Washington Spam Laws

Washington State Anti Spam Laws - Time Line

In 1998 Washington State enacted a new anti-Spam law, which deemed all forms of SPAM coming in and going out of the state to be illegal. The statute defined SPAM as "an electronic mail message sent for the purpose of promoting real property, goods, or services for sale or lease". The legislation also prohibited the use of false information or the use of a third party domain without authorizaiton.

In 1999 the law was challenged when the case Washington v Heckel was dismissed in a King County court on the grounds that the law was unconstitutional. The ruling called the statute
"unduly restrictive and burdensome" and in violation of the US commerce clause.

In 2001 the Washington State Supreme Court unanimously upheld the anti-spam law stating that the only "burden" the law required was "truthfulness" and that the legislation only helped in " eliminating fraud and deception".

In 2002 Heckel challenged the law a second time as a violation of First Amendment rights citing the statute as "vague and overbroad".

In 2004 the Washington Supreme Court once again upheld the constitutionality of the anti-spam legislation, finding no infringement on the Fist Amendment. The court determined that the law was "narrowly tailored to regulate only deceptive commercial speech, which is not protected by the First Amendment" and therefore not over broad.

In 2005 the Supreme Court issued a denial of review for the third appeal of Washington v Heckel.


More On Washington Sate Anti-Spam Laws

Washington is one of many states to pass legislation regarding unsolicited emails and SPAM. As of 2008 Washington was among 38 States to have enacted Anti-Spam Laws. The US is not alone in taking measures to stop SPAM. 40 other countries have also passed laws making certain forms of SPAM illegal. To help prevent SPAM, make sure your email hosting provider and email archiving system have implemented methods to help filter it out of your inbox. The Following States do not currently have anti-spam laws Alabama, Hawaii, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, South Carolina, and Vermont.

Anti-Spam Laws in the US

International Spam Laws

Even if your state of residence does not have specific SPAM laws there are it still may be a violation. You may report it to proper authorities as it may be in violation of US SPAM laws or the laws of the email's country of origin.

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