California Telemarketing and Robocall Laws: Statutes, Rules, and How They Differ from the TCPA

Overview

California regulates telemarketing through several overlapping codes. The Business and Professions Code contains the state do-not-call law (Bus. & Prof. Code §§ 17590 to 17594), the registration and bonding law for any "telephonic seller" (Bus. & Prof. Code § 17511.1 et seq.), the unsolicited text message advertisement ban (Bus. & Prof. Code § 17538.41), and the junk fax law (Bus. & Prof. Code § 17538.43). The Public Utilities Code regulates automatic dialing-announcing devices (ADADs) and places them under the jurisdiction of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) (Pub. Util. Code §§ 2871 to 2876). The Consumers Legal Remedies Act (CLRA) makes certain prerecorded message practices unlawful (Civ. Code § 1770(a)(22)). Violations can also support claims under the Unfair Competition Law (UCL) (Bus. & Prof. Code § 17200 et seq.).

California adopted the federal registry instead of keeping its own list. The Legislature stated that "it is the intent of the Legislature to adopt the California telephone numbers on the national 'do not call' registry as the California 'do not call' registry." Bus. & Prof. Code § 17590(c).

Several California rules are stricter than federal law or have no federal counterpart:

• The ADAD statute requires that prerecorded calls be preceded by an unrecorded, natural voice announcement. Since January 1, 2025, that announcement must also disclose whether the prerecorded message uses an artificial voice.
• ADAD calls are barred between 9 p.m. and 9 a.m.
• Unsolicited text message advertisements are banned, subject to defined exceptions.
• Telephonic sellers must register with the Attorney General and post a 100,000-dollar bond.

Private remedies are more limited than under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), 47 U.S.C. § 227, except for junk faxes and CLRA claims by consumers who suffer damage.

Key statutes table

Detailed provisions

Do-not-call

Who is covered. A "telephone solicitor" is "any person or entity who, on his or her own behalf or through salespersons or agents, announcing devices, or otherwise, makes or causes a telephone call to be made to a California telephone number" for any of the listed purposes. Bus. & Prof. Code § 17592(a)(1). Those purposes include seeking "to offer a prize or to rent, sell, exchange, promote, gift, or lease goods or services," offering credit for personal, family, or household purposes, seeking marketing information, and seeking "to sell or promote any investment, insurance, or financial services." § 17592(a)(1)(A) to (D). The statute protects "residential or wireless telephone subscribers." § 17590(a).

What list applies. The California list is the federal list. Under § 17592(a)(2), the list "means the California telephone numbers on the national 'do not call' registry established and maintained by the Federal Trade Commission." The statute adds: "A 'do not call' list is current if it was obtained from the Federal Trade Commission no more than three months prior to the date a call is made." Id. Federal rules require a fresher list (see the federal comparison section below).

The prohibition. Subject to the exemptions in subdivision (e), "no telephone solicitor shall call any telephone number on the then current 'do not call' list" for any of the covered purposes. § 17592(c). List brokers may not include listed numbers in "telephone solicitation lists." § 17592(d).

Misuse of the list. Section 17591 makes it unlawful to use the list "for any purpose other than to comply with this article or applicable federal laws." It also makes it unlawful for a solicitor to persuade an established customer "to place his or her telephone number on the 'do not call' list, if the solicitation has the effect of preventing competitors from contacting that solicitor's customers." § 17591.

Written consent. The consent exemption requires a signed writing:

Telephone calls made pursuant to the express agreement, in writing, of the subscriber to place calls to that California telephone number. This written agreement shall clearly evidence the person's authorization that calls made by or on behalf of a specific party may be placed to that California telephone number, and shall include the signature of that person.

§ 17592(e)(1). The solicitor bears the burden of proof. It must produce "the original or a facsimile document, signed by the subscriber, evidencing that permission; or an advertisement by the subscriber." Id. Consent buried in a form contract does not count: "'Express agreement' does not include any consent or permission included in any contract of adhesion." Id.

A solicitor may write to a listed subscriber by mail to ask for permission. The permission form must clearly and conspicuously disclose, among other things, "The signature of the subscriber authorizing the call" and "Notice that the subscriber may be contacted by a telephone solicitor or someone calling on behalf of the specific party identified in the request for permission, even if the subscriber's telephone number is listed on the federal 'do not call' registry." § 17592(f)(2)(C), (D).

