JACKSON - There's less than two weeks left for consumers to have their telephone numbers included in the first editions of both the Mississippi and the national no-call lists that go into effect Oct. 1.
The lists will be updated every quarter.
Consumers who miss the first deadline will have until Nov. 30 to sign up for the next list, which will be published Jan. 1.
The National and state registries will be available to telemarketers as of Sept. 1, and telemarketers must comply as of Oct. 1. Telemarketers will be required to check the lists every three months, and refrain from calling numbers on the list or face fines.
Since it opened June 27, the National Do Not Call Registry has registered approximately 32 million land-based and cellular telephone numbers - including 246,143 submitted by Mississippi residents. The Federal Trade Commission estimates that the national registry will eventually have 60 million numbers.
Mississippi, which only registers land-based home numbers, had registered 140,613 telephone numbers as of Monday, according to the Public Service Commission.
Mississippi, among 37 states that have or soon will have no-call lists, began signing up consumers for its own list on July 1.
Officials with the Mississippi Public Service Commission estimate that as many as 400,000 people will eventually register their telephone numbers.
Joining the national registry guarantees a spot on the state list.
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