FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 27, 2005
Contact: Katie Laning (202)224-4843

Click here to view The Internet Safety and Child Protection Act of 2005.

Click here to review a report by A Third Way: The Porn Standard.

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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) today introduced legislation to make the Internet a safer place for America’s children.

“The Internet has become our new American Main Street, and it’s literally transforming the experience of growing up in America in a way much different from the way parents of today grew up,” Senator Lincoln said. “Many internet service providers have taken significant steps to provide parents with tools to protect their children from inappropriate material online and they should be commended. But sadly, many adult oriented websites in today’s online world are not only failing to keep products unsuitable for children from view, but are also pushing those products in children’s faces. And it’s time that we stand up and say, enough is enough.”

Lincoln said her legislation, “The Internet Safety and Child Protection Act of 2005,” would help relieve the anxieties experienced by parents due to the lack of controls they have over what their children view online. She said that it’s time the costs of protecting our children online shift from the American taxpayer to the actual purveyors of online pornography.

Lincoln’s legislation was introduced in coordination with the release of a new report by Third Way, a centrist think tank and advocacy group. Third Way’s report exposes alarming statistics linking children to pornographic web sites. It finds that children between the ages of 12-17 are the largest viewers of Internet pornography, and the average age at which children are first exposed to online pornography is 11 years of age.

Lincoln said she introduced her legislation today as a concerned parent in an effort to stand up to those on the internet who are profiting by exploiting children and promoting irresponsible and obscene behavior. Specifically, her legislation sets three clear objectives:

• Requires Age Verification Adult, for-profit websites would be required to use software to verify the age of users attempting to access their websites. Online merchants, banks, and credit card companies could not process payment transactions that are not age verified. The FTC shall issue and enforce the regulations outlined in this section.

• Establish an Internet Safety and Child Protection Trust Fund (ISCP Trust Fund) This fund will centralize and coordinate the allocation of federal resources in support of efforts on the part of law enforcement and others to combat Internet and pornography-related crimes against children. Trust Fund resources will also support initiatives that help parents exercise greater supervision over their kids’ online activities.

• Force Pornographers to Pay the Costs of Child Protection The Internet Safety and Child Protection Trust Fund will not be deficit-financed or financed from taxes paid by the average, working American. Rather, the Trust Fund will be financed by a 25% excise tax on Internet pornography transactions.

Original cosponsors of Lincoln’s legislation include U.S. Senators Tom Carper (D-DE), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Mark Pryor (D-AR), Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Joe Lieberman (D-CT), Ken Salazar (D-CO), Evan Bayh (D-IN), and Kent Conrad (D-ND). In addition, companion legislation was introduced today in the U.S. House of Representatives by Reps Jim Matheson (D-UT) and Robert Menendez (D-N.J.).