State Rep. Mike McGeehan is being non-partisan in his release (see below), but I'm guessing his action was prompted at least partly by the abusive Republican robo-calls in the Jim Gerlach vs. Lois Murphy race (see Jill Porter's Nov. 1 column for details).

McGeehan bill would play ‘terminator’ to ‘robo-calls’
News conference Tuesday in Harrisburg

HARRISBURG, Nov. 17 – At 10 a.m. Tuesday, Nov. 21 in the Media Center at the state Capitol in Harrisburg, state Rep. Mike McGeehan, D-Phila., will announce the introduction of legislation that would add automated political messages to the types of calls banned by the state’s Telemarketer Restriction Act, commonly known as the “Do Not Call” Act.

“People tell me universally that they hate these calls from candidates at almost every level of government. But with the amount of money being spent on campaigns rising, these calls are becoming a tactic of choice because they reach out to many people at a relatively modest cost,” McGeehan said.

“These calls are annoying, especially when they interrupt dinner or wake people who work night shifts.”

McGeehan said the fact that the calls often annoy people has prompted some campaigns to use automated messages that sound like they’re coming from the opponent.

“The door is wide open to robo-call fraud and it should be nipped in the bud,” McGeehan said.

McGeehan added that the legislation would not ban campaigns from making non-automated calls by individuals.

McGeehan said that while the introduction comes within days of the end of the current legislative session, he wants to get it exposure now to help it move toward becoming law during the next legislative session.

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