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                                                       PRINTER'S NO. 240

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA


SENATE BILL

No. 198 Session of 2007


        INTRODUCED BY KASUNIC, MUSTO, RHOADES, COSTA, FONTANA, KITCHEN,
           STOUT, BOSCOLA, RAFFERTY, GORDNER, STACK AND REGOLA,
           MARCH 7, 2007

        REFERRED TO EDUCATION, MARCH 7, 2007

                                     AN ACT

     1  Requiring school districts to establish a program to monitor and
     2     control Internet access by students; establishing the
     3     Internet Content Control Software Fund and its funding
     4     source; and providing for powers and duties of the Department
     5     of Education.

     6     The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
     7  hereby enacts as follows:
     8  Section 1.  Short title.
     9     This act shall be known and may be cited as the Student
    10  Internet Access Act.
    11  Section 2.  Declaration of policy.
    12     The General Assembly finds and declares as follows:
    13         (1)  The Internet is an increasingly valuable medium for
    14     the collection and dissemination of information.
    15         (2)  Currently, a significant number of elementary and
    16     secondary schools use the Internet as a part of their
    17     respective curricula and encourage students to use the
    18     Internet as a means of acquiring information.
    19         (3)  Many students have access to the Internet through

     1     school-provided Internet services and often seek or are
     2     exposed to obscene and pornographic sites, as well as sites
     3     that encourage or advocate intolerance, militant or extremist
     4     behavior and the use of alcohol, tobacco and illicit drugs.
     5         (4)  Increasingly advertisers use the Internet to market
     6     obscene materials to millions of Internet users.
     7         (5)  Various organizations make available via the
     8     Internet information advocating drug, alcohol and tobacco
     9     sale, consumption and production. Organizations also make
    10     available information advocating intolerance and militant or
    11     extremist behavior.
    12         (6)  The Commonwealth has a compelling interest in
    13     protecting elementary and secondary students from the above-
    14     mentioned types of materials. In doing so the General
    15     Assembly must enact a narrowly tailored remedy to avoid
    16     interfering with the growth or accessibility of this
    17     important medium and with the needs of school districts to
    18     use the Internet as a curriculum-enhancing learning tool in
    19     accordance with the Constitution of the United States and
    20     section 7 of Article I of the Constitution of Pennsylvania.
    21         (7)  This act empowers school districts to adopt policies
    22     for the use of Internet content control software to block
    23     access by students to Internet sites that are inappropriate
    24     for viewing and use by its students.
    25  Section 3.  Definitions.
    26     The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
    27  have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
    28  context clearly indicates otherwise:
    29     "Department."  The Department of Education of the
    30  Commonwealth.
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     1     "Drug."  A controlled substance or other substance used for
     2  other than its primary purpose to alter an individual's state of
     3  mind. The term includes a prescription drug when used other than
     4  for its primary purpose.
     5     "Fund."  The Internet Content Control Software Fund
     6  established under section 6.
     7     "Gross depiction."  A picture, descriptive text or audio
     8  communication of an individual or anything that is crudely
     9  vulgar or grossly deficient in civility or which show
    10  scatological impropriety. The term includes a depiction
    11  including, but not limited to, maiming, bloody figure or
    12  indecent depiction of a bodily function.
    13     "Internet."  The international nonproprietary computer
    14  network of both Federal and non-Federal interoperable packet-
    15  switched data networks.
    16     "Internet content control software."  A special type of
    17  filtering program designed to reject Internet sites not suitable
    18  for students. The software may screen sites by word content,
    19  site rating or by uniform resource locator, using an updated
    20  database of objectionable sites or any combination of these
    21  techniques for the purpose of blocking the viewing of
    22  undesirable Internet content.
    23     "Intolerance."  Prejudice or discrimination against a race,
    24  color, national origin, religion, disability or handicap, gender
    25  or sexual orientation. The term includes the making of
    26  intolerant jokes and slurs.
    27     "Militant or extremist behavior."  Extremely aggressive and
    28  combative behavior or a behavior which advocates unlawful
    29  political measures.
    30     "Obscenity" or "obscene."  Material that, to the average
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     1  person applying contemporary standards, the predominant appeal
     2  of the matter taken as a whole appeals to the prurient interest
     3  or lacks redeeming social importance.
     4     "Partial nudity."  Exposure of the female breast or male or
     5  female buttocks, except when exposing genitalia.
     6     "Profanity."  Obscene words or phrases.
     7     "Satanic cult."  A closed society often headed by a single
     8  individual, where loyalty is demanded and leaving may be
     9  punishable, where harm to oneself and others is advocated and
    10  worship of the devil and affinity for evil or wickedness is
    11  encouraged.
    12     "Violence."  Extreme cruelty or physical or emotional act
    13  against an animal or person which is primarily intended to hurt
    14  or inflict pain.
    15  Section 4.  Internet content control software purchase
    16                 requirement.
    17     (a)  General rule.--Each school district shall establish a
    18  program to monitor and control Internet access by students in
    19  accordance with this section.
    20     (b)  Purchase of software required.--Each school district
    21  shall purchase Internet content control software that will allow
    22  it to monitor and control which Internet sites its students will
    23  be enabled to access. Each school district, through its board of
    24  school directors, shall implement a policy for the use of
    25  Internet content control software.
    26     (c)  Policy specifications.--Each school district's policy
    27  shall clearly state what types of information will be blocked
    28  from student access. The policy may prohibit access by students
    29  to the following:
    30         (1)  Obscenity.
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     1         (2)  Gross depictions.
     2         (3)  Depictions of sexual acts.
     3         (4)  Depictions of full and partial nudity.
     4         (5)  Information encouraging or advocating satanic cults,
     5     intolerance, militant or extremist behavior, violence or
     6     profanity and the sale, consumption or production of illicit
     7     drugs, alcohol or tobacco products.
     8     (d)  School administrator responsibilities.--Each school
     9  district's policy shall designate a person who shall act as an
    10  administrator of the program under subsection (a). The
    11  administrator shall determine which Internet sites are
    12  inappropriate for use and viewing by students in that school
    13  district and shall network security, install new applications,
    14  distribute software upgrades, monitor daily activity, enforce
    15  licensing agreements, develop a storage management program and
    16  provide for routine backups.
    17  Section 5.  Grants to school districts.
    18     The department may, upon written application, award grants to
    19  school districts from the fund for the purchase of Internet
    20  content control software authorized by this act. A grant awarded
    21  under this section shall be subject to such terms and conditions
    22  as established by the department.
    23  Section 6.  Internet Content Control Software Fund.
    24     (a)  Establishment.--There is hereby established as a
    25  separate fund in the State Treasury a special fund to be known
    26  as the Internet Content Control Software Fund.
    27     (b)  Continuing appropriation.--Within 30 days of the close
    28  of any calendar month, 0.151% of tax receipts under Article II
    29  of the act of March 4, 1971 (P.L.6, No.2), known as the Tax
    30  Reform Code of 1971, shall be transferred into the fund. The
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     1  department shall administer the fund. Moneys in the fund are
     2  hereby appropriated to the department on a continuing basis for
     3  the purposes of providing grants to school districts for the
     4  purchase of Internet content control software.
     5  Section 7.  Effective date.
     6     This act shall take effect in 60 days.
















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