The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is seeking input on the American Bankers Association’s (ABA) petition requesting that the FCC exempt certain time-sensitive informational notifications from the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA)’s restrictions on calls and text messages to cell phones.

The TCPA generally prohibits certain calls and text messages to cell phones that are made with an autodialer or an artificial or prerecorded voice, except calls made with the prior express consent of the called party.1 The FCC, however, may exempt calls or text messages to a cell phone that are not charged to the called party, “subject to such conditions” as the FCC may prescribe to protect consumer privacy rights.2 The ABA’s petition points out that for certain types of informational calls, such as fraud alerts and data security breaches, automated communications to cell phones are the best way to provide quick and efficient notifications to customers in time-sensitive situations. Specifically, the ABA’s petition seeks to exempt the following types of automated calls and text messages...