Real Estate Lawyers.com provides
a nationwide listing of real estate lawyers, mortgage brokers
and real estate agents to represent you in your commercial
or residential real estate transaction needs. Simply
type in your zip code to find the right real estate professional
near you.
WASHINGTON (August 19, 2003) — In response to petitions
for stay filed by the National Association of Realtors®
and other associations, the Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) took action yesterday in ordering an unprecedented 18-month
delay in the implementation of its do-not-fax rule in order
to give businesses more time to comply with the rule. The
do-not-fax provisions will now take effect on January 1, 2005.
Last month the FCC reversed its long-standing interpretation
allowing for an "established business relationship" exception
from the pre-existing unsolicited fax rule. The new rule, which
was scheduled to take effect August 25, 2003, requires companies
to obtain written permission before sending unsolicited faxes
even if there is an established business relationship.
NAR and several other groups, including the American Society
of Association Executives, National Federation of Independent
Business and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, filed petitions
earlier this month requesting the FCC stay the effective date
of the new interpretation for one year to clarify how businesses
can get written consent and set a realistic timeframe for compliance.
The U. S. Small Business Administration also supported the
stay.
NAR is supportive of the intended consumer protection and
privacy objectives of the FCC's new rule but believes that
this new interpretation would interfere with day-to-day business
relationships between Realtors and their clients as well as
unfairly limit communications between state, local and national
associations and their members. NAR continues to work at helping
its members comply with the new requirements.
"Over 2 million U.S. homes are in the sales transaction
pipeline on any given day. The ability to move promptly and
communicate via fax is instrumental to the success of these
transactions in highly competitive housing markets. Yet businesses
were originally given less than 30 days to amend their current
practices and gain new consent from customers and vendors," said
NAR President Cathy Whatley, owner of Buck & Buck Inc.
in Jacksonville, Fla. "We're glad that the FCC decided
to grant our request for a workable stay period. This will
ensure minimal disruption to the real estate market and give
Realtors® more time to comply with the new fax procedures."
The National Association of Realtors®, "The Voice
for Real Estate," is America's largest trade association,
representing over 900,000 members involved in all aspects of
the residential and commercial real estate industries. Find
a Lawyer
|
