Federal Rules Under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act

How FCC rules work

1. Rules. The FCC adopts rules through notice-and-comment rulemaking. Rules generally take effect on a date set after publication in the Federal Register.
2. Declaratory rulings. The FCC also issues declaratory rulings that interpret the statute or its rules.
3. Waivers. The FCC or its Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau (CGB) can delay or waive a rule.
4. Court review. Courts can vacate FCC rules. And since McLaughlin Chiropractic Associates v. McKesson Corp. (2025), district courts in enforcement cases interpret the statute themselves rather than being bound by the FCC's reading, while "affording appropriate respect" to it.

Rules in effect today

Consent and revocation (FCC 24-24). Adopted February 15, 2024, effective April 11, 2025. Consumers may revoke consent by any reasonable means. Replies such as "stop" are per se valid. A revocation must be honored within 10 business days, and the caller may send one confirmation text. The "revoke all" provision, which would apply one revocation to all of a caller's robocalls and robotexts, was waived first to April 11, 2026 (DA 25-312) and then to January 31, 2027 (DA 26-12).

Artificial intelligence (AI) voices (FCC 24-17). Adopted February 2, 2024. AI-generated voices are "artificial or prerecorded voice" under the TCPA.

Texts and do-not-call (FCC 23-107). Adopted December 13, 2023. This order confirmed that the national do-not-call protections apply to marketing texts. The current rule at § 64.1200(e) covers "telephone solicitations or telemarketing calls or text messages to wireless telephone numbers." The same order's "one-to-one consent" rule never took effect. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit vacated it on January 24, 2025, in Insurance Marketing Coalition v. FCC, and the FCC removed it from the Code of Federal Regulations effective August 29, 2025.

Do-not-originate blocking (FCC 25-15). Adopted February 27, 2025. Effective December 15, 2025, every voice service provider, not only gateway providers, must block calls that appear to come from numbers on a reasonable do-not-originate list, such as invalid or unallocated numbers. See § 64.1200(o). Mobile wireless providers must do the same for texts under § 64.1200(p).

Reassigned Numbers Database (FCC 18-177). Adopted December 12, 2018. The FCC created the Reassigned Numbers Database (RND) and a safe harbor for callers who rely on it, now at § 64.1200(m). The database opened to callers on November 1, 2021.

Vicarious liability (FCC 13-54). In its 2013 Dish Network ruling, the FCC said sellers may be held vicariously liable for calls made by third parties under federal common-law agency principles.

Adopted but not yet in effect: FCC 26-67

The FCC adopted FCC 26-67 on September 30, 2026, and released it on October 1, 2026. It changes the 2024 revocation rules.

1. Callers may designate an exclusive method for revoking consent: an automated key press or voice option on the call, a reply text with a standard opt-out word, or a designated website or phone number. The method must be clearly and conspicuously disclosed.
2. Callers may treat an opt-out from an informational message as applying only to that category of informational robocalls.
3. An opt-out from a marketing call or text revokes consent to all of the caller's marketing robocalls and robotexts.
4. The financial institution exemption is modified to make fraud alerts easier.
5. The 10 business-day deadline stays.

The order takes effect 30 days after Federal Register publication. As of October 14, 2026, we found no publication. When it takes effect, it will supersede the January 31, 2027 waiver of the "revoke all" rule.

The order includes a further notice of proposed rulemaking. It asks about the time to honor revocations, requiring two-way texting so consumers can reply to opt out, requiring a way to revoke consent to all robocalls, and the treatment of affiliates.

Pending proposals

• AI-generated calls (FCC 24-84). Proposed August 2024. Would define "AI-generated call" and require AI disclosures when getting consent and at the start of calls. Still a proposal.
• Call-mechanics and caller name (FCC 25-76). Released October 29, 2025. Asks about verified caller name and branding, eliminating the 15-second or four-ring and 3 percent abandonment rules, replacing the callback-number requirement, and revising "revoke all."
• Quiet hours for texts (DA 25-216). In March 2025, the Ecommerce Innovation Alliance (EIA) and other petitioners asked the FCC to rule that consumers who gave written consent cannot sue over marketing texts received outside 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., or to waive that rule for wireless numbers. We found no ruling as of October 14, 2026.
• Deregulation review (GN Docket No. 25-133). In March 2025, the FCC opened its "Delete, Delete, Delete" docket seeking comment on rules to eliminate across its regulations. The TCPA rules may be impacted.

How to track changes

1. Watch the FCC's Electronic Comment Filing System in CG Docket No. 02-278.
2. Check the Federal Register for effective dates.
3. Consult the eCFR for the current text of § 64.1200.

The bottom line

The FCC changes TCPA rules often, and courts sometimes undo those changes. Always read a rule summary against the current eCFR text and its effective date.