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Foxx moves to eliminate "robocalls"By James Howell, Ashe Mountain Times
West Jefferson, N.C.,
February 21, 2015
Virginia Foxx, who represents North Carolina’s 5th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives, introduced legislation to stop the use of political “robocalls” across the United States.
According to information released by Foxx’s office, she was joined by fellow Republican David Jolly, of Florida, in introducing House Resolution 827. “Every campaign season, like clockwork, families are bombarded by an endless stream of political robocalls,” Foxx said. “Though citizens are able to stop receiving telemarketing calls, politicians made sure to exempt political robocalls from the power of the Do Not Call Registry. Removing that exemption through the Robo COP Act is a matter of fairness.” According to Foxx’s spokeswoman, Sheridan Watson, H.R. 827 would expand the types of unsolicited calls restricted by the national Do Not Call Registry to include political robocalls. Watson said this would give “the American people the opportunity to opt-out of the bothersome campaign season interruption.” The Robo COP Act would direct the Federal Trade Commission to revise its regulations regarding the National Do Not Call registry to prohibit prerecorded campaign messages from being sent to telephone numbers on the national registry. Robocalls are defined in the legislation as unsolicited, political calls where a live person is not available to speak with the individual answering the phone. Foxx also voted in support of approving the Keystone XL pipeline, which passed the U.S. House of Representatives by a vote of 270 to 152 on Feb. 11. “For more than six years, supporters of the Keystone XL pipeline have been fighting to secure the necessary approval that would allow the U.S. to take advantage of vital oil production in Canada and the northern United States,” Foxx said. “It is the most studied pipeline in our nation’s history, and thousands of pages prove its worth to our economy and national interest and further document its safety. It will spur job creation, help us on our way to energy security and increase access to affordable North American oil.” According to Watson, President Barack Obama has threatened to veto the bill, which has now passed through the House 11 times. On Feb. 11, Foxx voted in favor of legislation that will replace No Child Left Behind with new policies. House Resolution 5 passed through the House Committee on Education and the Workforce by a vote of 21 to 16. H.R. 5, or “The Student Success Act,” would replace national accountability standards, which are based on standardized testing, with state led accountability systems. On Feb. 12, Foxx voted in favor of House Resolution 644, which passed the House by a vote of 279 to 137. H.R. 644 would make permanent tax deductions for the donation of food, conservation land and IRA contributions, and would simplify the tax rate for private foundations. http://ashemountaintimes.com/news/foxx-moves-to-eliminate-robocalls/article_30ce0246-b90a-11e4-871f-2fef324f6890.html |