-Caveat Lector- JAYSON,=20 Here's a lil sumpin't frost your cookies: CDT POLICY POST Volume 6, Number 22, December 18,=20 2000 A BRIEFING ON PUBLIC POLICY ISSUES AFFECTING CIVIL=20 LIBERTIES ONLINE from THE CENTER FOR DEMOCRACY AND TECHNOLOGY CONTENTS: (1) CONGRESS PASSES FILTERING MANDATES FOR SCHOOLS=20 AND LIBRARIES (2) LAW WILL REQUIRE SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES TO BLOCK=20 BROAD CLASSES OF CONTENT (3) MANDATES RAISE CONSTITUTIONAL CONCERNS AND POLICY=20 OBJECTIONS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- (1) CONGRESS PASSES FILTERING MANDATES FOR SCHOOLS=20 AND LIBRARIES The U.S. Congress has approved language requiring schools and=20 libraries that receive federal technology funding to block=20 objectionable material on the Internet by installing and using filtering = software. The "Children's Internet Protection Act" (CIPA) was passed=20 by both the House and Senate on December 15 as part of the=20 massive budget bill funding the government for next year, and is now=20 all but certain to become law. CIPA imposes a one-size-fits-all filtering approach on thousands of=20 schools and libraries, ending the ability of local communities to=20 choose which Internet safety measures best meet their needs and=20 values. Potential overblocking by imperfect filters also raises serious=20 free speech concerns that make it certain to be challenged in the=20 courts. CDT expects to join efforts to challenge to the bill. Internet filtering has been a contentious issue throughout most of=20 this Congress, gathering opposition from a range of businesses,=20 library and school groups, and conservative and liberal public interest=20 groups. CIPA was added as a "rider" amendment to HR 4577, the=20 end-of-year spending package, by Senator John McCain (R-AZ) and=20 Representative Ernest Istook (R-OK), longtime proponents of filtering.=20 Although the White House opposed the amendment, the President=20 will almost certainly sign the budget bill it is now a part of. CIPA = will=20 go into effect 120 days after enactment, and at that point will begin to = impact school and library funding applications for the following year. A copy of the language passed by Congress can be found at: - http://www.cdt.org/legislation/106th/speech/001218cipa.pdf ---------------------------------------------------------------------- (2) LAW WILL REQUIRE SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES TO BLOCK=20 BROAD CLASSES OF CONTENT The "Children's Internet Protection Act" requires that schools and=20 libraries install and use Internet filtering software to block a wide=20 range of online content. Failure or refusal to do so would cause a=20 school or library to lose important federal funds. The bill is actually four mandates in one, each linked to a different=20 funding source but all with the same effect. The funding sources at=20 issue are: * School technology funds under the Elementary and Secondary=20 Education Act * Library technology funds under the Museum and Library Services=20 Act * "E-rate" service discounts for schools * "E-rate" service discounts for libraries These far-reaching federal programs distribute billions of dollars in=20 assistance to schools and libraries that otherwise might not provide=20 Internet access at all. As a result, many schools and libraries whose=20 Internet policies differ from CIPA's language will be forced to comply,=20 or lose Internet access altogether. To keep their funding, schools and libraries must install and use a=20 "technology protection measure" (defined in the bill as a "technology=20 that blocks or filters Internet access" to covered material) to control=20 access to material that is obscene, child pornography, and, in the=20 case of minors, material "harmful to minors." CIPA defines a minor=20 as anyone 16 years of age or younger. CIPA's "harmful to minors" standard only applies to visual depictions=20 of inappropriate content, and apparently not to text-based material of=20 any kind, though CIPA does not proscribe efforts to filter additional=20 material, and most filters block more than just pictures. Adults using library or school computers may ask to have filtering=20 deactivated during their session only if they can demonstrate "bona=20 fide research or other lawful purposes." Minors may or may not be=20 able to have filtering deactivated, depending on the funding source=20 involved. Under U.S. law, distribution of child pornography or obscene material=20 is already illegal. CIPA reaches a far broader category of "harmful to=20 minors" material. The bill defines "harmful to minors" as: "any picture, image, graphic image file, or other visual depiction = that-- "(A) taken as a whole and with respect to minors, appeals to a=20 prurient interest in nudity, sex, or excretion; "(B) depicts, describes, or represents, in a patently offensive way=20 with respect to what is suitable for minors, an actual or simulated=20 sexual act or sexual contact, actual or simulated normal or perverted=20 sexual acts, or a lewd exhibition of the genitals; and "(C) taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or = scientific value as to minors." Finally, the bill also requires that communities adopt=20 non-technological Internet policies, through a subtitle called the=20 "Neighborhood Children's Internet Protection Act." That language lays=20 out five topic areas for every Internet safety policy to address. