Miss. Regulators Impose Record $945K Fine on Calif. Telemarketer, But Will State Be Able to Collect?
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Utility regulators in Mississippi have imposed a record $945,000 fine on a California telemarketer for violating state law about contacting those on the “do not call” list.
The fine, which is by far the largest ever imposed by the Mississippi Public Service Commission, represents a maximum $5,000 penalty for each of the 189 robocalls at issue, the Associated Press reports.
However, the state is still trying to collect its previous record fine of $490,000 imposed on a Baltimore telemarketer, the article notes. Whether it will be able to obtain the $945,000 fine from Roy M. Cox Jr. of Santa Ana, Calif., and five companies he controls remains to be seen.
Additionally, the fine is not yet completely final: Cox has the right to appeal to Hinds County Chancery Court, the article notes. It doesn’t include any comment from Cox or counsel for him or his companies and says a lawyer representing Cox in a civil suit filed last year in California by the Federal Trade Commission didn’t respond to requests for comment on Tuesday.
Cox didn’t defend the Mississippi regulatory case, the AP says.
