Your phone lights up at 7:12 a.m. local. Same pitch as yesterday: "Quick question about working capital for the business." You haven't poured coffee. The caller sounds wide awake, like your time zone is optional.
It isn't. Federal rules put quiet hours on telephone solicitations to residential lines, and some states cut the window shorter. Today you get the clock, two state examples that go further, and a three-line script for the next early call.
New here? Earlier parts covered the phone script, the written stop, the call log, consent claims, and more. Full series: https://mcafax.com/notebook/series/stop-the-calls
General information, not legal advice.
The federal clock
Under FCC rules, no one may initiate a telephone solicitation to a residential telephone subscriber before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m., local time at the called party's location (47 CFR 64.1200(c)(1)). The FTC's Telemarketing Sales Rule says the same for outbound telemarketing calls to a person's residence: only between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. local time at that location, unless the person gave prior consent (16 CFR 310.4(c)).
Sources: https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/47/64.1200 | https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/16/310.4 | https://www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/stop-unwanted-robocalls-and-texts
Two details matter. The clock is yours, not the caller's. And these hour rules are written around residential subscribers and residences. A dedicated office landline used only for the shop may sit outside that frame, and coverage depends on the call and the line. The National Do Not Call Registry covers personal numbers, not business lines: https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/national-do-not-call-registry-faqs
States that close earlier
Federal hours are a floor. Two examples owners ask about:
Texas. For a "consumer telephone call" to a residential number under Texas Business and Commerce Code section 301.051, a telephone solicitor may call only after 9 a.m. and before 9 p.m. on a weekday or Saturday, and only after 12 noon and before 9 p.m. on a Sunday. The section doesn't apply to calls made at the consumer's express request, calls mainly about an existing debt or contract, or calls to someone with a prior or existing business relationship with the caller. https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/BC/htm/BC.301.htm
Florida. Under Florida Statutes section 501.616(6), a commercial telephone seller or salesperson may not place a commercial telephone solicitation call before 8 a.m. or after 8 p.m. local time in the called person's time zone. Same subsection caps those calls at three from any number to a person over a 24-hour period on the same subject, no matter which numbers they rotate. https://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2024/501.616
Both statutes are built around consumer goods and services (Florida's definition also reaches property pitched as a profit or investment opportunity). A working-capital pitch to a business may or may not fit. Don't stretch the label. Check your state's consumer protection office, and treat the clock on your personal or dual-use cell as the first line of defense.
The tactic: log the hour, then say it
Step 1: add a "Local time" column. If you keep the Part 3 call log, write the time in your zone. Free CSV: https://mcafax.com/notebook/toolkit/call-log-template
Step 2: the three-line script. Calm voice:
"It's [time] my local time. Don't call this number before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. Put me on your internal do-not-call list and don't call or text again."
If they named an opt-out word, keypress, or link, use that too. The FCC released FCC 26-67 on Oct 1, 2026, letting callers designate the opt-out method they'll accept, effective 30 days after it's published in the Federal Register. The safe habit: when a call or text names an opt-out word, keypress, website, or number, use it as well, and log that you did.
Step 3: same day, in writing. Repeat the time, date, and stop by email or letter. Template: https://mcafax.com/notebook/toolkit/cease-and-desist-letter
Notes that show early or late calls, your stop, and more calls help when you report at https://www.donotcall.gov/report.html or https://consumercomplaints.fcc.gov. Nobody can promise what happens next. More: Know Your Rights (https://mcafax.com/notebook/series/know-your-rights) and our broker-call guide (https://mcafax.com/notebook/stop-mca-broker-calls).
Your checklist
- Tonight: add "Local time" to your log.
- Next call before 8 or after 9: say the three lines.
- Same day: send it in writing with the clock time.
- Live in Texas or Florida? Note the tighter state window in the same log.
- Starting from zero? https://mcafax.com/notebook/series/stop-the-calls
Rules checked on Oct 12, 2026: 47 CFR 64.1200 and 16 CFR 310.4 (via Cornell LII), Tex. Bus. & Com. Code 301.001 and 301.051, and Fla. Stat. 501.603 and 501.616.
Coming in Part 12: where to file when the calls won't stop, and which report form matches which rule.