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Washington, D.C. - In the last few weeks, several of Congresswoman Melissa Bean’s proposals to boost Internet Safety for children and investments in recycling technology have been signed by the President into law.
SAFER NET, Bean’s signature legislation to create the first ever national Internet Safety campaign for children, was signed into law as part of S. 1492, the Broadband Data Improvement Act, on October 10. Two additional Internet Safety bills cosponsored by Bean, the PROTECT Act and the KIDS Act, have been passed by both House and Senate and are awaiting the President’s likely signature.
The RISE Act, HR 5372, was introduced as part of Bean’s Green Innovation Initiative and will boost investment in recycling technology. It was added by the Senate to H.R. 1424, along with other tax extenders that had previously passed, and was signed into law on October 3.
“I’m proud to see my initiatives to promote recycling and protect kids become law,” Bean said. “I’m particularly pleased that the president swiftly signed my SAFER NET bill on Internet Safety, recognizing its importance, and I’m confident he will soon sign the KIDS Act and PROTECT Act to further protect our children from known sex offenders.”
SAFER NET, or the Safeguard America’s Families by Enhancing and Reorganizing New and Efficient Technologies Act, has three components. First, it authorizes funds for a national public awareness campaign through the Federal Trade Commission. The campaign will include some common sense tips on how to protect your bank account, your identity and your children from victimization on the Internet.
Second, the bill calls on the FTC to become a national clearinghouse for existing resources on Internet safety, making it easier for schools and parents to find reliable information. Federal government resources, non-profit sites, local and national law enforcement resources will all be linked through the FTC’s existing OnGuardOnline program. Information will be available at http://onguardonline.gov/ .
“Entering ‘Internet safety’ into a Google search gives you 169 million possible entries,” Bean said. “There are plenty of good resources out there. But we have to help people find them.”
The bill also encourages increased industry accountability, by establishing a working group through the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to review and evaluate industry efforts to promote online safety and protect children from inappropriate material online.
Bean helped introduce H.R. 3845, the PROTECT Act (Providing Resources Officers and Technology to Eradicate Cyber Threats to our Children Act). The bill, authored by Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) will build a strong nationwide network of highly trained law enforcement experts to track down known sex offenders. It provides resources for following offenders’ Internet footprints online.
Bean is also a co-sponsor of H.R. 719, the KIDS Act (Keeping the Internet Devoid of Sexual Predators Act). The bill, authored by Rep. Earl Pomeroy (D-ND), requires sex offenders to register their e-mail and instant message addresses with the National Sex Offender Registry, as they now register their physical addresses.
Both bills have previously passed the House. In the last month, the PROTECT Act passed as part of Senate Bill 1738 and the KIDS Act passed as part of Senate Bill 431. Both await the President’s signature.
The Recycling Investment Saves Energy (RISE) Act, H.R. 5372, provides incentives for recycling companies to buy newer and better equipment. It changes the tax code to provide a 50 percent accelerated depreciation allowance for companies to purchase advanced recycling technology which would increase the quality and quantity of recovered material.
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