass investigation, for instance, Friedman said it came across an organization called Market Process Group, one of the eight fundraisers examined by Reuters. Reuters also could not ascertain the ownership of another large fundraising operation with a call center in Hoover, Alabama, some 45 miles from Zeitlins center in Sylacauga. We released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking ( Its a sink or swim environment. ThePAC, organized by Zachary Bass, spent 90% of its take on fundraising, campaign filings show. In the 2 year period examined by Reuters, records show, TPFE and three other Zeitlin firms earned more than $27.6 million for PAC fundraising. Start Printed Page 52841 after OMB completes its review, and directs the Enforcement Bureau to cause 64.1204 and 64.1606 to be revised accordingly. has no substantive legal effect. on it is ordered (c) Compliance dateparagraph (a) of this section contains a voluntary information collection. (k) Perform such other functions as may be assigned or referred to it by the Commission. shall be effective During today's hearing, the Committee heard from local law enforcement, the U.S. Amend 0.111 by redesignating paragraph (j) as paragraph (k) and revising it and by adding new paragraph (j) to read as follows: (j) Collects and reviews information received from private entities related to violations of 64.1200(a) and 64.1604(a) of this chapter. For further information, contact Daniel Stepanicich, Attorney, Telecommunications Consumers Division, Enforcement Bureau, at (202) 418-7451 or You are not lying, but you are being extremely misleading, said Jason Jones, 24, a former employee at Politicause. When organizations operate as political action committees, however, they are not subject to the laws governing charity fundraising, according to federal and state regulators and telemarketing industry officials. ), send an email to The authority citation for part 64 continues to read as follows: Authority: Baker said he founded Salt Lake City fundraising firm American Public Resource because he hoped to support worthy goals like helping veterans.The firm was paid nearly $3 million from 2017 through mid-2019 for its work raising money for PACS that spent anywhere from 0% to 7% on their promoted causes. March 24, 2017 How do I know you are telling the truth or the people who talked to you are telling the truth? he said. The full text of this document is available for public inspection online at While acknowledging that every industry has its bad apples,he wrote: To this day it strikes me as odd that an industry that has over the years hired hundreds of thousands of people (perhaps millions), many of whom had trouble holding down more traditional day jobs, would become such a punching bag for the government and the media.. She is based in Washington. establishing the XML-based Federal Register as an ACFR-sanctioned The Better Business Bureau says if anyone calls or knocks asking you to help the police, the best thing you can do is ask them for information before you agree to donate. Gifts to actual charities are; donations to PACs, which sometimes sound like charities, are not. Never disclose personal information. Or follow the simplest rule: Never give to anyone over the phone, said Margot Saunders, senior counsel for the National Consumer Law Center. CTIA, SAFE Credit Union (SAFE), Twilio, Inc., and USTelecom-The Broadband Association (USTelecom) filed comments. This site displays a prototype of a Web 2.0 version of the daily Spot the latest COVID scams, get compliance guidance, and stay up to date on FTC actions during the pandemic. documents in the last year, 940 They said to pitch it like it was a charity but as quietly and quickly as you can, slip in that it was a PAC, said Lefler, who worked at TPFE until March. The Republican Attorneys General Association raised more than $18 million in 2020 from several top corporations, including Pepsi, Microsoft, JPMorgan Chase and Comcast, the parent company of NBC News. To request material in accessible formats for people with disabilities (braille, large print, electronic files, audio format), send an email to It is a way for them to get around the charity laws thats exactly what theyre doing, said Stuart Discount, chief executive of the Professional Association for Customer Engagement, a trade association for direct marketers. This PDF is Many companies that donated to the Republican Attorneys General Association also gave to the Democratic Party equivalent. headings within the legal text of Federal Register documents. Coffee is for Closers Only, read another. documents in the last year, by the Energy Department Twilio recommends that the Commission create one centralized mechanism for reporting all information regarding robocalling and spoofing, whether it is from a whistleblower, company, or consumer. FAIRFAX, Va., July 10, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Committee for Police Officers' Defense, the political arm of Police Officers' Defense Coalition, recently launched a . The President of the United States manages the operations of the Executive branch of Government through Executive orders. to the courts under 44 U.S.C. We were good at slick-talking these people, said Dellinger, who court records show has been convicted of felonies including the truck theft and other burglary charges. 