Congress·In Committee·S. 1025

FCC Legal Enforcement Act

Congress Would Let FCC Sue to Collect Unpaid Robocall Penalties if Justice Department Doesn’t Act

Mar 13, 2025·View on Congress.gov

Part of: Senators introduce a bill creating criminal penalties of up to three years in pr

This bill is one vehicle in a longer effort. See the full story across every version.View effort →

StalledNext up: A senate committeeNo action in 16 months

A senate committee must act next: committee consideration.

Legislative Progress

Senate

No action since March 2025

House

President

Law

How we got here

This bill’s path across every version that has carried it.

Reintroduced
Reintroduced from S. 2095 (118th), which died when its Congress ended.
S. 2095 (118th) →

Key Points

Lets the FCC sue on its own to collect certain unpaid penalties tied to illegal robocalls, if the Justice Department doesn’t act.
Creates a 120-day window after the FCC asks the Attorney General to collect an unpaid penalty; after that, the FCC can take the case itself.
Tells the FCC to focus first on the largest unpaid robocall-related penalties, especially those over $25,000,000.
Updates the FCC’s rulemaking power to allow rules it believes are needed to protect people from unwanted calls.
For everyday phone users, the main goal is faster and tougher collection against big violators, which could discourage future robocalls.

Consumer ProtectionTelecommunications

Impact Analysis

Personal Impact

How this policy affects specific groups of people

Mixed Impacts(3)

Small Business Owner

Neutral

Gig Worker

Neutral

Federal Employee

Neutral

Milestones

2 milestones2 actions

Mar 13, 2025Senate

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.

Sent to a congressional committee for expert review. The committee decides whether this bill moves forward.

Mar 13, 2025

Introduced in Senate

The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.

Related News

2 articles

Gryphon AI·Apr 1, 2025

Proposed Senate Bill Gives FCC Power to Collect TCPA Fines

Notes introduction of S.1025 (FCC Legal Enforcement Act) and summarizes the bill’s change allowing FCC to litigate unpaid TCPA forfeitures if DOJ doesn’t act within 120 days; mentions $25M prioritization.

Senator Ben Ray Luján (Press Release)·Mar 20, 2025

Luján Reintroduces Legislation to Crack Down on Robocalls, Protect Americans From Scams

Announcement and description of the FCC Legal Enforcement Act: creates a 120-day DOJ window before FCC can sue to collect TCPA penalties; argues this speeds collection and deters robocall violators.

No votes or related bills recorded for this bill yet.