OTTAWA – The CRTC has slapped four political parties, two MPs and an Edmonton-based telemarketing firm with hefty fines for breaking the robocalls rules.
Global News reporter Vassy Kapelos broke the news that Alberta’s Wildrose Party was fined $90,000 by the CRTC on Thursday, and now three other parties have been hit with fines.
The federal Conservatives and NDP, the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario, Alberta’s Wildrose Alliance Political Association, Liberal MP Marc Garneau, Conservative MP Blake Richards and Edmonton-based telemarketer RackNine Inc. have been fined a combined $369,000 in penalties.
When asked by Global News what sparked this investigation, the CRTC responded: “the trigger is evidence. We take these issues seriously,” added Andrea Rosen, the CRTC’s Chief Compliance and Enforcement Officer. “We do a lot of cases with respect to robocalls. When we find evidence of a breach of the rules, we take action. We are fact based , we are evidence based.”
The Wildrose party was fined $90,000 for violating CRTC rules during six robocall campaigns between March 2011 and November 2012. The calls were intended to determine voter preferences and opinions on various subjects. The CRTC says the calls did not identify they were being made on behalf of the party or provide a mailing address.
The Wildrose party cooperated with the CRTC investigation and paid the fine last week.
Alberta Premier Alison Redford’s Progressive Conservative party is also asking the chief electoral officer to investigate rule-breaking Wildrose robocalls to make sure they didn’t affect last year’s election.
The Opposition party said it would co-operate with any investigation, but urged that the actions of all parties be reviewed along with the issue of push polling.
The Ontario Conservatives, the NDP, RackNine and Garneau have also paid their fines.
The Ontario PC party was fined $85,000 for violations during two robocall campaigns between September 1 and September 7, 2011.
RackNine, the Edmonton-based telemarketer that provides automated calling services, was issued a notice of violation by the CRTC for 15 robocall campaigns it carried out on behalf of a number of clients between March 2011 and February 1, 2013. All the violations were related to calls made on behalf of political entities conducting polling, surveying or political messaging campaigns. The entities were not identified in the robocall messages.
According the CRTC, RackNine was not aware it was violating the regulator’s rules before being contacted.
RackNine has paid the $60,000 penalty. The owner of RackNine continues to decline requests for comment in response to this story.
The federal NDP was fined $40,000 for violations relating to robocalls made between January 11 and 20, 2012 in St-Maurice-Champlain, Quebec.
Liberal MP Marc Garneau was fined $2,500 for calls that violated the CRTC rules made in March 2013.
The federal Conservative party was fined $78,000 for violations that happened in Saskatchewan on January 31 and February 1, 2013. The calls were regarding proposed changes to electoral riding boundaries in the province.
Conservative MP Blake Richards (for Wild Rose, Alberta) was fined $14,400 for violations that occurred during two robocall campaigns in August and October, 2012 in his riding. The calls did not identify that they were being made on his behalf or provide a mailing address.
In a statement, Richards said:
“I survey my constituents on their viewpoints on a regular basis, as listening to constituents is a vital part of my role as an MP. I do this in a variety of ways, including regular mail surveys, doorknocking, roundtables, and town hall meetings.
In this case, my office engaged a service provider to survey my constituents on their views on legislation being considered by Parliament.
It was my understanding that the provider was well experienced with these types of surveys, and as such, it was reasonable to assume the provider would ensure compliance with all applicable regulations.
CRTC staff have determined that the calls did not adequately follow the regulatory policy that it has set out for the use of ADAD technology.
Specifically, the CRTC believes that the provider should have included my name, mailing address, and contact number at the beginning of the call.
My only intent was to conduct a legitimate, accurate, and non-partisan survey of my constituents’ views.
I have fully and promptly cooperated with the CRTC’s review of this matter, and I intend to work with CRTC to ensure I have a compliance program in place going forward.”
The regulator says the Conservative party, which was fined $78,000, and Richards, who was fined $14,400, have yet to pay the penalty and have 30 days to do so.
Under the Unsolicited Telecommunications Rules, when automated calling devices are used to dial telephone numbers and automatically deliver a pre-recorded message to make calls on behalf of candidates and political parties:
- Calls are to begin with a clear message identifying the person on whose behalf the call is made, including a mailing address and a local or toll-free number at which a representative of the originator of the message can be reached.
- Calls are to display the originating number or an alternate number where the originator of the call can be reached.
“We appreciate the cooperation we received during our investigations,” said Rosen. “We expect political party associations and candidates who are running for office to put appropriate safeguards in place to ensure compliance with the Unsolicited Telecommunications Rules in future campaigns.”
The CRTC continues to investigate other incidences of robocalls.
With files from the Canadian Press
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