Gov. Ryan Signs Telephone Solicitation Bill Into Law

SPRINGFIELD -- Gov. George H. Ryan today signed into law Senate Bill 1830 which will allow telephone customers to indicate if they want to receive telephone calls from businesses or other organizations trying to sell products or solicit donations.

"I gave serious consideration to amendatorily vetoing Senate Bill 1830 to remove all of the exemptions, but I was concerned about violating the gubernatorial non- complaince threshold on what is and is not acceptable in an amendatory veto," Gov. Ryan said in a signing message.

"I am going to sign Senate Bill 1830 into law, but I do so with some disappointment and with the hope that the General Assembly will build on this small, first step, by passing future improvements that reduce, and hopefully eliminate, the many exemptions that will be in the new law," Gov. Ryan said.

Telephone customers should be free not to put their names on the "do-not-call" list if they so desire and customers who pay to be on the list should have their wishes respected, the Governor said.

The bill was sponsored in the Senate by: Sens. Todd Sieben, R-Geneseo; Barak Obama, D-Chicago; Ira Silverstein, D-Chicago; Larry Bomke. R-Springfield; Adeline Geo-Karis, R-Zion. The House sponsors were: Reps. Jay Hoffman, D- Collinsville; Bill Black, D-Danville; Jack Franks, D-Woodstock; Susan Garrett, D-Lake Forest; and Gary Forby, D-Benton.