New Jersey Businesses May Face Texting Ban Under New Legislation

A bill currently awaiting Gov. Chris Christie’s signature would dramatically limit the ability of New Jersey businesses to advertise via text messages. Both the state Assembly and Senate unanimously approved the proposed legislation for a new texting ban.

A bill currently awaiting Gov. Chris Christie’s signature would dramatically limit the ability of New Jersey businesses to advertise via text messages. Both the state Assembly and Senate unanimously approved the proposed legislation for a new texting ban.

Under Assembly Bill No. 617, New Jersey businesses would have to obtain permission from text message recipients before sending any advertisements. Permission may be granted only with prior express authorization from the intended recipient that includes the number to which the text message advertisement may be sent. In addition, the permission may be revoked at any time with a request that includes the number for which permission is being revoked.

“Just as telephone customers have been able to close their homes to unwanted telemarketing calls, cell customers should be able to be free of unwanted text ads,” Assemblyman Paul Moriarty (D), one of the bill’s co-sponsors, said in statement.

The proposed bill also provides that any telecommunications company that offers text messaging services must also offer the option for customers to block all incoming and outgoing texts. Cell service providers, however, may continue to send text messages to customers concerning their existing accounts if the customer will not incur a telecommunications charge or a usage allocation deduction as a result of the message being sent.

Violations of the proposed law would be punishable by a monetary fine of up to $10,000, with subsequent offenses incurring a penalty of up to $20,000. The bill does provide an exception under which a sender would not be held liable for a violation if it demonstrates by clear and convincing evidence that any unsolicited text was an isolated message sent no more than one time in a 12-month period.

We will be closely tracking the status of AB 617. Businesses should be aware that several other states, including Connecticut, California, Washington, and Rhode Island, already have similar laws in place. Therefore, it is imperative to ensure that your advertising practices governing text messages are up-to-date.

If you have questions about this post or would like to discuss how you may be impacted by the proposed legislation, please contact me or the Scarinci Hollenbeck attorney with whom you work.