03/03/2023, 159 SOURCE: National Consumer Law Center, Federal Trade Commission. not individual consumers) about robocalls and spoofing best aligns with the TRACED Act requirement. 801(a)(1)(A). Commenters suggested that the Commission consolidate the new portal and its existing informal consumer complaint process, which the Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau administers, or better distinguish the two processes by defining private entity to exclude consumers. The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely. documents in the last year, 282 20-374, FCC-21-75, adopted and released on June 17, 2021. The "Committee for Police Officer's Defense" (CPOD) was configured in order to complete an intrinsic goal. Federal Register. [FR Doc. for better understanding how a document is structured but The fundraiser paid $11.6 million by PACs, including Bass operations, since 2017 listed an address in FEC documents that was a mail drop business in Washington D.C.Contract information subpoenaed by investigators and seen by Reuters ties Market Process Group to firms controlled by Mark Gelvan, a New Jersey-based fundraiser.Included were a phone number used by another Gelvan firm, Outreach Calling, an address used by his operation in Montville, New Jersey, and an email linked to another Gelvan company. that agencies use to create their documents. They often are set up as super PACs, groups which in recent years have been empowered by the courts to raise and spend money in unlimited amounts, with little regulation. Accordingly, Demonstrators attempt to breach the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Thus, a private entity is only in a position to provide information about calls that it suspects are violations of the law. This is John calling from the committee. Listen Transcript Hello, good evening. Open for Comment, Russian Harmful Foreign Activities Sanctions, Economic Sanctions & Foreign Assets Control, Fisheries of the Northeastern United States, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Further Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government, PART 64MISCELLANEOUS RULES RELATING TO COMMON CARRIERS, https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2021-14711, MODS: Government Publishing Office metadata, https://ecfsapi.fcc.gov/file/06171386503472/FCC-21-75A3.pdf. 227(e). Heroes United, accused of using deceptive tactics to get the firefighter donations, agreed to stop telemarketing in the county and to refund any donations. When asked by potential donors how much of the money would go to the cause they were touting, telemarketers said they suggested it was the vast majority. The workers said Politicause managers eventually reined in that practice, requiring them to instead say that at least 10% went to the cause. 8. The fundraising operation used corporate names including Charity Promotions, from 2013 to 2016, and Charity Appeal, from 2016 to 2018, according to several ex-employee interviews and state filings. 21. The Commission will send a copy of this Report and Order to Congress and the Government Accountability Office pursuant to 5 U.S.C. The calls, which often target elderly donors, come from a variety of generic and similar-sounding aliases: The Police Officers Support Association, the National Emergency Responders Coalition and. These markup elements allow the user to see how the document follows the This document has been published in the Federal Register. Reuters gains rare access into the world of fundraising for these charitable-sounding political action committees, a tiny but profitable niche in the U.S. telemarketing industry. Melaleuca, an online wellness shopping club, gave $290,000 to the Republican Attorneys General Association in 2020. NPRM, regulatory information on FederalRegister.gov with the objective of Appendix A, People with Disabilities. About 82% of the money, $13.8 million, went to Zeitlins firms, while Piaro collected $190,613 in salary from the PACs, according to the records. Federal Register The political action committee spent 91% of its money on fundraising in the 2 year examined by Reuters, Federal Election Commission records show. Training was minimal, pressure relentless and turnover high, the workers said. It wouldve been nice to know that my money was going to a PAC, not a charity, and that it wasnt going to actually help police and firefighters directly.. documents in the last year, by the Coast Guard that the Commission Elsewhere in the Communications Act, however, Congress used the term person to include individuals and organizational entities. But proving it can be a challenge, she said when, for example, conversations arent recorded and callers stray beyond the boundaries of scripts that toe the line. Lisa Cavazuti is an investigative reporter for the NBC News Investigative Unit. Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 Analysis. Streamlined Process. Search the Legal Library instead. I have directed an internal review of this matter.. In this Issue, Documents The calls, which did not advocate violence or suggest the building should be breached, was sent out by the Rule of Law Defense Fund, a fundraising arm of the Republican Attorneys General Association. JoAnn Coleman, 63, a construction engineer from Gaithersburg, Maryland, said she was particularly vulnerable to a pitch for the breast cancer PAC. POLICE OFFICERS DEFENSE ALLIANCE PAC. we proposed to include individuals in the definition of private entity but sought comment on the proposed interpretation, and whether there was a basis for a different interpretation of the term. That goal is to help police officers fight against the continuing "War on Cops" by taking a varied political stance against politicians, activist judges, prosecutors, district attorneys and a host of others who try to bring . documents in the last year, 853 (Super PACs are a type of political action committee that faces no limits on spending or contributions, by virtue of court decisions a decade ago.). daniel.stepanicich@fcc.gov. An arm of the Republican Attorneys General Association, a national group representing the top law enforcement officers in their . The Commission has a well-established process for individual consumers to submit complaints about unwanted and suspected illegal robocalls and spoofed calls: The Commission's informal consumer complaint process, which the Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau oversees. 10. 24. Drug abuse was a problem at both call centers, ex-employees said. If you are using public inspection listings for legal research, you 19. The Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau also forwards complaints to the Enforcement Bureau, which may use them to pursue enforcement actions. We also clarify that a public entity is any governmental organization at the federal, state, or local level. Though scam PACS have no standard definition and cant be definitively counted, a review of Federal Election Commission records suggests they account for a sliver of the some 6,800 PACs in the country. 727-335-7484 - Committee For Police Officer's Defense 727-335-7484 Complaint Level Low Medium High 1 User Complaints Caller Name Committee For Police Officer's Defense 1 Caller Type Scammer/Fraudster 1 File a Complaint Owner Info for 727-335-7484 User Complaints for (727) 335-7484 Caller name: Committee for Police Officer's Defense Register documents. We have never contributed to Rule of Law Defense Fund. A spokesperson for the Republican Attorneys General Association did not address questions about the robocall but sought to distance the organization from the event. 151, 152, 154, 201, 202, 217, 218, 220, 222, 225, 226, 227, 227b, 228, 251(a), 251(e), 254(k), 262, 276, 403(b)(2)(B), (c), 616, 620, 1401-1473, unless otherwise noted, Pub. I had breast cancer, so they knew how to get me, she said. But Lee Goodman, an election lawyer and former commissioner who is a Republican, said its dangerous for the government to decide which committees are scams based on how much they spend on causes. Police officer's scam robocall warning goes viral The "GMA" team of insiders analyzes some of the biggest stories trending this morning. 3. accessible format documents, sign language interpreters, CART, etc. Those calls used a recording of Trump's . daniel.stepanicich@fcc.gov. Those two fundraising firms, whose ownership is not clear, dissolved Pledge Assistance in July 2018 and Politicause in June 2019, according to Wyoming records. Even as they charmed millions from credulous donors, a dozen former callers for two major fundraisers told Reuters that they knew their companies would be keeping the vast majority of it. While we encourage private entities to make use of the registered consortium's resources, we decline to mandate that private entities must coordinate with the consortium prior to submitting information to the Commission. are not part of the published document itself. The Commission will publish a document in the Neither Zeitlin nor his attorney would comment on the FTC lawsuit. Against that background, Congress directed the Commission to develop a streamlined process for private entities to submit robocall information to the Commission. First, we find that interpreting the term to exclude individual consumers from the definition of private entity is consistent with Congress's other uses of that term and similar terms. It spent $103,700 on behalf of House candidates about 3% of the total, and it has contributed nothing directly to veterans groups. In interviews, a dozen former employees of Politicause and Zeitlins TPFE described techniques they used to wrangle donations, leaving contributors with the impression they were giving to good causes. The Committee for Police Officers' Defense (CPOD) The "Committee for Police Officer's Defense" (CPOD) was configured in order to complete an intrinsic goal. Richard Zeitlin, the biggest fundraiser in the loose network identified by Reuters, told a reporter in a brief interview that he had closed down all of his call centers, saying I wanted a change in direction. Asked about ex-employees claims of deception in his companies PAC fundraising practices, he declined to discuss specifics. Box 663 Butler, WI 53007 Visit Website (833) 878-5783 Average of 30. If the potential donors suspected they had given to the group before, the callers were instructed to say: I have no way of knowing because we feel that donations are given from the heart, not the hand, so we keep all donation records confidential, according to the FAQ. 2. We have been assured by RAGA that none of our contributions to RAGA were given to the Rule of Law Defense Fund., In a statement, Comcast said: "We have long supported Democratic and Republican associations of attorneys general. Postal Service (USPS), a telecommunications industry expert, and a relative of a robocall scam victim. The Committee for Police Officers Defense is run by James J. Fotis, who is a retired New York Police officer, who ran unsuccessfully in 2007 for Sheriff of Manassas City / Manassas Park City / Prince William County. Federal Do Not Call rules do not apply to political or nonprofit fundraising. We were very clear with RAGA that we could not continue our relationship unless we had assurances that they take steps to ensure that nothing like this would happen again.. 