PENNSYLVANIA

AI Receptionist for Pennsylvania Businesses

Yes, a Pennsylvania business can use an AI receptionist. Pennsylvania needs every party’s prior consent to record a call, and a 2026 update to its telemarketing law brings sales texts under the same rules as sales calls, with tighter hours. Awava puts the recording notice in the greeting and keeps texting consent-based, along with missed-call text back and review requests. The AI Receptionist is included in AI Pro ($1,997 setup plus $397 a month), or $97 a month added to the Website or Core plan.

Or call (978) 630-7976 right now: an AI answers. That’s the demo.

PENNSYLVANIA AT A GLANCE

  • Recording callsAll-party consent (18 Pa.C.S. § 5704(4))
  • Sales calls and textsAct 47 of 2026 (SB 992), plus the federal TCPA
  • AI voicesOutbound AI calls need prior consent (FCC, 2024)
  • Last checkedOctober 2026
THE RULES

What Pennsylvania law means for an AI front desk.

The three rules that shape how an AI receptionist is set up in Pennsylvania, each with the statute it comes from.

RECORDING CALLS

All-party consent

Pennsylvania’s wiretap act prohibits intercepting a phone call without consent, and the exception a business relies on is that all parties to the call have given prior consent. For an AI front desk that records calls, that means telling every caller at the start.

18 Pa.C.S. § 5704(4)

SALES CALLS AND TEXTS

The 2026 telemarketing update

Act 47 of 2026, signed on 20 July 2026, takes effect in mid-October 2026, 90 days after signing. It updates the Telemarketer Registration Act to cover sales texts, voicemails and ringless voicemails as well as calls. Sales calls and texts are limited to 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and barred on Sundays, and a reply of STOP, QUIT, END, REVOKE, OPT OUT, CANCEL or UNSUBSCRIBE has to be honored. It also bans using synthetic or computer-generated messages to deceive.

Act 47 of 2026 (SB 992)

FEDERAL

AI voices and the federal rules

On 8 February 2024 the FCC ruled that AI-generated voices count as “artificial” under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, so calls a business places with an AI voice need the called person’s prior express consent. That ruling is about calls you place. An AI receptionist answers calls people place to you, and Awava does not use it to dial lists.

FCC Declaratory Ruling FCC 24-17

HOW AWAVA SETS IT UP

Built around the rules from the first call.

Awava installs the AI receptionist, connects it to your number and manages it for you. These are the defaults for Pennsylvania businesses. How the AI Receptionist works

  • When calls are recorded, the greeting tells every caller first, so consent comes before the conversation.
  • The AI receptionist answers calls people place to you. It does not make unsolicited sales calls.
  • Missed-call text back answers someone who just called you, and any of the opt-out words ends the texts.
  • Promotional texts go only to customers who agreed to get them, between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m., never on Sundays.
  • If a caller asks, the AI says it is an AI and offers to have you call back.
FAQ

Questions Pennsylvania businesses ask us.

Yes. Pennsylvania law does not ban AI call answering. The rules that matter are all-party consent to record calls (18 Pa.C.S. § 5704) and the Telemarketer Registration Act, updated by Act 47 of 2026, for sales calls and texts.
Yes. Pennsylvania allows a call to be recorded when all parties have given prior consent. An AI receptionist that records calls should say so at the start of every call.
Act 47 of 2026 brings sales texts, voicemails and ringless voicemails under the Telemarketer Registration Act, limits solicitations to 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. with none on Sundays, and requires honoring STOP and similar replies. It takes effect in mid-October 2026, 90 days after it was signed on 20 July 2026.
Yes. Awava works remotely with businesses across the United States. Everything is set up and managed for you, and there is no software for you to learn.
No. This page is general information, checked October 2026. Laws change, and how they apply depends on your business, so check with a lawyer licensed in Pennsylvania before relying on it.

General information, not legal advice. Checked October 2026 against the official statute text linked above. Laws change, and how they apply depends on your business; check with a lawyer licensed in Pennsylvania.

BOOK A CALL

See where your Pennsylvania business stands.

The free audit shows who Google and the AI assistants name for your service and town, and what would change that.

Or text us — we answer in seconds.

Talk to the AI nowGet started