The Telecommunications Act does not apply to calls made by or on behalf of a registered charity. Yet the CRTC’s Unsolicited Telecommunications Rules (UTR) contain specific do-not-call requirements for charities and other exempted organizations (CF, September 15).  What must charities do to comply? The short answer is, quite a lot – nearly as much as the telemarketers who peddle replacement windows to apartment dwellers.

Marianne Mulders is president of the nonprofit division of The Responsive Marketing Group, a Canadian donor acquisition and cultivation company that provides a proprietary Do Not Call compliance solution for charities. She clarifies the four expectations of the UTR: 1) Charities and other exempt organizations must still register as telemarketers; 2) They must disclose information at the beginning of their calls; 3) They must capture, maintain and apply an Internal Do-Not-Call List (I-DNCL); 4) Finally, they must demonstrate due diligence in the recordkeeping related to their I-DNCL.

Registration – the easiest step

Charities and other exempted organizations must register as “telemarketers” with Bell Canada, the national DNCL operator. There is no registration fee. Why the registration requirement? “It aids the CRTC in any complaint investigation about a solicitation call conducted by or on behalf of the charity,” explains Mulders.

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