Registration and bond

The registration law covers any "telephonic seller." The definition reaches a person who "on their own behalf or through salespersons or through the use of an automatic dialing-announcing device" makes a telephone solicitation that meets defined criteria. Bus. & Prof. Code § 17511.1. Those criteria include solicitations in which the seller represents or implies, for example, "That a prospective purchaser will receive a prize or gift," that the purchaser can buy at a price "below the regular price of the item or service offered," or that the seller is offering precious metals, mineral interests, "or any other investment opportunity of any type whatsoever." § 17511.1(a)(2), (3), (7). The definition has 22 exemptions. Among them is "A person soliciting business from prospective purchasers who have previously purchased from the business enterprise for which the person is calling." § 17511.1(e)(8). The person claiming an exemption bears the burden of proving it. § 17511.1(f).

Registration must come first:

Not less than 10 days before doing business in this state, a telephonic seller shall register with the department by filing with the Consumer Protection Section of the department the information required by Section 17511.4 and a filing fee of fifty dollars ($50).

§ 17511.3(a). Registration "shall be valid for one year from the effective date thereof and may be annually renewed." § 17511.3(b). The filing is extensive. It includes, among other items, "A listing of all telephone numbers to be used by the seller," a list of salespersons, and "a copy of all sales scripts the telephonic seller requires salespersons to use when soliciting prospective purchasers." § 17511.4(d), (i), (j).

The bond requirement is in § 17511.12(a):

Every telephonic seller shall maintain a bond issued by a surety company admitted to do business in this state. The bond shall be in the amount of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) in favor of the State of California for the benefit of any person suffering pecuniary loss in a transaction commenced during the period of bond coverage with a telephonic seller who violated this chapter.

A seller offering a premium worth 500 dollars or more must notify the Attorney General at least 10 days in advance, and "All premiums offered shall be awarded." § 17511.12(b)(1).

The statute also creates criminal liability. "No salesperson shall solicit prospective purchasers on behalf of a telephonic seller who is not currently registered with the department pursuant to this article." § 17511.8. Willful violations, and fraud in connection with sales by a telephonic seller, are punishable "By a fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for each unlawful transaction," by imprisonment, or both. § 17511.9(a) to (c).

Calling hours

California's only statutory calling-hour rule applies to ADAD calls:

A person shall not operate an automatic dialing-announcing device in this state to place a call that is received by a telephone in this state during the hours between 9 p.m. and 9 a.m. California time.

Pub. Util. Code § 2872(c). Live calls are governed by the federal 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. window. ADAD calls to California therefore have a narrower window, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., than federal law allows.

Call frequency and abandoned calls

California has no numeric cap on telemarketing calls. Two provisions are relevant.

First, § 2875.5(a) of the Public Utilities Code restricts abandoned calls made with automated equipment:

no person operating any automatic equipment that incorporates a storage capability of telephone numbers to be called or a random or sequential number generator capable of producing numbers to be called may make a telephone connection for which no person, acting as an agent or telemarketer, is available for the person called.

The CPUC "shall establish an acceptable error rate for telephone connections made in violation of subdivision (a)." § 2875.5(b). In Decision 03-03-038 (Mar. 13, 2003), the CPUC ordered that "the acceptable error rate for telephone calls made by automatic equipment in violation of Section 2875.5(a) of the Public Utilities Code shall be 3%, measured monthly." An error is a call answered by a live person in which "(1) the telephone equipment disconnects the call after the called party has answered, or (2) the called party does not receive a response from the calling agent or telemarketer within 2 seconds of the called party’s completed greeting." Telemarketers must keep summary records of these calls for at least one year and make them available to the CPUC on request. No later CPUC decision changing the rate was located.

Second, the Penal Code makes repeated harassing calls a misdemeanor where made "with intent to annoy or harass." Pen. Code § 653m(b). The section does not apply "to telephone calls or electronic contacts made in good faith or during the ordinary course and scope of business." Id.

Automated dialing compared with Facebook v. Duguid

The ADAD definition is broader than the federal autodialer definition after Facebook, Inc. v. Duguid, 592 U.S. 395 (2021). Under § 2871 of the Public Utilities Code, an ADAD is:

any automatic equipment which incorporates a storage capability of telephone numbers to be called or a random or sequential number generator capable of producing numbers to be called and the capability, working alone or in conjunction with other equipment, to disseminate a prerecorded message to the telephone number called.

