Higher education financial assistance groups urge reform of Telephone Consumer Protection Act

The Coalition of Higher Education Assistance Organizations (COHEAO) and the Student Loan Servicing Alliance (SLSA) were among a coalition of education and business organizations that signed on to a letter urging the leadership of the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee to consider reforms to the 25-year-old Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA).

The letter was sent in advance of a committee hearing on proposed reforms to the TCPA scheduled to take place tomorrow at 10 a.m. in Senate Russell Office Building 253.

"The TCPA, which was enacted over 25 years ago, was well-intentioned legislation aimed at protecting the privacy of everyday Americans against abusive telemarketing calls," reads the coalition letter, which was addressed to Sens. John Thune (R-SD) and Bill Nelson (D-FL), the chair and ranking member, respectively, of the committee.

The law was signed into law by President George H.W. Bush in 1991.

"The TCPA has become an engine for abusive class action litigation that has become widespread," continues the letter. "Last year alone, 3,710 TCPA lawsuits were filed in federal court, and between 2010 and 2015, case filings increased by over 940%."

In addition to COHEAO and SLSA, the letter was signed by organizations that include the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform, American Association of Healthcare Administrative Management, the Newspaper Association of America, and the American Financial Services Association.

"Given that the TCPA has not been meaningfully amended by Congress since 1991, countless well-intentioned businesses and organizations (small and large) who legitimately try to communicate with employees, members or customers find themselves defending abusive class action litigation," concludes the letter. "The alleged liabilities appear in many forms and are usually based on expansive legal theories that Congress never intended when it first enacted the TCPA."