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- (3) MANDATES RAISE CONSTITUTIONAL CONCERNS AND POLICY=20 OBJECTIONS The filtering mandate is an unwise policy that raises serious=20 constitutional free speech concerns. While potentially valuable tools when used voluntarily by families,=20 filters are imperfect and cannot capture every local community's=20 standards for objectionable material online. The "obscene" and=20 "harmful to minors" materials prohibited under CIPA are both defined=20 based on "local community standards." No single filtering product on=20 the market can capture the varying standards of thousands of=20 communities across America. So filters risk both over-broad blocking=20 of acceptable or constitutionally-protected materials as well as=20 under-broad blocking that misses potentially objectionable materials.=20 For example, some filters have been criticized for screening out=20 potentially beneficial sites such as Amnesty International or the=20 American Family Association.=20 Because of this over-breadth, CIPA raises First Amendment free=20 speech concerns. It imposes filtering requirements even on=20 computers used by adults in schools and libraries. Overly broad=20 blocking could prevent adults from seeing constitutionally-protected=20 materials. The federal courts, in a challenge to similar filtering in = the=20 libraries of Loudoun County, Virginia, found such restrictions to=20 violate the First Amendment. Adults might only get access to filtered=20 material by showing a "bona-fide" research purpose =96 which we=20 believe to be an impermissible restriction on the ability to read=20 privately. CIPA also raises troubling free speech restrictions for older = teens that may be prohibited from seeing valuable materials online. Based on these legal concerns, CDT anticipates that CIPA will be=20 challenged in the Federal courts. We fully expect to join in these=20 efforts.=20 CIPA is also a bad policy for protecting children online. CIPA imposes=20 one technology and one standard =96 filtering of harmful to minor=20 material =96 on schools and libraries across the country. This may not=20 be the right approach for every community or every age group. CIPA is=20 the antithesis of local control, removing the prerogatives of=20 communities like Holland, Michigan, which last year passed a=20 referendum choosing not to use filters. Teachers who choose to=20 disable filters in their classrooms could jeopardize thousands of=20 dollars in federal funding.=20 CIPA unwisely diverts community resources and attention away from=20 the educational efforts, acceptable use policies, and common-sense=20 approaches being used by schools and libraries today. CDT=20 continues to believe that the best way to protect children from=20 objectionable material online is to give families and communities the=20 information and tools they need to *voluntarily* choose the=20 approaches that work best for their children, based on their own=20 values. -- To subscribe to CDT's Activist Network, sign up at: http://www.cdt.org/join/ If you ever wish to remove yourself from the list, unsubscribe at: http://www.cdt.org/action/unsubscribe.shtml If you just want to change your address, you should unsubscribe yourself and then sign up again or contact: [EMAIL PROTECTED] -- Michael Clark, Grassroots Webmaster [EMAIL PROTECTED] PGP Key available on keyservers Center for Democracy and Technology 1634 Eye Street NW, Suite 1100 Washington, DC 20006 http://www.cdt.org/ voice: 202-637-9800 fax: 202-637-0968 ------=_NextPart_000_0032_01C069B1.4D3DD680 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable <!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD W3 HTML//EN"> <HTML> <HEAD> <META content=3Dtext/html;charset=3Diso-8859-1 = http-equiv=3DContent-Type> <META content=3D'"MSHTML 4.72.3110.7"' name=3DGENERATOR> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=3D#c8e0d8> <DIV><FONT color=3D#000000 size=3D5>JAYSON, </FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT color=3D#000000 size=3D5> Here's a lil sumpin't = frost your=20 cookies:</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT color=3D#000000 size=3D5>CDT POLICY POST Volume 6, Number 22, = December=20 18, <BR>2000<BR><BR>A BRIEFING ON PUBLIC POLICY ISSUES AFFECTING CIVIL=20 <BR>LIBERTIES ONLINE<BR>from<BR>THE CENTER FOR DEMOCRACY AND=20 TECHNOLOGY<BR><BR>CONTENTS:<BR>(1) CONGRESS PASSES FILTERING MANDATES = FOR=20 SCHOOLS <BR>AND LIBRARIES<BR>(2) LAW WILL REQUIRE SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES = TO BLOCK=20 <BR>BROAD CLASSES OF CONTENT<BR>(3) MANDATES RAISE CONSTITUTIONAL = CONCERNS AND=20 POLICY=20 <BR>OBJECTIONS<BR><BR>---------------------------------------------------= -------------------<BR><BR>(1)=20 CONGRESS PASSES FILTERING MANDATES FOR SCHOOLS <BR>AND = LIBRARIES<BR><BR>The U.S.