The latest state lawsuit against two Florida companies charged with violating the state telemarketing law points up a big hole in Missouri’s no-call system.

Summer Bay Sales and Marketing of Clearmark Florida and Tele Secure International of Pompano Beach have been sued by the Attorney General for calling people whose numbers are on the state no-call list.

Missouri’s no-call law is more than a decade old. But the Consumer Affairs Chief Counsel, Doug Ommen, says a lot of people are still getting calls they don’t want.

“We still continue to receive hundreds of complaints on a weekly basis from consumers that are getting those calls,” he says. Two out of five calls are from consumers getting unwanted calls on their cell phones. The Attorney General often can do something about unwanted calls on land-line phones. But state law does not provide protection for cell-phone users and the legislature repeatedly has refused to extend the no-call program for them.

Ommen says the issue is becoming more severe as an increasing number of Missourians cancel land-line service and rely only on cell phones.

BP interviews Doug Ommen 10:36 [Download / listen Mp3]