Thanks to the Virus Craze: It May Now Be Unlawful For Telemarketers Doing Business in New York To Call Large Swaths Of The Country

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Are you a telemarketer that does business in New York? A large and growing percentage of the country may now be off-limits to contact, thanks to a recently enacted New York State law that prohibits unsolicited telemarketing sales calls to any person in a county, city, town or village under a declared state of emergency or disaster emergency.

New York General Business Law 399-z (5-a)

It shall be unlawful for any telemarketer doing business in this state to knowingly make an unsolicited telemarketing sales call to any person in a county, city, town or village under a declared state of emergency or disaster emergency as described in sections twenty-four or twenty-eight of the executive law.

The statute, which seemingly doesn’t limit its reach to New York individuals, but rather to any place in which a state of emergency has been declared, may mean that anyone doing business in New York may need to be monitoring active states of emergency around the country. At the time of this writing, those places include the states of:

  • New York
  • New Jersey
  • California
  • Florida
  • Maryland
  • Washington
  • Oregon
  • Utah
  • Kentucky
  • North Carolina

As this law amends Section 399-z, it is a good idea to read the entirety of the section.

deBanked is not a law firm. For legal advice related to this law, consult with a suitable attorney.

Last modified: March 10, 2020
Sean Murray



Category: Legal Briefs

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