=20 Congress has approved language requiring schools and <BR>libraries that = receive=20 federal technology funding to block <BR>objectionable material on the = Internet=20 by installing and using filtering <BR>software. The "Children's = Internet=20 Protection Act" (CIPA) was passed <BR>by both the House and Senate = on=20 December 15 as part of the <BR>massive budget bill funding the = government for=20 next year, and is now <BR>all but certain to become law.<BR><BR>CIPA = imposes a=20 one-size-fits-all filtering approach on thousands of <BR>schools and = libraries,=20 ending the ability of local communities to <BR>choose which Internet = safety=20 measures best meet their needs and <BR>values. Potential overblocking by = imperfect filters also raises serious <BR>free speech concerns that make = it=20 certain to be challenged in the <BR>courts. CDT expects to join efforts = to=20 challenge to the bill.<BR><BR>Internet filtering has been a contentious = issue=20 throughout most of <BR>this Congress, gathering opposition from a range = of=20 businesses, <BR>library and school groups, and conservative and liberal = public=20 interest <BR>groups. CIPA was added as a "rider" amendment to = HR 4577,=20 the <BR>end-of-year spending package, by Senator John McCain (R-AZ) and=20 <BR>Representative Ernest Istook (R-OK), longtime proponents of = filtering.=20 <BR>Although the White House opposed the amendment, the President = <BR>will=20 almost certainly sign the budget bill it is now a part of. CIPA will = <BR>go into=20 effect 120 days after enactment, and at that point will begin to = <BR>impact=20 school and library funding applications for the following year.<BR><BR>A = copy of=20 the language passed by Congress can be found at:<BR> - <A=20 href=3D"http://www.cdt.org/legislation/106th/speech/001218cipa.pdf">http:= //www.cdt.org/legislation/106th/speech/001218cipa.pdf</A><BR><BR>--------= --------------------------------------------------------------<BR><BR>(2)= =20 LAW WILL REQUIRE SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES TO BLOCK <BR>BROAD CLASSES OF=20 CONTENT<BR><BR>The "Children's Internet Protection Act" = requires that=20 schools and <BR>libraries install and use Internet filtering software to = block a=20 wide <BR>range of online content. Failure or refusal to do so would = cause a=20 <BR>school or library to lose important federal funds.<BR><BR>The bill = is=20 actually four mandates in one, each linked to a different <BR>funding = source but=20 all with the same effect. The funding sources at <BR>issue are:<BR><BR>* = School=20 technology funds under the Elementary and Secondary <BR>Education = Act<BR>*=20 Library technology funds under the Museum and Library Services = <BR>Act<BR>*=20 "E-rate" service discounts for schools<BR>* "E-rate" = service=20 discounts for libraries<BR><BR>These far-reaching federal programs = distribute=20 billions of dollars in <BR>assistance to schools and libraries that = otherwise=20 might not provide <BR>Internet access at all. As a result, many schools = and=20 libraries whose <BR>Internet policies differ from CIPA's language will = be forced=20 to comply, <BR>or lose Internet access altogether.<BR><BR>To keep their = funding,=20 schools and libraries must install and use a <BR>"technology = protection=20 measure" (defined in the bill as a "technology <BR>that blocks = or=20 filters Internet access" to covered material) to control <BR>access = to=20 material that is obscene, child pornography, and, in the <BR>case of = minors,=20 material "harmful to minors." CIPA defines a minor <BR>as = anyone 16=20 years of age or younger.<BR><BR>CIPA's "harmful to minors" = standard=20 only applies to visual depictions <BR>of inappropriate content, and = apparently=20 not to text-based material of <BR>any kind, though CIPA does not = proscribe=20 efforts to filter additional <BR>material, and most filters block more = than just=20 pictures.<BR><BR>Adults using library or school computers may ask to = have=20 filtering <BR>deactivated during their session only if they can = demonstrate=20 "bona <BR>fide research or other lawful purposes." Minors may = or may=20 not be <BR>able to have filtering deactivated, depending on the funding = source=20 <BR>involved.<BR><BR>Under U.S. law, distribution of child pornography = or=20 obscene material <BR>is already illegal. CIPA reaches a far broader = category of=20 "harmful to <BR>minors" material. The bill defines = "harmful to=20 minors" as:<BR><BR>"any picture, image, graphic image file, or = other=20 visual depiction that--<BR> "(A) taken as a whole and with = respect to=20 minors, appeals to a <BR>prurient interest in nudity, sex, or=20 excretion;<BR> "(B) depicts, describes, or represents, in a = patently=20 offensive way <BR>with respect to what is suitable for minors, an actual = or=20 simulated <BR>sexual act or sexual contact, actual or simulated normal = or=20 perverted <BR>sexual acts, or a lewd exhibition of the genitals; = and<BR> =20 "(C) taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, = or=20 <BR>scientific value as to minors."