Hold The SpamHold The Spam

Text-message spamming isn't a problem in California--yet--and legislators want to keep it that way. The state became the first to bar the sending of unwanted text ads to cell phones, pagers, and other wireless devices when Gov. Gray Davis signed the Text Messaging Privacy Act earlier this month.

The law, which will take effect Jan. 1, fails to specify penalties. But violators may have to pay damages if wireless users sue successfully, says Kevin O'Neill, legislative director for the bill's sponsor, Assemblyman Tim Leslie.

The bill was one of several "leave-us-alone" measures, which also aim to limit fax spam and telemarketing, that Davis signed.