November 2003               return to the newsletter contents page

FCC Postpones Effective Date of Do Not Fax Regulations

On October 3, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issued an order postponing the effective date of their proposed, restrictive definition of Established Business Relationship (EBR) as it applies to the sending of unsolicited commercial faxes. This new definition will now not take effect until either the FCC makes a decision in response to Petitions for Reconsideration, or until January 1, 2005, if they make a decision. This postponement brings the redefinition of EBR

into accord with the Commission's postponement of the effective date of the rest of the regulations related to commercial faxes which were issued on July 25.

This is good news for business, and allows the National Association of Wholesaler Distributors (NAW) and other business groups sufficient time to prepare for the FCC's next steps, which presumably will be to consider the many Petitions for Reconsideration that were filed by the business community to protest the Commission's unworkable fax ban. 

Many thanks to SEDA members who submitted comments directly to the FCC.  NAW will remain involved in this issue as the FCC proceeds with its next steps, and will still work with the relevant Committees of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, as well, in case a statutory remedy becomes necessary.

Link to FCC Order of October 3 (in Word)

Link to FCC Order of October 3 (in PDF)

Click here to read NAW's full report on the fax ban issue.