Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., introduced a bill...

services or long distance and collect calls. A 2011 committee report said wireline customers pay $2 billion every year in “cramming” related charges, in which they're billed -- often on behalf of third parties -- for products or services they either didn’t order or don’t want (CD July 14 p5). “With a couple of exceptions, there’s simply no justification for allowing third-party billing on wireline telephone bills to continue,” Rockefeller said in a press release Thursday (http://xrl.us/bnbsg4). The legislation would build upon the FCC’s recently adopted cramming rules that require phone companies to notify subscribers at the point of sale, on each bill and on their websites of the option to block third-party charges from their landline bills (CD April 30 p7). The legislation would also require the FCC to work with the FTC to develop rules for wireless carriers that protect users from wireless cramming charges. The bill’s proposal for new FCC rules would compel wireless carriers to offer users a way to avoid receiving third-party charges; ensure that any third-party charges are authorized by users; and reimburse users for any unauthorized third-party charges. Rockefeller’s bill avoided a prohibition of third-party billing on wireless bills, but he said “now is the time” for the FCC to create new rules that ensure cramming on wireless bills is prevented. Consumers Union hailed the bill as a “much needed step” in protecting consumers from cramming charges. “The same cramming abuses that happen on landlines can easily happen to wireless users,” said Parul Desai, policy counsel for Consumers Union. “It is imperative that any directive for the FCC to develop these wireless cramming rules be carried out quickly and efficiently.”