Massachusetts taps GovConnect for No-Call Program

GovConnect Inc. has won a five-year contract from Massachusetts to provide a "Do Not Call" registry, the company announced Jan. 30.

The No-Call program, created by the Massachusetts Telemarketing Act, will help consumers reduce the number of repeated, unsolicited telemarketing calls to their home, the company said.

Under the contract, GovConnect of Cincinnati will compile and distribute the database of telephone numbers to solicitors on a quarterly basis. Solicitors will then be required to remove the phone numbers from their call lists. The company will host the application at a secure data center.

Beginning Jan. 1, residents of Massachusetts have been able to enroll in the registry by Internet, telephone or mail. More than 750,000 residents have registered so far for registry, which becomes active April 1.

After that date, solicitors that call those consumers' numbers more than once in a 12-month period face possible fines of $1,500 to $5,000 for each violation based on actions taken by consumers or the Massachusetts' Attorney General's office.

GovConnect will get paid by selling the lists to solicitors, company officials said. The company has implemented similar No-Call programs in Kansas, Ohio and Wisconsin.

GovConnect is a provider of electronic access solutions for government agencies with solutions deployed in 45 states. The company, which has 325 employees, is a subsidiary of govOne Solutions LP of Englewood, Colo.