03/03/2023, 43 Neither he nor other officials at his company returned requests for comment. Once submitted, the Bureau will review to determine whether the information presents evidence of a violation of our rules. Some of the most aggressive actions against allegedly deceptive PACs and their fundraisers have come from state or local law enforcement officials. Its the only thing in life Ive ever been (expletive) good at, said Armstrong, who records show has theft and drug convictions. Blue / Bloomberg via Getty Images. Together Politicause and Pledge Assistance earned close to $20 million between January 2017 through mid-2019 raising money for PACS, campaign finance records show. We enforce federal competition and consumer protection laws that prevent anticompetitive, deceptive, and unfair business practices. Updated: 05/04/2018 05:00 AM EDT. The Public Inspection page Jessica Blanchard, 23, who worked at Politicause in 2018, said many callers either were addicts from halfway houses or jail inmates on work release. from 36 agencies. The President of the United States issues other types of documents, including but not limited to; memoranda, notices, determinations, letters, messages, and orders. But she said the panel has been paralyzed by partisan divisions and, more recently, a lack of a quorum. Ultimately, changes must come at the federal level, said Ellen Weintraub, a Democrat who chairs the Federal Election Commission. Recording / robocall Comments . 12. The Do Not Call law, the FTCs major weapon in policing telemarketing, does not apply to political calls, which have protections under the U.S. Constitution. Third, consumers will not be adversely affected by our decision to exclude them from the definition of private entity. Use the PDF linked in the document sidebar for the official electronic format. Despite currently transitioning into my role as the newly elected chairman of RLDF, it is unacceptable that I was neither consulted about nor informed of those decisions. The site has since been taken down. 27. We find that adopting a distinct intake process for private entities best satisfies the statutory language, while integrating it with the existing process managed by the Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau will reduce administrative costs and consumer confusion. Black's Law Dictionary defines public entity as a governmental entity, such as a state government or one of its political subdivisions. At least one statute, the Americans with Disabilities Act, defines public entity as any state or local government and any department, agency, special purpose district, or other instrumentality of a State or States or local government.. Looking for legal documents or records? The fundraisers later went to work for PACs under the names Politicause and Pledge Assistance, both registered in Wyoming, which requires little disclosure from corporations. 801(a)(1)(A). 09/22/2021 at 8:45 am. information to inform Commission consumer protection policies as well as for analytical and consumer education purposes. I dont think you understand how hard it is to fundraise, said Forrest Sandusky Baker IV, a telemarketing professional. documents in the last year, 122 On September 1, 2009, new FTC rules went into effect prohibiting most prerecorded telemarketing calls, commonly known as robocalls . rendition of the daily Federal Register on FederalRegister.gov does not Police Officers' Defense Coalition and Committee for Police Officers' Defense is committed to cleaning up the annals of justice by flushing out those who pretend to represent the people, but instead manipulate the system and the prosecute police officers as a stepping stone to their next higher political office. Document Drafting Handbook 11. 3. 03/03/2023, 207 Delegated Authority. They are looking for naturals, said Jones, adding that good performers could take home $1,000 to $1,500 a week. A spokesperson for Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr, the chairman of the Republican Attorneys General Association, said he had no knowledge or involvement in this decision., Attorney General Carr has been working diligently to determine how this situation occurred and ensure that it does not happen again, said spokesperson Katie Byrd. Add 64.1606 to subpart P to read as follows: (a) Any private entity may submit to the Enforcement Bureau information related to a call or text message that the private entity has reason to believe included misleading or inaccurate caller identification information in violation of 64.1604(a) or 47 U.S.C. Start Printed Page 52842 16. developer tools pages. The portal is available for use by private entities that wish to submit information about suspected robocall or spoofing violations. Learn