[author: Eric Troutman]
Washington’s CEMA mini-TCPA has been drawing a lot of attention lately–especially as Courts around the country struggle with whether the TCPA’s DNC provisions apply to SMS messages.
There’s no question that CEMA DOES apply to SMS messages– and in a big way. Troutman Amin, LLP recently put out a critical compliance alert because so many companies are getting caught up under the statute!

COMPLIANCE ALERT: Washington State’s CEMA Is Too Dangerous To Ignore–Critical One Sheeter Now Available!
If you aren’t following the developments in Washington State you need to be. The Consumer Electronic Mail Act (CEMA) is WAY more dangerous than it sounds. It does NOT just apply to email but also to SMS messages– and in a way that is far more dangerous than other statutes like the TCPA. The statute … Continue reading
But Washington’s dense marketing laws have other critical provisions to keep in mind as well.
For instance WASH. REV. CODE § 80.36.390(3)) provides “[a] person making a telephone solicitation must identify him or herself and the company or organization on whose behalf the solicitation is being made and the purpose of the call within the first 30 seconds of the telephone call.”
Pretty straightforward requirement– and one that you’d think most companies would have no problem meeting.
Still in Barton v. George, 2025 WL 3078287 (W.D. Wash. Nov. 4, 2025) a defendant apparently did not identify itself on a call–bad move.
Barton walked to an easy judgment for $1,000.00 per call.
The Barton case was not a class action–but you can imagine how easy it might be bring a class suit in circumstances where a marketer is not timely disclosing their identity!
Don’t get this one wrong folks.
Chat soon.
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DISCLAIMER: Because of the generality of this update, the information provided herein may not be applicable in all situations and should not be acted upon without specific legal advice based on particular situations. Attorney Advertising.
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