Duguid held that "a necessary feature of an autodialer under §227(a)(1)(A) is the capacity to use a random or sequential number generator to either store or produce phone numbers to be called." The California definition is disjunctive: equipment qualifies if it has "a storage capability of telephone numbers to be called" or a number generator. List-based dialing systems can therefore be ADADs if they can also deliver a prerecorded message. The same storage-capability language governs the abandoned call rule in § 2875.5(a), which does not require a prerecorded message element.

When ADADs may be used. Under § 2873, ADADs "may be used to place calls over telephone lines only pursuant to a prior agreement between the persons involved, whereby the person called has agreed that he or she consents to receive such calls from the person calling, or as specified in Section 2874." Section 2874(a) provides the alternative:

Whenever telephone calls are placed through the use of an automatic dialing-announcing device, the device may be operated only after an unrecorded, natural voice announcement has been made to the person called by the person calling.

The announcement must "State the nature of the call and the name, address, and telephone number of the business or organization being represented, if any," must "Inquire as to whether the person called consents to hear the prerecorded message of the person calling," and must "Inform the person called if the prerecorded message uses an artificial voice." § 2874(a)(1) to (3). "Artificial voice" means "a voice that is generated or significantly altered using artificial intelligence." § 2874(c)(2). The device must be disconnected "upon the termination of the call by either the person calling or the person called." § 2874(b).

Exemptions. The article does not apply to ADADs that are "not used to randomly or sequentially dial telephone numbers, but that is used solely to transmit a message to an established business associate, customer, or other person having an established relationship with the person using the automatic dialing-announcing device to transmit the message, or to any call generated at the request of the recipient." § 2872(f). Other exemptions cover schools, tax-exempt organizations contacting members, cable and utility installation calls, emergency warnings from industrial facilities, and public safety agencies. § 2872(d), (e).

Phone company application. Before connecting an ADAD to a telephone line, a person must make "written application to the telephone corporation within whose service area telephone calls through the use of such device are proposed to be placed." § 2875.

The CLRA parallel. The CLRA separately makes the following unlawful in a consumer sales or lease transaction:

Disseminating an unsolicited prerecorded message by telephone without an unrecorded, natural voice first informing the person answering the telephone of the name of the caller or the organization being represented, and either the address or the telephone number of the caller, and without obtaining the consent of that person to listen to the prerecorded message.

Civ. Code § 1770(a)(22)(A). The CLRA rule "does not apply to a message disseminated to a business associate, customer, or other person having an established relationship with the person or organization making the call, to a call for the purpose of collecting an existing obligation, or to any call generated at the request of the recipient." § 1770(a)(22)(B).

Text messages

California bans unsolicited text message advertisements directly. Section 17538.41(a)(1) provides that, subject to its exceptions, "no person, entity conducting business, candidate, or political committee in this state shall transmit, or cause to be transmitted, a text message advertisement to a mobile telephony services handset, pager, or two-way messaging device that is equipped with short message capability or any similar capability allowing the transmission of text messages." A text message advertisement is "a message, the principal purpose of which is to promote the sale of goods or services, or to promote a political purpose or objective, to the recipient." Id. The section applies "when a text message advertisement is transmitted to a number assigned for mobile telephony service, pager service, or two-way messaging service to a California resident." § 17538.41(a)(2).

The principal exceptions are relationship-based:

This section shall not apply to text messages transmitted by a business, candidate, or political committee that has an existing relationship with the subscriber if the subscriber is offered an option not to receive text messages from that business, candidate, or political committee.

§ 17538.41(c). Affiliates of a business with an existing relationship are covered "only if the subscriber has provided consent to the business with which he or she has that relationship to receive text messages from affiliates of that business." § 17538.41(d). Carrier messages are exempt "if the subscriber is offered an option to not receive those text messages." § 17538.41(b).

The statute does not define "existing relationship" or set out a separate express consent exception. Senders that rely on consent alone, without an existing relationship, should treat the scope of the ban as unsettled.

Section 17538.41 sits in Chapter 1 of Part 3 of Division 7 of the Business and Professions Code. "Any person, firm, corporation, partnership or association or any employee or agent thereof who violates this chapter is guilty of a misdemeanor." Bus. & Prof. Code § 17534. Violators are liable "for a civil penalty not to exceed two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) for each violation," recoverable by public prosecutors. § 17536(a).

