MADISON, Wis. (WSAU) — A big change in Wisconsin’s do-not-call list has just occurred. Now, the list is permanent.
Wisconsinites with telephones had to re-register their numbers with the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection every two years to stay on the list designed to stop solicitors from calling. Wisconsin just eliminated it’s own list by merging with the national do-not-call list run by the Federal Trade Commission. It’s also faster now. Registering your phone number on the national list only takes one day. Once that’s done, telemarketers have 31 days to stop calling. Anyone who receives a telemarketing call or robocall after that can file a complaint with the state or federal government.
The Wisconsin list was updated quarterly, but the national list is updated daily. The consolidation is also expected to save taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars each year.
DATCP Division Administrator Sandy Chalmers says beware of scammers, too. She says to never dial back an unfamiliar number that only rings once, and watch out for ten area codes that fraud perpetrators often use. They are: 876, 473, 268, 284, 664, 649, 767, 809, 829 and 849.
If you need to report a problem contact the Federal Trade Commission or the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection:
Call the Federal Trade Commission at (888) 382-1222, or file complaints online at https://complaints.donotcall.gov/complaint/complaintcheck.aspx.
Call the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection at (800) 422-7128 or file complaints online at http://datcp.wi.gov.
