Legal Community
EIE supports important legislation that targets the illegal activities of the growing cybersex industry and promotes strict enforcement of existing laws with harsh sentences for pornographers and pedophiles. Since 2002, EIE has given Congressional testimony and provided other counsel in support of key legislation and regulation. EIE also works closely with the U.S. Department of Justice and is partnered with them through The National Internet Safety Awareness and Parental Empowerment Program.
Congressional Testimonies
U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee
Washington, D.C. October 15, 2003
Provided written testimony on the prosecution of illegal pornography
Congressional Internet Caucus
Washington, D.C. May 23, 2002
Panel discussion titled "Controlling Online Pornography: Options for Parents and Families."
Congressional Hearing
The Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce
Washington, DC, November 1, 2001
"The Dot Kids Domain Name Act of 2001"
http://www.protectkids.com/don...ts/DotKidsDomainNameAct.ppt
Senate Hearing
Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Subcommittee on Children and Families
Washington, DC, March 28, 2000
Speech: "Keeping Children Safe from Internet Predators"
http://www.protectkids.com/don...oints/SenateHearing2000.ppt
U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee
Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing on 'Cyberporn'
Testimony from July 24, 1995
http://www.cdt.org/speech/cda/950724jepsen.html
Federal Legislation
Communications Decency Act (CDA) - 1996
Played a key educational role to Congress by testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee on the need for legislation to protect children from pornography and pedophiles on the Internet. Effectively communicated the message that materials and activities already outlawed in every other avenue of delivery should not be accessible to children on the Internet. The CDA included the child-stalking provision, which is the law used to prosecute online sexual predators. The federal obscenity statutes were also extended to apply to the Internet.
The Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA) - 2000
The U.S. Supreme Court, in June of 2003, reversed a lower court decision and upheld CIPA. CIPA requires public libraries that receive government E-rate funding for Internet access to utilize filtering technology to block a minor child's access to pornography and obscenity. In 1998, EIE staff briefed Senator John McCain and other members of Congress on the early problems of child access to pornography in public libraries and served as a key catalyst in the effort to get CIPA passed and upheld. In 2000, Congress passed CIPA; it was signed into law by President Bill Clinton, upon which the ACLU and the ALA filed lawsuits, and the law was enjoined for three years. The Supreme Court decision is a landmark victory in child Internet safety protection and a law that EIE was instrumental in getting passed and supported throughout the years.
The Child Online Protection Act (COPA) - 1998
COPA passed in 1998, with the leadership and support of EIE staff, which included numerous briefings and advocacy efforts in the House and Senate. COPA mandates that commercial web pornographers based in the U.S. require adult verification before allowing access to pornographic content. Since its passage, the law has been put on hold as the result of challenges by the ACLU and others. In 2003, the U.S. Supreme Court reviewed COPA and sent it back to a lower court.
Donna Rice Hughes served for a year on the congressionally appointed COPA Commission, defended COPA at a press conference on the steps of the Supreme Court the day of the hearing, and continues to support COPA in the news media and in public debates while awaiting the outcome of the long court battle. In the meantime, during COPA's enjoinment, 9 in 10 children online continue to be exposed to free pornographic pictures.
Child Pornography Prevention Act (CPPA) - 1996
EIE leadership testified before the U.S. Senate in support of CPPA. Once passed, the law was enjoined due to a lawsuit filed by the Free Speech Coalition. Since 1996, EIE has educated the public as to the need for this key legislation that criminalizes 'virtually' created child pornography. In April 2002, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down CPPA. EIE continues to explore with Congress and the Department of Justice new legislation to effectively prosecute both real and virtual child pornography.
Dot Kids Domain Name Act of 2001
EIE leadership testified before Congress in support of the bill, in addition to working extensively with the House of Representatives in the writing of the legislation. The Dot Kids Domain Name Act was signed into law on December 4, 2002. EIE continues to provide expertise on the implementation of this new domain designed to give children a safe Internet haven.