Caller ID

The California telemarketing statutes discussed on this page do not contain a caller ID transmission or anti-spoofing rule specific to telemarketers. The ADAD natural voice announcement, the CLRA prerecorded message rule, and the telephonic seller disclosures in § 17511.5 serve a similar identification function. Federal caller ID rules apply (see the federal comparison section below).

Disclosures and opt-out

A telephonic seller must, "at the time the solicitation is made and prior to consummation of a sales transaction," make specified disclosures. Bus. & Prof. Code § 17511.5. When free items are offered, "each time the telephonic seller makes reference to an item or items, the telephonic seller shall state that no purchase is necessary." § 17511.5(a)(1). The seller must also disclose "The complete street address of the location from which the salesperson is calling the prospective purchaser." § 17511.5(a)(2).

Opt-out requests bind related brands. Under § 17592(e)(4), if a subscriber asks to be placed on the solicitor's internal do-not-call list, "that instruction shall be binding on the entity with which the subscriber has the established business relationship, with any entity that has the shared brand name, and all other entities that share that brand name, none of whom may initiate further telephone solicitation calls to that subscriber." Calls made "after the subscriber has requested that no further telephone calls be made to him or her" are presumed not to be at the subscriber's express request. § 17592(e)(2)(C).

Contracts and cancellation

A telephonic seller whose solicitation is a "home solicitation contract or offer" within the meaning of Civil Code § 1689.5 must disclose a cancellation right. Bus. & Prof. Code § 17511.5(e). A home solicitation contract or offer is a contract or offer "for the sale, lease, or rental of goods or services or both, made at other than appropriate trade premises in an amount of twenty-five dollars ($25) or more, including any interest or service charges." Civ. Code § 1689.5(a).

At the time of the solicitation, the seller must tell the buyer orally that "The buyer has the right to cancel the contract or offer until midnight of the third business day after the day on which the buyer receives the product or products ordered or the notice of confirmation of services ordered." Bus. & Prof. Code § 17511.5(e)(1)(A). The seller must also send a written notice, in duplicate, captioned "Notice of Buyer’s Right of Cancellation," with the products or with the confirmation of services. § 17511.5(e)(2). The prescribed notice states that payments "shall be returned to you within 10 days following receipt by the seller of your cancellation notice." Id. Since January 1, 2026, the notice tells the buyer to "email, mail, or deliver a signed and dated copy of this cancellation notice, or any other written notice." Id.

The bond also protects "any person suffering pecuniary loss in a transaction commenced during the period of bond coverage with a telephonic seller who violated this chapter." § 17511.12(a). Separately, Civil Code § 1689.6(a)(1) gives the buyer under a home solicitation contract or offer the right to cancel "until midnight of the third business day, or until midnight of the fifth business day if the buyer is a senior citizen, after the day on which the buyer signs an agreement or offer to purchase which complies with Section 1689.7."

Exemptions from the do-not-call law

Section 17592(e) lists eight exemptions:

• Written agreement. § 17592(e)(1).
• Express request. § 17592(e)(2). Express request is presumed absent if the call is made "30 business days after the last date on which the subscriber contacted a business with the purpose of inquiring about the potential purchase of goods or services," or 30 business days after the subscriber consented to be contacted. § 17592(e)(2)(A), (B).
• Debt collection calls. § 17592(e)(3).
• Established business relationship. § 17592(e)(4).
• Small business calls. § 17592(e)(5). These are calls by a business with "no more than five full- or part-time employees or independent contractors," made personally by the owner or a principal, "to subscribers within a 50-mile radius."
• Calls made solely to verify that a subscriber has terminated a relationship. § 17592(e)(6).
• Calls by a tax-exempt charitable organization. § 17592(e)(7).
• Calls soliciting a donation without a purchase. § 17592(e)(8).

The established business relationship is defined as "a relationship between a seller and a subscriber based on the subscriber's purchase, rental, or lease of the seller's goods or services or a financial transaction between the consumer and seller, within the 18 months immediately preceding the date of a telemarketing call." § 17592(e)(4). An established business relationship does not extend to a separate legal entity associated with the solicitor "unless the separate legal entity shares the brand name of a business with which the subscriber has an otherwise established business relationship." Id.

