§7707 — Title 15 Commerce and Trade | U.S. Code

Summary

Federal criminal laws still apply. Laws cited include section 223 or 231 of title 47, chapter 71, and section 110 of title 18. The FTC can still act under the FTC Act against commercial emails that make false claims or use unfair practices. Federal law overrides any state law that specifically governs sending commercial email, except state rules that prohibit false or deceptive content in the message or attachments. State laws not specific to email (like trespass, contract, or tort laws) and laws about fraud or computer crime still apply. Internet service providers may still choose policies that refuse to carry certain kinds of email.

Title 15, §7707

Commerce and Trade — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)(1)Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to impair the enforcement of section 223 or 231 of title 47, chapter 71 (relating to obscenity) or 110 (relating to sexual exploitation of children) of title 18, or any other Federal criminal statute.

(2)Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to affect in any way the Commission’s authority to bring enforcement actions under FTC Act for materially false or deceptive representations or unfair practices in commercial electronic mail messages.

(b)(1)This chapter supersedes any statute, regulation, or rule of a State or political subdivision of a State that expressly regulates the use of electronic mail to send commercial messages, except to the extent that any such statute, regulation, or rule prohibits falsity or deception in any portion of a commercial electronic mail message or information attached thereto.

(2)This chapter shall not be construed to preempt the applicability of—

(A)State laws that are not specific to electronic mail, including State trespass, contract, or tort law; or

(B)other State laws to the extent that those laws relate to acts of fraud or computer crime.

(c)Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to have any effect on the lawfulness or unlawfulness, under any other provision of law, of the adoption, implementation, or enforcement by a provider of Internet access service of a policy of declining to transmit, route, relay, handle, or store certain types of electronic mail messages.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

This chapter, referred to in text, was in the original “this Act”, meaning Pub. L. 108–187, Dec. 16, 2003, 117 Stat. 2699, which is classified principally to this chapter. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see

Short Title

note set out under section 7701 of this title and Tables.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

Section effective Jan. 1, 2004, see section 16 of Pub. L. 108–187, set out as a note under section 7701 of this title.

§7707 Effect on Other Laws