Comments:

Re: CAN-SPAM Act Rulemaking, Project No. R411008 To the Commissioners, I appreciate the fact that you are attempting to curb the problem of unsolicited bulk email. That is greatly needed, but the proposed requirement for merchants to maintain suppression lists is extremely worrisome. There are many potential problems and costs here, and it could be devastating to many legitimate small businesses and their customers. I strongly urge you to reconsider! Requirement of the use of suppression lists will seriously damage many of the legitimate publications available on the net. My specific concern is for harm to publishers who require permission from the consumer prior to adding them to any list. CAN-SPAM was not designed to put these people out of business, but this requirement will very likely have that effect. With all the corporate economic woes, small business has been the only haven for many. Congress should be doing everything possible to encourage small business. It doesn’t make sense to punish legitimate entrepreneurs for the crimes of the Spammers and Porn Operators. There's also the potential for significant harm to consumers, because of the problem of properly knowing their intent when they unsubscribe from a list. On top of that, these suppression lists could easily fall into the hands of spammers, leading to more spam instead of less. I urge you in the strongest possible terms to reconsider this matter in light of these problems. Respectfully, Ann Williams Arizona, USA