Private right of action

Do-not-call. The private remedy is limited to small claims court. Anyone "who has received a telephone solicitation that is prohibited by Section 17592" may sue in small claims court "for an injunction or order to prevent further violations." Bus. & Prof. Code § 17593(b). If the injunction is served and the person "thereafter receives further solicitations in violation of the injunction or order within 30 days after service of the initial injunction or order," that person may file a second small claims action seeking "a civil penalty to be awarded to the person in an amount up to one thousand dollars ($1,000)." Id. Claims "may not be aggregated to establish jurisdiction in a court other than small claims court." Id.

CLRA. "Any consumer who suffers any damage as a result of the use or employment by any person of a method, act, or practice declared to be unlawful by Section 1770 may bring an action." Civ. Code § 1780(a). A consumer seeking damages must first give notice. "Thirty days or more prior to the commencement of an action for damages pursuant to this title," the consumer must notify the person of the alleged violations and demand correction. § 1782(a). The notice must be "sent by certified or registered mail, return receipt requested." Id.

Texts. Section 17538.41 has no private damages provision of its own. A private injunction action under § 17535 is available only to a person "who has suffered injury in fact and has lost money or property as a result of a violation of this chapter."

Fax. The junk fax statute provides a private action "In addition to any other remedy provided by law, including a remedy provided by the Telephone Consumer Act (47 U.S.C. Sec. 227 and following)." Bus. & Prof. Code § 17538.43(b)(2).

UCL. A private UCL action requires that the plaintiff be a person "who has suffered injury in fact and has lost money or property as a result of the unfair competition." Bus. & Prof. Code § 17204. The UCL defines unfair competition to include "any unlawful, unfair or fraudulent business act or practice." § 17200.

ADAD. The Public Utilities Code article does not itself create a private damages action. It is enforced by the CPUC.

Damages

• Do-not-call. Up to 1,000 dollars per second small claims action after an injunction is violated. Bus. & Prof. Code § 17593(b).
• CLRA. "Actual damages, but in no case shall the total award of damages in a class action be less than one thousand dollars ($1,000)," plus injunctive relief, restitution, and "Punitive damages." Civ. Code § 1780(a)(1) to (4). Senior citizens and disabled persons may recover up to an additional 5,000 dollars on specified findings. § 1780(b)(1).
• Fax. "Actual damages or statutory damages of five hundred dollars ($500) per violation, whichever amount is greater." Bus. & Prof. Code § 17538.43(b)(2)(B). If the violation was willful or knowing, the court may increase the award "to an amount equal to not more than three times the amount otherwise available." Id.
• ADAD. "A fine of not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500) for each violation, levied and enforced by the commission," and disconnection of telephone service to the device for a period the commission specifies. Pub. Util. Code § 2876(a), (b).

Attorney fees

Under the CLRA, "The court shall award court costs and attorney's fees to a prevailing plaintiff in litigation filed pursuant to this section." Civ. Code § 1780(e). A prevailing defendant may recover reasonable fees "upon a finding by the court that the plaintiff's prosecution of the action was not in good faith." Id. The do-not-call small claims remedy and the text message statute contain no fee-shifting provision.

Class action limits

The do-not-call private remedy cannot be brought as a class action in practice, because it is confined to small claims court and claims "may not be aggregated." Bus. & Prof. Code § 17593(b).

The CLRA expressly permits class actions. A consumer may sue "on behalf of himself and such other consumers to recover damages or obtain other relief as provided for in Section 1780." Civ. Code § 1781(a). There are limits. "No action for damages may be maintained under Section 1781" if the defendant shows that all similarly situated consumers were identified, notified, and offered a remedy, and that the practice has ceased. § 1782(c).

Under § 17535, which governs private injunction actions under the chapter that contains the text message statute, a private person "may pursue representative claims or relief on behalf of others only if the claimant meets the standing requirements of this section and complies with Section 382 of the Code of Civil Procedure." Bus. & Prof. Code § 17535.

Statute of limitations

• CLRA. "Any action brought under the specific provisions of Section 1770 shall be commenced not more than three years from the date of the commission of such method, act, or practice." Civ. Code § 1783.
• UCL. "Any action to enforce any cause of action pursuant to this chapter shall be commenced within four years after the cause of action accrued." Bus. & Prof. Code § 17208.

