Whether the government-debt exception to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991’s automated-call restriction violates the First Amendment, and whether the proper remedy for any constitutional violation is to sever the exception from the remainder of the statute. Id. A proper inquiry should examine the seriousness of the speech-related harm, the importance of countervailing objectives, the likelihood that the restriction will achieve those objectives, and whether there are other, less restrictive ways of doing so. §227(b)(1)(A)(iii). This case concerns the constitutionality of an exemption to the autodialer ban in the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”). Id. Id. No. at 29–30. "The TCPA prohibits calls to cell phones by use of an automated dialing system or an artificial or prerecorded voice, subject to three statutory exemptions (the "automated call ban"). Hughes • American Association of Political Consultants, Inc. Brief of Amici Curiae State of Indiana et al. The American Association of Political Correspondents, Inc., et al. B. Id. Sotomayor • at 25–26. Harlan I • Chase • Strict scrutiny is often used by courts when a plaintiff sues the government for discrimination. Powell • at 25. Justice Stephen Breyer filed an opinion concurring in the judgment with respect to severability and dissenting in part, in which Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Elena Kagan joined. The Government draws further support for severability from the TCPA’s twenty-four-year history prior to the government-debt exception. The district court granted summary judgment to the government, finding unpersuasive the free speech argument. Given those facts, the government-debt exception should survive intermediate First Amendment scrutiny. For instance, MCM points to TCPA lawsuits against companies such as GroupMe, Twitter, Google, and Lyft. Murphy • Clifford • Id. We cure that constitutional violation by invalidating the 2015 government-debt exception and severing it from the remainder of the statute. Barr v. American Association of Political Consultants, Inc. Government-debt exception to federal law restricting robocalls violates First Amendment Id. Brief of Amicus Curiae Midland Credit Management (“MCM”), Brief of Amicus Curiae the Portfolio Recovery Associates, LLC, Brief of Amicus Curiae Chamber of Commerce, Five Key TCPA Cases to Know as We Enter the Second Quarter of 2020, Entire TCPA Autodialer Ban Should Be Axed, High Court Told. Tab Group. at 17. The TCPA prohibits use of an “automated telephone dialing system” to call an individual’s phone without prior authorization. April 3, 2020: The U.S. Supreme Court postponed its April sitting. The Portfolio Recovery Associates, LLC (“PRC”) also argues that the TCPA could harm consumers by censoring messages and chilling free speech. [4] Click here for more information about the ruling. American Association of Political Consultants, scheduled for May 6 at 11:00 a.m. Washington State Grange v. Washington State Republican Party, 552 U.S. 442, 451 (2008). The argument focused on the two questions … Invoking "severability doctrine," it declares the government-debt exception void and severs it from the statute. The SLSA contends that having live, in-person conversations over the phone is an important avenue for the government to collect such debt. Strict scrutiny is the highest standard of review which a court will use to evaluate the constitutionality of governmental discrimination. (3) Hence, the exception is subject to “strict scrutiny.” Ante, at 9. at 5. But several groups have recently challenged the constitutionality of an exemption to the autodialer ban that Congress passed in 2015. Sutherland • Nelson • Id. at 4–5. In any event, AAPC argues, the statute is still constitutionally infirm because it effects a content-based ban on speech in that it prohibits speech based on the “message a speaker conveys.” Id. Although Congress likely contemplated protecting cellphone users from unwanted charges in enacting the cellphone-call restriction, AAPC asserts, because most cellphone carriers no longer impose charges for calls, the Government cannot rely on charge-avoidance to justify the ban’s broad scope. EPIC further contends that with evolving technology and readily available mass-dialing and auto-dialing technology, the number of robocalls is likely to increase in the future. Blatchford • Id. at 16–17. Oral argument in. Id. On July 6, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court decided Barr v. American Association of Political Consultants, No. T. Johnson • Yesterday, the Supreme Court decided Barr v. American Association of Political Consultants. Id. May 7, 2020 Michael P. Daly and Deanna J. Hayes Automatic Telephone Dialing System, Debt Collection, Exemptions, First Amendment, Strict Scrutiny, Supreme Court. Am. ); see also City of Ladue v. Gilleo, 512 U.S. 43, 51–53 (1994) (explaining that an appropriate "solution" to a law that covers "too little speech because its exemptions discriminate on the basis of [the speaker's] messages" could be to "remove" the discrimination). at 30. 47 U.S.C. Gorsuch • Id. Brewer • Id. [6], On April 24, 2019, the United States Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit vacatedTo void, cancel, nullify, or invalidate a verdict or judgment of a court. Id. Join AAPC; Member Center. Oral argument for Barr v. American Association of Political Consultants Inc. was initially scheduled for April 22, 2020. Furthermore, AAPC maintains, the “sweeping” exceptions that Congress allows to the cellphone-call ban further undermines the Government’s insistence on the importance of its asserted privacy interest. And, in my view, there is no basis here to apply "strict scrutiny" based on "content discrimination". Id. See United States v. Alvarez, 567 U.S. 709, 730–731 (2012) (Breyer, J., concurring in judgment); Reed, 576 U.S., at 179 (Breyer, J., concurring in judgment). at 16–20. The American Association of Political Consultants (AAPC) is the trade group for the political consulting profession in the United States.Founded in 1969, it is the world's largest organization of political consultants, public affairs professionals and communications specialists. Day • American Association of Political Consultants, the court decided that the 2015 exception violates the First Amendment’s speech clause. Id. Ginsburg • EPIC contends that unwanted robocalls violate an individual’s right to be left alone and should outweigh “the First Amendment rights of the intruder.” Id. Kavanaugh • at 18–20. Byrnes • See. Marshall • Pitney • Description. Barr, Attorney General v. American Association of Political Consultants, Inc. Strict scrutiny is the highest standard of review which a court will use to evaluate the constitutionality of governmental discrimination. 19–631.� Argued May 6, 2020—Decided July 6, 2020 Id. May 6, 2020 Preview by Austin Martin, Senior Online Editor. Id. Collecting this debt is costly to the Government, it argues, and allowing automated calls would save the Government and public an estimated $120 million over ten years. To void, cancel, nullify, or invalidate a verdict or judgment of a court. I would find that the government-debt exception does not violate the First Amendment. As further indication that the restriction is content based, AAPC cites an FCC order indicating that if a call includes advertising- or sales-related content, this content transforms an otherwise permissible call into an impermissible one. The Chamber explains that plaintiffs congregate to bring class action lawsuits against businesses after receiving TCPA-prohibited calls. Id. Bradley • ... A severance remedy not only fails to help the plaintiffs, it harms strangers to this suit. Taft • In 2005, Congress amended the TCPA by adding a third exemption to the cellphone-call ban: the ban would not apply to calls to cell phones that are generated for the purpose of collecting debt owed to or guaranteed by the United States federal government (“government-debt exception”). Brown • Chase • Share. The Government argues that the government-debt exception to the automated-call restriction in the TCPA is not a content-based regulation of speech. The American Association of Political Consultants, Inc. challenged this third provision of the Act, alleging that it violates the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment by imposing a content-based restriction on speech. 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