New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport and a coalition of 49 attorneys general want the FCC to tighten rules aimed at stopping illegal calls before they reach consumers
TRENTON, NJ – Americans were hit with more than 29.6 billion scam robocalls and texts last year and lost nearly $2 billion, prompting New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport and a 49-attorney general coalition to press federal regulators Wednesday for tougher rules targeting the phone companies that carry illegal calls.
The coalition is calling on the Federal Communications Commission to strengthen its Know Your Upstream Provider rules, known as KYUP.
The proposed requirements focus on voice service providers and the companies from which they accept call traffic.
Phone calls can pass through several providers before reaching a consumer. The attorneys general argue that each company handling the traffic represents another opportunity to identify and stop illegal calls.
Under the proposed framework, phone companies would face stronger obligations to determine who their upstream providers are and whether those businesses are transmitting large volumes of illegal calls.
The coalition wants providers to conduct greater scrutiny before accepting call traffic, allowing companies to reject, suspend or terminate relationships with providers linked to unlawful calls.
The attorneys general also want the FCC to apply scrutiny comparable to the STIR/SHAKEN framework used to combat caller ID spoofing.
Among the recommendations is a requirement for providers to better understand their customers’ businesses and conduct ongoing monitoring aimed at preventing bad actors from operating unchecked.
The coalition is also seeking stronger requirements for entities overseeing the STIR/SHAKEN system, including revoking participation privileges for noncompliant companies and establishing conflict-of-interest policies.
Another proposal would subject all originating providers to Know Your Customer standards. The attorneys general argue that doing so could prevent scammers from exploiting smaller voice service providers to place illegal calls.
Providers would also be required to collect additional information about customers considered at higher risk of generating illegal robocalls, including those purchasing high-volume calling services.
Wednesday’s action follows another effort co-led by Davenport involving Know Your Customer rules, which similarly focus on requiring phone companies to identify who is sending traffic through their networks and understand the nature of those businesses.
The broader crackdown has already produced federal action.
Davenport is a member of the Anti-Robocall Multistate Litigation Task Force, which launched Operation Robocall Roundup in 2025.
During its first phase, the task force sent warning letters to 37 smaller voice providers over alleged failures to meet certain FCC requirements designed to reduce illegal or suspicious robocalls.
The FCC recently ordered six of those companies to correct their robocall protection deficiencies or risk losing their ability to route calls across the U.S. telephone network.
The operation’s second phase expanded scrutiny to four large intermediate voice service providers while pushing for stronger Know Your Customer requirements.
The latest letter includes attorneys general representing states and jurisdictions across the country, including New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland and the District of Columbia.
Key Points
- Americans received more than 29.6 billion scam robocalls and texts last year and lost nearly $2 billion to scams, according to the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office.
- New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport co-led a 49-attorney general coalition seeking stronger FCC requirements for phone companies handling call traffic.
- The proposed rules are designed to identify problematic providers and stop illegal robocalls before they reach consumers.