LANSING, Mich. — The Michigan Senate on Thursday approved Sen. Roger Victory’s measure as part of bipartisan legislation to strengthen enforcement against robocall scams.

“All Michigan residents deserve the freedom to live their lives without the harassment and threat of scam robocalls,” said Victory, R-Hudsonville. “This commonsense legislation would help stop robocall scams attempting to take advantage of Michigan consumers — especially our senior citizens — by improving consumer protections and safeguarding folks from these malicious solicitations.”

Senate Bills 351-355 would:

• Create explicit rules that telephone solicitors must follow to better protect consumers.
• Prohibit telephone solicitors from blocking caller ID or displaying misleading names, phone numbers or area codes.
• Strengthen tools to allow the attorney general to investigate and pursue civil actions for alleged violations or noncompliance.
• Impose penalties and fines of up to $75,000 for telephone solicitors who target vulnerable residents.

“I’m hopeful that with such strong support in the Senate, this legislation will quickly be approved by the House to improve the everyday lives of Michigan families,” Victory said.

The bills now head to the House of Representatives for consideration.

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