‘Needed oversight’: lawmakers propose bills to make AI robocalls illegal in Michigan
FILE – In this Aug. 11, 2019, file photo, a man uses a cell phone in New Orleans. Two GOP State Reps. in Michigan have proposed a bill to make AI robocalls illegal. /Jenny Kane, File)
LANSING, Mich. —There’s been action to stop spam calls on the federal level, and now, Michigan lawmakers are looking to crack down, as well.
Data from call-blocking service YouMail shows Michiganders received an estimated 964.2 million spam calls so far this year.
That translates to just under a hundred calls per person.
“I get a few of them a day,” State Rep. Joseph Aragona (R-Clinton Township) said.
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But more than just pre-recorded calls, which tend to sound robotic, there are calls produced with the use of artificial intelligence.
Those calls can mimic humans.
“With the dawn of AI, you know, there’s a lot of good things that AI is used for,” Aragona said. “This is one of the bad things.”
AI generated calls are illegal on the federal level unless recipients opt in.
Now, Aragona and fellow metro Detroit lawmaker, Rep. Riley Linting (R-Wyandotte), are proposing bills to make it a state crime, as well.
“Not only is it bothersome in general, it’s often misleading or predatory and takes advantage of our most vulnerable residents,” Linting said of the calls. “This plan offers needed oversight to rein in spam calls and texts, provides protection for consumers and respects people’s privacy.”
House Bills 6393-94 would fine violators $500 per call.
“For a big company, $500, one time, not that big a deal, but it’s every call, so it’ll add up pretty fast,” Aragona said.
The attorney general’s office would receive complaints, take action and compile them into an annual report to lawmakers.
Aragona said he and Linting spoke with industries that use robocalls to ensure they’re not affected.
He thinks the fine will be an effective deterrent, but is open to a tougher fine.
“Maybe this is something where we got to come back and amend it later on,” Aragona said. “Hopefully, those attorney general reports coming in a couple of years just show very little activity going through this legislation at all because we’ve stopped it.”
Oftentimes, though, those making the calls aren’t in the U.S.
Aragona conceded those callers would be harder for the attorney general to tackle.
“That’s, again, where some of that federal legislation comes in,” he said. “But you know, any nexus within within our country and especially within our state, there are tools that the attorney general’s office would have to to go after them.”
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The bills were referred to the Committee on Regulatory Reform, which Aragona chairs.
He believes the bills will garner bipartisan support, noting he and his colleagues often receive complaints from constituents about the calls.
With only a few months left in session, he hopes the bills can be passed soon. He did, however, leave the possibility open that he could work on the bills next session if they do not pass.
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