HR 3783 IH.
Child Online Protection Act.
Introduced: April 30, 1998.
Source: Library of Congress.

105th CONGRESS

2d Session

H. R. 3783

To amend section 223 of the Communications Act of 1934 to require persons who are engaged in the business of selling or transferring, by means of the World Wide Web, material that is harmful to minors to restrict access to such material by minors, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

April 30, 1998

Mr. OXLEY (for himself, Mr. GREENWOOD, Mr. MANTON, Mr. GILLMOR, Mr. DEAL of Georgia, Mr. WHITFIELD, Mr. NORWOOD, Mrs. CUBIN, Mr. BURR of North Carolina, and Mr. UPTON) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Commerce

A BILL

To amend section 223 of the Communications Act of 1934 to require persons who are engaged in the business of selling or transferring, by means of the World Wide Web, material that is harmful to minors to restrict access to such material by minors, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Child Online Protection Act'.

SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS.

The Congress finds that--

(1) as access to and use of the World Wide Web becomes ubiquitous, the Web and information transmitted over it may become more invasive and intrusive in individual and family lives;

(2) children now have greater opportunities for access to the World Wide Web and such access is continually expanding;

(3) while custody, care, and nurture of the child reside first with the parent, the widespread availability of computers presents opportunities for minors to access materials through the World Wide Web in a manner that can frustrate parental supervision or control;

(4) the protection of the physical and psychological well-being of minors by shielding them from materials that are harmful to them is a compelling governmental interest; and

(5) the Federal Government has a compelling interest in ensuring that minors are restricted in their access to materials sold or transferred by means of the World Wide Web that are harmful to minors.

SEC. 3. REQUIREMENT TO RESTRICT ACCESS BY MINORS TO MATERIALS SOLD OR TRANSFERRED BY MEANS OF THE WORLD WIDE WEB THAT ARE HARMFUL TO MINORS.

(a) REQUIREMENT-

(1) IN GENERAL- Section 223 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 223) is amended--

(A) by redesignating subsections (e), (f), (g), and (h) as subsections (f), (g), (h), and (i), respectively; and

(B) by inserting after subsection (d) the following new subsection (e):

`(e)(1) Whoever in interstate or foreign commerce is engaged in the business of selling or transferring, by means of the World Wide Web, material that is harmful to minors shall restrict access to such material by persons under 17 years of age.

`(2) Any person who violates paragraph (1) shall be fined not more than $50,000, imprisoned not more than six months, or both.

`(3) In addition to the penalties under paragraph (2), whoever intentionally violates paragraph (1) shall be subject to a fine of not more than $50,000 for each violation. For purposes of this paragraph, each day of violation shall constitute a separate violation.

`(4) In addition to the penalties under paragraphs (2) and (3), whoever violates paragraph (1) shall be subject to a civil fine of not more than $50,000 for each violation. For purposes of this paragraph, each day of violation shall constitute a separate violation.

`(5) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under this subsection that the defendant restricted access to material that is harmful to minors by persons under 17 years of age by requiring use of a verified credit card, debit account, adult access code, or adult personal identification number or in accordance with such other procedures as the Commission may prescribe.

`(6) This subsection may not be construed to authorize the Commission to regulate in any manner the content of any information provided by means of the World Wide Web.

`(7) For purposes of this subsection:

`(A) The term `by means of the World Wide Web' means by placement of material in a computer server-based file archive so that it is publicly accessible, over the Internet, using hypertext transfer protocol, file transfer protocol, or other similar protocols.

`(B) The term `engaged in the business' means that the person who sells or transfers or offers to sell or transfer, by means of the World Wide Web, material that is harmful to minors devotes time, attention, or labor to such activities, as a regular course of trade or business, with the objective of earning a profit, although it is not necessary that the person make a profit or that the selling or transferring or offering to sell or transfer such material be the person's sole or principal business or source of income.

`(C) The term `Internet' means the combination of computer facilities and electromagnetic transmission media, and related equipment and software, comprising the interconnected worldwide network of computer networks that employ the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol, or any predecessor or successor protocol to transmit information.

`(D) The term `material that is harmful to minors' means any communication, picture, image, graphic image file, article, recording, writing, or other matter of any kind that--

`(i) taken as a whole and with respect to minors, appeals to a prurient interest in nudity, sex, or excretion;

`(ii) depicts, describes, or represents, in a patently offensive way with respect to what is suitable for minors, an actual or simulated sexual act or sexual contact, actual or simulated normal or perverted sexual acts, or a lewd exhibition of the genitals; and

`(iii) taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value for minors.

`(E) The terms `sexual act' and `sexual contact' have the meanings given such terms in section 2246 of title 18, United States Code.'.

(2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT- Subsection (g) of such section, as so redesignated, is amended by striking `(e), or (f)' and inserting `(f), or (g)'.

(b) AVAILABILITY ON INTERNET OF DEFINITION OF MATERIAL THAT IS HARMFUL TO MINORS- The Federal Communications Commission shall post or otherwise make available on the World Wide Web site of the Commission such information as is necessary to inform the public of the meaning of the term `material that is harmful to minors' under section 223(e) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended by subsection (a).