Senate Judiciary approves texting, time limits for telephone solicitation; sends bill to floor

The Senate Committee on Judiciary on May 21 adopted an A3 amendment to House Bill 3,865 A that adds text messages to the state's telephone-solicitation rules, sets quiet hours from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., and limits a solicitor to three contacts per 24 hours, then voted to send the bill to the Senate floor with a due-pass recommendation.

The amendment expands the definition of telephone solicitation in ORS 646.651 to include a call on a telephone or telephone line, a text message sent via a standard telephone network, e-mail sent as a text message, or a message sent using rich communication services. The A3 narrows quiet hours to 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., creates an established-business-relationship exemption, allows reliance on a customer's area code for compliance, and exempts certain categories (debt buyers subject to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, public safety and law enforcement, school districts and direct responses to a customer's message). The amendment sets the bill's effective date as Jan. 1, 2026.

Representative…