The California Do Not Call List is not a separate state registry. Under Business and Professions Code section 17590, California adopts the federal National Do Not Call Registry as its own list, so registering once at DoNotCall.gov covers you under both federal and state law.1California Legislative Information. California Code Business and Professions Code BPC 17590 California then layers extra protections on top: an auto-dialer curfew, a small claims path to sue telemarketers directly, and government penalties that match the FTC’s per-call maximum.
How to Register Your Number
Registration is free. You can sign up any home or mobile number at DoNotCall.gov, or call 1-888-382-1222 from the phone you want to register. If you register online, watch for a confirmation email and click the link within 72 hours or the registration won’t complete.2Federal Trade Commission. National Do Not Call Registry FAQs
Your number appears on the registry the next day, but sales calls can take up to 31 days to actually stop. Telemarketers are required to refresh their call lists at least every 31 days, and that’s the built-in grace period before you can expect quiet.2Federal Trade Commission. National Do Not Call Registry FAQs
Registration never expires. The FTC removes numbers only if they’re disconnected and reassigned, or if you ask to be removed by calling 1-888-382-1222.2Federal Trade Commission. National Do Not Call Registry FAQs The old five-year renewal rule is gone.
Which Calls the List Doesn’t Stop
The registry blocks commercial sales calls. Several categories are still allowed even to a registered number: political organizations, charities calling on their own behalf, and telephone surveyors doing genuine research rather than disguised sales.3Federal Trade Commission. Q and A for Telemarketers and Sellers About DNC Provisions in TSR Debt collectors are also outside the registry rules; they operate under separate debt collection laws.
The exception most people run into is the existing business relationship. A company you’ve bought from or made a payment to can keep calling for up to 18 months after that last transaction. If you only made an inquiry without buying, the window is three months from the inquiry date.4Federal Trade Commission. Complying with the Telemarketing Sales Rule – Section: Exemptions to the National Do Not Call Registry Provisions
California also lets a company call you if you gave express written permission that identifies the specific company and the California phone number the calls will go to.5California Legislative Information. California Code Business and Professions Code BPC 17592
Making a Specific Company Stop Calling
Even a company legally allowed to call you must stop if you tell it to. This is called an entity-specific do not call request, and it works separately from the national list. A charity, a political group, or a business with an existing relationship all have to honor a direct request to stop.
Write down the date you made the request. The FTC recommends keeping that record because it becomes your evidence if the calls continue.2Federal Trade Commission. National Do Not Call Registry FAQs
California’s Auto-Dialer Curfew
California adds a rule the federal system doesn’t. Under Public Utilities Code section 2872, no one may operate an automatic dialing-announcing device to call a California phone number between 9 p.m. and 9 a.m. California time. The exceptions are calls to an established business associate or customer, and calls the recipient specifically requested.6California Legislative Information. California Code PUC 2872
How to Report a Violation
If a sales call reaches you after your number has been on the registry for at least 31 days, file a complaint at DoNotCall.gov.7Federal Trade Commission. National Do Not Call Registry – Submit a Complaint The same form takes robocall reports even if you never registered, since most robocalls are illegal on their own.
Include the date and time of the call, the number that appeared on your caller ID, and what was being sold. The FTC uses complaint data to spot patterns and build cases. If you actually lost money to a phone scam, report that separately at ReportFraud.ftc.gov so it can be routed for investigation.2Federal Trade Commission. National Do Not Call Registry FAQs
Suing Under the Federal TCPA
You don’t have to wait for the government. The Telephone Consumer Protection Act lets you sue in state court for $500 per illegal call. If a court finds the violation willful, it can triple the damages to $1,500 per call. For Do Not Call Registry violations, you need to have received more than one illegal call from the same company within a 12-month period before you can file.8Federal Communications Commission. Telephone Consumer Protection Act 47 USC 227
The TCPA has no statute of limitations of its own, so the federal catch-all four-year period under 28 U.S.C. ยง 1658 applies. That clock runs from the date of each individual violation, not just the first.
Suing in California Small Claims Court
California adds a private enforcement path that doesn’t require a lawyer. Under Business and Professions Code section 17593, a consumer who receives a prohibited call can file in small claims court asking for an injunction ordering the company to stop. If the company then makes another illegal call within 30 days of the injunction, you can file a follow-up action for a civil penalty of up to $1,000.9California Legislative Information. California Code Business and Professions Code – BPC – Article 8 Unsolicited and Unwanted Telephone Solicitations
It’s a two-step process. You get the court order first, and only if the company keeps calling do you go back for money. Small claims filing fees are low, procedures are simpler than a full civil action, and each subsequent violation carries its own penalty. That record also gives prosecutors ammunition if the case ever escalates.
Government Penalties
The financial exposure for a repeat violator comes mostly from government action. At the federal level, the FTC can seek civil penalties of up to $53,088 per violation of the Telemarketing Sales Rule, a figure updated for inflation in January 2025.10Federal Trade Commission. Complying with the Telemarketing Sales Rule
California ties its government-enforced penalty to the same FTC cap. The state Attorney General, any district attorney, or a city attorney can bring a civil action seeking an injunction and per-call penalties up to the FTC maximum.9California Legislative Information. California Code Business and Professions Code – BPC – Article 8 Unsolicited and Unwanted Telephone Solicitations For a telemarketer running thousands of calls, the arithmetic gets large quickly, which is what gives complaints their weight.