Senate Bill 474

Chairman: Burke Day

Committee:Public Safety & Homeland Security

House Sponsor: Barry Fleming

Senate Sponsor: Cecil Staton

SB 474 seeks to protect children from sexual predators on the internet. Section 1 instructs the Department of Education to develop model program for educating students about online safety which may be incorporated by local systems. 

Section 2 addresses internet providers. Internet providers will be required to make a product available to subscribers that allows parents to block and monitor a minor’s internet access. Telecommunications, wireless, or interactive service providers, etc. will not be held liable for either blocking or failing to block users which have appeared in the national or state sexual offender registry. However, if an interactive computer service obtains knowledge of facts or circumstances involving child pornography, the service must make a report to the Cyber Tipline at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and failure to do so can result in criminal penalties.

Sections 3 and 4 will require registered sex offenders to report their email addresses, usernames, and user passwords to law enforcement as part of the registration process. Section 5 would allow the court, as part of the terms of a sex offender’s probation, to allow monitoring the offender’s internet use and periodic unannounced inspections of the offender’s computer under the direction of law enforcement.

This bill comes to the House Floor under the Modified Structured Rule. The bill is accompanied by AM 290733, which makes a change regarding parental control products.