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Senate Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
Senate of Pennsylvania
Session of 2015 - 2016
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | February 10, 2015 02:28 PM |
|---|---|
| From: | Senator Rob Teplitz |
| To: | All Senate members |
| Subject: | Legislation – Requiring Reporting of Child Exploitation by Computer Technicians |
| Per the recommendations made by the Child Protection Task Force, I plan on introducing legislation to amend Title 23 (Domestic Relations) to protect the children of the Commonwealth. This bill would add computer technicians to the list of mandated reporters which currently includes professionals such as doctors, dentists, teachers, school administrators, nurses, social workers, clergy, law enforcement, and mental health workers. This bill would require computer technicians who may, in their professional capacity, observe child pornography that has been intentionally saved to a computer (or other computer-related device), to report the matter Department of Public Welfare’s child abuse reporting hotline. Under Title 23, a mandated reporter who willfully fails to report child abuse is guilty of a misdemeanor of the third degree for the first offense and a misdemeanor of the second degree for the second and subsequent offenses. Nine states (AK, CA, IL, MI, MO, NC, OK, OR, SC and SD) already have enacted similar legislation to ensure the safety of their children, and to provide a deterrent from further proliferation of these heinous images. Please stand with me by co-sponsoring this important piece of legislation which will help protect our Commonwealth’s most precious resource, our children. |
Introduced as SB583