MUNSTER | Indiana residents are protected from "robo-calls," and Attorney General Greg Zoeller aims to keep it that way.

"We've done huge battle in trying to maintain this privacy right," Zoeller said.

The conservative group American Future Fund Political Action has asked the Federal Election Commission to issue an advisory opinion declaring federal election law supersedes robo-call restrictions in Indiana and other states. The group asked the commission to consider whether political groups that spend money in federal campaigns are exempt from state laws against robo-calls pertaining to federal campaigns.

Zoeller said if the group wins the battle, activist organizations that spend cash on federal campaigns could "blast out prerecorded calls with impunity." Zoeller wants the commission to rule that existing federal regulations on campaign spending don't trump state laws. If the FEC sides with the group, political action groups could circumvent all manner of state election laws by donating to federal candidates, Zoeller said.

The political group's representatives argue the state laws step on free speech rights. The American Future Fund's lawyer declined to comment Friday.

Zoeller said free speech is a "significant" constitutional right, but he said the right to privacy in the home must also be protected. He said he expects the issue to end up in the courts no matter what FEC officials decide.

"If they can get that foot in the door, we'll end up having to sue," Zoeller said. "If I lose, I want everybody to know that they have to drag me out dead."

Indiana’s robo-call law is crafted to allow campaigns to make robo-calls to voters who want to receive them, Zoeller noted. Robo-calls from candidates are legal if a live operator first asks the recipient's permission or if the consumer agrees in advance to get the calls.

Former Attorney General Steve Carter filed two lawsuits in 2006 against political groups he accused of making illegal robo-calls. Those cases are pending.