The do-not-call article, the text message statute, and the ADAD article contain no limitations period of their own. General limitations periods in the Code of Civil Procedure may apply to claims under those provisions.

Attorney General and public enforcement

"The Attorney General, a district attorney, or a city attorney may bring a civil action in any court of competent jurisdiction against a telephone solicitor to enforce the article." Bus. & Prof. Code § 17593(a). Available relief includes an injunction and "A civil penalty of up to the penalty amount that the Federal Trade Commission may seek pursuant to subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) of subsection (m) of Section 45 of Title 15 of the United States Code as specified in Section 1.98 of Title 16 of the Code of Federal Regulations." § 17593(a)(2). That ties the state penalty to the inflation-adjusted FTC civil penalty, which 16 C.F.R. § 1.98(d) currently sets at $53,088 for violations of 15 U.S.C. § 45(m)(1)(A). The FTC adjusts the amount annually.

The statute offers a defense "that the violation was accidental and in violation of the telephone solicitor's policies and procedures and telemarketer instruction and training." § 17593(d).

The Attorney General may also issue certificates showing whether a number was on the list on a given date. These are available in response to "An inquiry from an individual who is investigating or litigating an alleged violation of this article and who seeks the certificate regarding the individual's telephone number." § 17594(b).

Under the UCL, public prosecutors may recover "a civil penalty not to exceed two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) for each violation." Bus. & Prof. Code § 17206(a).

Federal comparison

California's do-not-call law is in some respects less demanding than federal law, and in others more demanding. Its three-month list currency rule is more lenient than the federal requirement to use "a version of the national do-not-call registry obtained from the administrator of the registry no more than 31 days prior to the date any call is made." 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(c)(2)(i)(D). Because the federal rule applies to the same calls, sellers must follow the 31-day rule. California's consent exemption is stricter, because consent included in a contract of adhesion does not count. California's small business exemption has no federal counterpart, so small callers within the exemption must still comply with the federal registry rules.

For prerecorded calls, federal law generally requires "the prior express written consent of the called party" for telemarketing calls to residential lines. 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(a)(3). The California ADAD statute offers a different path: either a prior agreement, or a live natural voice introduction that obtains consent to hear the message. The statute does not say whether federal prior express written consent satisfies the "prior agreement" required by § 2873. The CLRA rule in § 1770(a)(22) contains no prior agreement exception, only established relationship, debt collection, and recipient-requested exceptions. Sellers should not assume that federal consent satisfies the CLRA rule.

The ADAD definition reaches stored-list dialing equipment that Duguid places outside the federal autodialer definition. California law therefore reaches list-based prerecorded campaigns that may fall outside 47 U.S.C. § 227(b)(1)(A) for equipment purposes, although federal rules on artificial or prerecorded voice calls still apply regardless of the dialing equipment.

On texts, the Seventh Circuit held in July 2026 that the private do-not-call action in 47 U.S.C. § 227(c)(5) does not cover text messages. Steidinger v. Blackstone Medical Services, LLC, No. 25-2398 (7th Cir. July 14, 2026). California is in the Ninth Circuit, and § 17538.41 bans text message advertisements on its own terms, independent of how federal courts resolve that question.

Case law

Gresham v. Picker, No. 2:16-cv-01848-JAM-CKD (E.D. Cal. Oct. 7, 2016). A political consultant and his Virginia-based communications company sought a preliminary injunction against enforcement of the ADAD statute, arguing that Reed v. Town of Gilbert (2015) required strict scrutiny. The district court explained that, in Bland v. Fessler, 88 F.3d 729 (9th Cir. 1996), the Ninth Circuit had applied intermediate scrutiny and upheld the statute. The court found that Bland was not clearly irreconcilable with Reed, remained binding, and therefore defeated the motion. The court denied the preliminary injunction.

Gresham v. Picker, No. 16-16829 (9th Cir. Aug. 24, 2017) (unpublished). The Ninth Circuit affirmed. It described Bland as holding that "Section 2872 was constitutional on its face because it was content neutral, served a significant governmental interest, was narrowly tailored to serve that interest, and left open alternative channels of communication." The panel reasoned that "Whether or not Bland remains good law, Plaintiffs fail to establish that they are likely to succeed on the merits." It explained that the exemptions in § 2872(d)(1) to (4) "are simply examples of 'an established relationship' set forth in subsection (f)," and that they are severable. The only remaining route around the statute was the established relationship exemption in subsection (f), which "is, as Plaintiffs acknowledge, content- and speaker-neutral and would not trigger strict scrutiny." The memorandum states that it "is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent except as provided by Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3." After the appeal, the district court dismissed the action without prejudice on the parties' stipulation. Order of Dismissal, No. 2:16-cv-01848-JAM-CKD (E.D. Cal. Mar. 16, 2018).