<BR><BR>Finally, the bill also = requires=20 that communities adopt <BR>non-technological Internet policies, through = a=20 subtitle called the <BR>"Neighborhood Children's Internet = Protection=20 Act." That language lays <BR>out five topic areas for every = Internet safety=20 policy to=20 address.<BR><BR>---------------------------------------------------------= -------------<BR><BR>(3)=20 MANDATES RAISE CONSTITUTIONAL CONCERNS AND POLICY = <BR>OBJECTIONS<BR><BR>The=20 filtering mandate is an unwise policy that raises serious = <BR>constitutional=20 free speech concerns.<BR><BR>While potentially valuable tools when used=20 voluntarily by families, <BR>filters are imperfect and cannot capture = every=20 local community's <BR>standards for objectionable material online. The=20 "obscene" and <BR>"harmful to minors" materials = prohibited=20 under CIPA are both defined <BR>based on "local community = standards."=20 No single filtering product on <BR>the market can capture the varying = standards=20 of thousands of <BR>communities across America. So filters risk both = over-broad=20 blocking <BR>of acceptable or constitutionally-protected materials as = well as=20 <BR>under-broad blocking that misses potentially objectionable = materials.=20 <BR>For example, some filters have been criticized for screening out=20 <BR>potentially beneficial sites such as Amnesty International or the=20 <BR>American Family Association. <BR><BR>Because of this over-breadth, = CIPA=20 raises First Amendment free <BR>speech concerns. It imposes filtering=20 requirements even on <BR>computers used by adults in schools and = libraries.=20 Overly broad <BR>blocking could prevent adults from seeing=20 constitutionally-protected <BR>materials. The federal courts, in a = challenge to=20 similar filtering in the <BR>libraries of Loudoun County, Virginia, = found such=20 restrictions to <BR>violate the First Amendment. Adults might only get = access to=20 filtered <BR>material by showing a "bona-fide" research = purpose=20 – which we <BR>believe to be an impermissible restriction on the = ability=20 to read <BR>privately. CIPA also raises troubling free speech = restrictions for=20 older <BR>teens that may be prohibited from seeing valuable materials=20 online.<BR><BR>Based on these legal concerns, CDT anticipates that CIPA = will be=20 <BR>challenged in the Federal courts. We fully expect to join in these=20 <BR>efforts. <BR><BR>CIPA is also a bad policy for protecting children = online.=20 CIPA imposes <BR>one technology and one standard – filtering of = harmful to=20 minor <BR>material – on schools and libraries across the country. = This may=20 not <BR>be the right approach for every community or every age group. = CIPA is=20 <BR>the antithesis of local control, removing the prerogatives of=20 <BR>communities like Holland, Michigan, which last year passed a = <BR>referendum=20 choosing not to use filters. Teachers who choose to <BR>disable filters = in their=20 classrooms could jeopardize thousands of <BR>dollars in federal funding. = <BR><BR>CIPA unwisely diverts community resources and attention away = from=20 <BR>the educational efforts, acceptable use policies, and common-sense=20 <BR>approaches being used by schools and libraries today. CDT = <BR>continues to=20 believe that the best way to protect children from <BR>objectionable = material=20 online is to give families and communities the <BR>information and tools = they=20 need to *voluntarily* choose the <BR>approaches that work best for their = children, based on their own <BR>values.<BR><BR>--<BR>To subscribe to = CDT's=20 Activist Network, sign up at:<BR> <A=20 href=3D"http://www.cdt.org/join/">http://www.cdt.org/join/</A><BR><BR>If = you ever=20 wish to remove yourself from the list, unsubscribe at:<BR> <A=20 href=3D"http://www.cdt.org/action/unsubscribe.shtml">http://www.cdt.org/a= ction/unsubscribe.shtml</A><BR><BR>If=20 you just want to change your address, you should unsubscribe<BR>yourself = and=20 then sign up again or contact: <A=20 href=3D"mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]">[EMAIL PROTECTED]</A><BR>--<BR>Michael = Clark,=20 Grassroots Webmaster<BR><A=20 href=3D"mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]">[EMAIL PROTECTED]</A><BR>PGP Key available = on=20 keyservers<BR><BR>Center for Democracy and Technology<BR>1634 Eye Street = NW,=20 Suite 1100<BR>Washington, DC 20006<BR><A=20 href=3D"http://www.cdt.org/">http://www.cdt.org/</A><BR>voice:=20 202-637-9800<BR>fax: 202-637-0968</FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML> ------=_NextPart_000_0032_01C069B1.4D3DD680-- --------- End forwarded message ---------- <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/">www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. 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