The San Francisco Board of Supervisors has approved a non-binding resolution last week calling on the state of California and Congress to create a Do No Mail registry — the first time lawmakers in the US have voted on creating a policy to allow citizens to block receiving unsolicited mail.
No states have yet passed any kind of Do Not Mail legislation, although several have measures pending, and it is unclear whether the California state legislature will take up the issue.
Catalog Choice, a third-party independent opt-out mail service, said of the March 31 resolution: “Increased merchant participation and compliance will help the direct mail industry make it clear to consumers that voluntary solutions work.”
However, one industry group, which has long opposed Do No Mail legislation, said such legislation would further hinder the currently struggling economy.
“In the midst of this economic crisis, we are disappointed that the committee would endorse an action that would hurt small businesses and destroy jobs,” said Ben Cooper, executive director of Mail Moves America, which was formed by the Direct Marketing Association and other mailing community associations and companies in 2006. “Even though this is a non-binding resolution, we believe it is important that city, state and local governments not support legislation that would hurt the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of workers.”
The US Postal Service did not return a request for comment by press time.
According to the DMA, around 400,000 Californians have jobs directly or indirectly related to advertising mail. And, it said that in 2008, more than 22,000 California small businesses relied on advertising mail.
