Attorney General Formella Pushes Federal Government to Improve the Robocall Mitigation Database in Effort to Combat Illegal Robocalls

Concord, NH - Attorney General John M. Formella, as part of a bipartisan coalition of 49 attorneys general, is calling on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to make improvements to its Robocall Mitigation Database (RMD) that would help curb illegal robocalls.

"Illegal robocalls are more than an inconvenience. They are frequently used by scammers to deceive consumers, steal personal information, and take advantage of unsuspecting individuals," said Attorney General Formella. "Companies that operate within our nation's telecommunications networks have a responsibility to know who they are doing business with and to take meaningful steps to prevent illegal calls from reaching consumers. Strengthening the FCC's oversight of the Robocall Mitigation Database will help close existing loopholes, hold providers accountable, and make it more difficult for scammers to exploit our communications networks."

Voice service providers are required to submit a filing with the RMD before they can accept and route call traffic through the U.S. communications network. That filing must include information about the provider's business and robocall mitigation practices. Downstream providers are only allowed to accept calls from providers that are included in the RMD. However, bad actors are currently able to enter and stay in the database with minimal effort and limited impediments.

The attorneys general are urging the FCC to improve the effectiveness of the RMD by strengthening filing obligations and deterring bad actors and noncompliant providers from appearing in the RMD. The attorneys general argue that improvements could allow the RMD to serve as the authoritative resource for promoting transparency and accountability around all providers' robocall mitigation practices. Improvements would allow the FCC's tool to serve as a barrier to entry, reducing illegal call traffic.

The coalition filed comments in response to the FCC's proposed changes to the RMD. In addition to what the FCC is already doing, the attorneys general urge it to:

• Ensure that all information in the RMD is accurate and complete. The FCC should thoroughly vet all information submitted to the RMD before allowing a provider to appear in the RMD and to start sending call traffic through the network.
• Require additional disclosures. The FCC should require providers to disclose their use of third parties, related entities, the legitimacy of claims of a domestic presence, and access to numbering resources.
• Make it more difficult for bad actors to enter or re-enter the RMD. The attorneys general support the FCC's proposed methods to suspend or remove bad actors from the RMD, strengthen the filing format and content of robocall mitigation plans, and require that RMD filers provide evidence of solvency.
• Hold providers responsible for all filings done on their behalf. The coalition does not oppose allowing for third-party submissions on behalf of providers to the RMD, as long as providers and their principals are responsible for the information submitted on their behalf.
• Impose additional certification requirements to allow for quicker removal from the RMD when necessary. Providers should be required to certify that they have not submitted false or misleading information, are in compliance with all applicable FCC robocall rules, and will respond within 24 hours to traceback requests.
• Require providers to notify their upstream customers and downstream providers of FCC orders and notices. The FCC should require providers subject to an FCC removal order, suspension, or mandatory blocking order to notify their calling customers of the same. It should further allow the downstream providers of the voice service providers subject to such orders to also notify those same customers that their calls will be blocked if they continue to attempt to send their call traffic through that provider that was issued an FCC order.
• Make historical RMD filings public. The historical data of providers that have been removed from the RMD would be useful to law enforcement and others.
• Implement all proposed rules as soon as possible and maintain RMD obligations in the meantime. If the proposals to strengthen the RMD are adopted, the RMD is set to become a reliable tool to help safeguard the communications network against illegal robocalls, making swift implementation crucial. The FCC should also keep in place all obligations that protect against bad actors until reinforced guardrails are implemented.

Attorney General Formella is joined in signing this letter by the attorneys general of Alabama, Alaska, American Samoa, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, District of Columbia, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, U.S. Virgin Islands, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

If you suspect you have been scammed by a robocaller, call the Consumer Protection Hotline at 1-888-468-4454 for assistance. The Consumer Protection and Antitrust Bureau investigates unfair, deceptive or unreasonable practices involving New Hampshire consumers. You may file a complaint online at https://www.doj.nh.gov/consumer/complaints.

Reply Comments of 49 State AGs re FCC Robo Mitigation DB Updates (Nov 2026)
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