The California Do Not Call list is the federal National Do Not Call Registry, which the state legislature formally adopted as its own.1California Legislative Information. California Code, Business and Professions Code BPC 17590 One free registration at DoNotCall.gov covers you under both federal and California law. Most commercial telemarketers must stop calling within 31 days, and if they don’t, you can file a complaint or sue for $500 or more per illegal call.
How to Register Your Number
Registration is free and takes about a minute. You have two options:
- Online at DoNotCall.gov. You can enter up to three numbers at once. You’ll get a confirmation email for each one, and you need to click the link within 72 hours to finish. For more than three numbers, go through the form again.2Federal Trade Commission. Q&A: The National Do Not Call Registry
- By phone at 1-888-382-1222. Call from the number you want to register. One number per call.3Consumer Advice. National Do Not Call Registry FAQs
Your registration never expires. The FTC only removes a number if the line is disconnected and reassigned, or if you ask to be taken off.3Consumer Advice. National Do Not Call Registry FAQs To check whether a number is still on the list, use DoNotCall.gov or call the same toll-free line from that phone.
When the Calls Should Stop
Don’t expect silence overnight. Telemarketers are required to pull a fresh copy of the registry every 31 days and scrub their call lists.4Federal Trade Commission. Complying With the Telemarketing Sales Rule – Section: The National Do Not Call Registry Requirements Any sales call after that 31-day window is a violation.
Who Can Still Call You
The registry blocks commercial sales calls. Several categories of callers are exempt and can still legally reach a registered number.
Political, Charitable, and Informational Calls
Political organizations, campaigns, and voter surveys can call regardless of your registration status. Charities and nonprofits can call to solicit donations. Purely informational calls that aren’t trying to sell anything, like appointment reminders or delivery notifications, are also exempt.
Companies You’ve Done Business With
A company you’ve bought from, paid, or received a delivery from can keep calling you for 18 months after that last transaction. If you only made an inquiry or submitted an application without buying anything, that company has a three-month calling window from the date of the inquiry.5Federal Trade Commission. Q&A for Telemarketers and Sellers About DNC Provisions in TSR This is where most people get caught off guard: signing up for a free trial, requesting a quote, or filling out a web form gives that company a temporary green light to call, even if your number is on the registry.
The exception ends the moment you ask the company to stop. Once you make that request, no prior relationship justifies another call.
Telling a Specific Company to Stop Calling
Separate from the national list, every telemarketer must maintain its own internal do-not-call list. When you say “take me off your list,” the company must honor that request going forward.6eCFR. 16 CFR 310.4 – Abusive Telemarketing Acts or Practices The Telemarketing Sales Rule makes it illegal to interfere with that right in any way: no making you listen to a pitch first, no fees, no transferring you to a different number to opt out.
If you previously gave a company permission to contact you, you can revoke that consent at any time by any reasonable method. “Stop,” “revoke,” and “opt-out” are all recognized revocation language, and the company must cease telemarketing communications immediately. Replying “stop” to a text message carries the same force.
California’s Robocall and AI Voice Rules
California adds its own layer on top of the federal registry. Under the California Public Utilities Code, a business using an automatic dialing device must connect you with a live person first, before any prerecorded message plays. That live caller has to identify the nature of the call, give the name and contact information of the company, and ask whether you consent to hear the recording. If the prerecorded message uses an artificial voice, the caller must disclose that too.7California Legislative Information. California Public Utilities Code 2874
In February 2024, the FCC ruled that AI-generated and cloned voices count as “artificial” voices under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.8Federal Communications Commission. FCC Makes AI-Generated Voices in Robocalls Illegal AI voice robocalls now require the same prior consent as any other robocall, and a caller who uses a cloned voice to impersonate someone without your consent is violating the TCPA.
What About Spam Texts
The Do Not Call Registry was built for phone calls, not texts, but marketing texts are still regulated. The TCPA requires businesses to get your prior written consent before sending automated marketing texts, and the penalties for violations are the same as for illegal robocalls. Reply “STOP” to opt out; the sender has 10 business days to process it and stop texting. You can also forward spam texts to 7726 (SPAM) to alert your wireless carrier.
Filing a Complaint
If a telemarketer calls your registered number after the 31-day grace period, file a complaint. The California Attorney General’s office directs consumers to the FTC’s system rather than running a separate state process.9State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Filing a Complaint
Submit it online at DoNotCall.gov or by calling 1-888-382-1222. You’ll need the name of the company that called (or the number it called from) and the date of the call. Without those two pieces, the FTC can’t investigate.9State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Filing a Complaint Complaints feed into the FTC’s Consumer Sentinel database, which the California Attorney General and other law enforcement agencies use to identify repeat offenders.
Suing a Telemarketer Yourself
A complaint puts the government on notice, but you don’t have to wait for the FTC to act. The TCPA gives you a private right to sue.
For robocall violations, including prerecorded voices, auto-dialers, and AI-generated voices used without your consent, you can sue for $500 per illegal call. If a court finds the caller acted willfully, the amount triples to $1,500 per call.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 47 USC 227 – Telephone Consumer Protection Act
For do-not-call violations specifically, you have to show you received more than one call within a 12-month period from the same company before you can sue. Damages run up to $500 per violation, or up to $1,500 for willful violations.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 47 USC 227 – Telephone Consumer Protection Act A company can defend itself by showing it had reasonable procedures in place to prevent the violations, so document everything: save voicemails, screenshot caller ID, and write down the date and time of each call.
TCPA lawsuits are filed in state court. The statute of limitations is governed by state law, and courts have reached different conclusions on the applicable period, so talk to a California attorney about deadlines before filing. For smaller amounts, California’s small claims court handles cases up to $10,000, which is a practical venue when a persistent telemarketer has racked up enough calls to justify a claim.