No published decision construing the 2025 artificial voice disclosure in § 2874(a)(3) or the text message ban in § 17538.41 was located in official sources for this page.

Recent amendments

• Stats. 2024, ch. 316 (AB 2905), effective January 1, 2025. Amended Pub. Util. Code § 2874 to require the natural voice announcement to "Inform the person called if the prerecorded message uses an artificial voice." It also added definitions of "artificial intelligence" and "artificial voice."
• Stats. 2024, ch. 853 (AB 3281), effective January 1, 2025. A judiciary omnibus bill that amended the telephonic seller registration and bond provisions, Bus. & Prof. Code §§ 17511.3 and 17511.12, to replace references to the Consumer Law Section of the Department of Justice with the Consumer Protection Section, with other nonsubstantive changes.
• Stats. 2025, ch. 348 (AB 1327), effective January 1, 2026. Amended Bus. & Prof. Code § 17511.5 and the home improvement and home solicitation cancellation provisions so that a notice of cancellation may also be delivered by email.
• Stats. 2022, ch. 36 (AB 2906), effective January 1, 2023. Amended Pub. Util. Code § 2872(d)(1) to permit ADAD use by a school "for purposes of contacting parents or guardians of pupils regarding attendance or the health or safety of pupils."

Compliance checklist

• Scrub California numbers against the National Do Not Call Registry at least every 31 days to satisfy federal rules, which are stricter than California's three-month standard.
• For do-not-call consent, obtain a signed written agreement naming the seller. Keep the original or a copy, and do not rely on consent buried in a contract of adhesion.
• For any prerecorded campaign to California numbers, either hold a prior agreement or open each call with a live, natural voice that gives the nature of the call and the business name, address, and phone number, asks for consent, and discloses any AI-generated voice.
• Do not place ADAD calls that reach California phones between 9 p.m. and 9 a.m., and confirm that the CPUC phone company application under § 2875 has been made.
• Treat list-based dialers that can play recorded messages as ADADs under California law, regardless of how they are classified under Duguid.
• For telephone sales that are home solicitation contracts, give the oral and written cancellation disclosures required by § 17511.5(e).
• Send marketing texts to California residents only where an existing relationship exists and the message offers an opt-out, or confirm another exception applies.
• Determine whether your offers make you a "telephonic seller" under § 17511.1. If so, register with the Department of Justice at least 10 days before calling, renew annually, and post the 100,000-dollar bond.
• Honor internal do-not-call requests across all entities that share the brand name.
• Document policies, training, and telemarketer instructions to support the accidental violation defense in § 17593(d).

References

• https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17590
• https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17592
• https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17593
• https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17511.1
• https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17511.3
• https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17511.12
• https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17538.41
• https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17538.43
• https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=PUC&sectionNum=2871
• https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=PUC&sectionNum=2872
• https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=PUC&sectionNum=2874
• https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=PUC&sectionNum=2875.5
• https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV&sectionNum=1770
• https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV&sectionNum=1780
• https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV&sectionNum=1783
• https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17208
• https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=17511.5
• https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV&sectionNum=1689.5
• https://docs.cpuc.ca.gov/word_pdf/FINAL_DECISION/24516.pdf
• https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCOURTS-caed-2_16-cv-01848/pdf/USCOURTS-caed-2_16-cv-01848-1.pdf
• https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/memoranda/2017/08/24/16-16829.pdf
• https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCOURTS-caed-2_16-cv-01848/pdf/USCOURTS-caed-2_16-cv-01848-4.pdf
• https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-16/chapter-I/subchapter-A/part-1/subpart-L/section-1.98
• https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-47/chapter-I/subchapter-B/part-64/subpart-L/section-64.1200
• https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-16/chapter-I/subchapter-C/part-310

This page summarizes state law for general informational purposes and is not legal advice. Statutes change; confirm current text with the official source before relying on it.