more here. Reuters interviewed a dozen donors to PACs in the informal network. . The portal will collect contact information of the reporting entity, information about the suspected illegal robocall, and a description of the robocall incident. Sections 64.1204(a) and 64.1606(a) contain new or modified information collection requirements that require review by OMB under the PRA. The Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau uses this The "Committee for Police Officer's Defense" (CPOD) was configured to help police officers fight against the continuing "War on Cops" by taking a varied political stance against politicians, activist judges, prosecutors, district attorneys and a host of others who try to bring police officers down by any means. All told, the PACs took in $83.1 million during the 2 year period examined by Reuters, about 82% of which went to the eight fundraising companies, according to the campaign disclosures required by the FEC. Commenters raise concerns that the new streamlined portal will create consumer confusion or duplicate current processes. What is wrong with giving somebody a second chance? Zeitlin responded when Reuters asked about his hiring practices. We were good at slick-talking these people, one former caller, a felon, said of unwitting donors. Our mission is protecting consumers and competition by preventing anticompetitive, deceptive, and unfair business practices through law enforcement, advocacy, and education without unduly burdening legitimate business activity. We do not support any similar activities now, and will not in the future., A Microsoft spokesperson said: We condemn the actions taken by the RLDF and are raising our concerns directly with RAGA. Commenters were concerned that the definition proposed in the They called 4 times in one day. on In recent years, some telemarketers have used technology to bombard consumers with hundreds of millions of prerecorded calls that are often unwanted and frequently deceptive. The company later was renamed Politicause. documents in the last year, 35 Only official editions of the Bass set up five super PACs allegedly dedicated to a range of causes including veterans and firefighters. Private entity submissions of spoofing violations. Our past robocall enforcement actions have relied extensively upon information from private entities. As required by the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980, as amended (RFA), the Commission has prepared a Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (FRFA) relating to this Report and Order. The Police Officers' Defense Coalition was developed in consort with the Committee for Police Officers' Defense in order to help police officers, public safety officers, sheriffs, and all those who represent the law enforcement community fight against the "War on C ops". About the Federal Register An arm of the Republican Attorneys General Association, a national group representing the top law enforcement officers in their states, sent out robocalls encouraging people to march to the U.S. Capitol the day before the building was stormed by a pro-Trump mob. Timely and thorough information from private entities is crucial to enable the Commission to mitigate illegal robocall incidents and bring swift enforcement actions. 4. Two of the fundraising companies identified by Reuters employed jail inmates and ex-cons as telemarketers, according to interviews in Alabama with several former employees, as well as court records. We find that our decision to exclude individual consumers from the definition of private entity will greatly reduce, if not eliminate, potential confusion. A Rule by the Federal Communications Commission on 09/23/2021. It is further ordered Last summer, after coming under fire from state and government regulators for alleged deception in fundraising for charities, he defended his reputation on a website called richardzeitlintruth.com. Until the ACFR grants it official status, the XML I was unaware of unauthorized decisions made by RLDF staff with regard to this weeks rally, said Marshall, who assumed his role Nov. 10. Information about this document as published in the Federal Register. None of the three managers Reuters was able to identify could be reached for comment. better and aid in comparing the online edition to the print edition. documents in the last year, 11 The portal will request private entities to submit certain minimum information including, but not necessarily limited to, the name of the reporting private entity, contact information, including at least one individual name and means of contacting the entity ( In the Pallone-Thune Telephone Robocall Abuse Criminal Enforcement and Deterrence Act (TRACED Act), Congress directed the Commission to establish regulations to create a process that streamlines the ways in which a private entity may voluntarily share with the Commission information relating to a call or text message that violates prohibitions regarding robocalls or spoofing set forth section 227(b) and 227(e) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended. 26. . Caller name: Committee for Police Officer's Defense. USTelecom requests that we encourage private entities to first coordinate with the registered traceback consortium prior to filing information in the portal. e.g.,
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