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H.C.R. 4
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RESOLUTION URGING FEDERAL AND STATE
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ACTION AGAINST INTERNET ABUSES
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2003 GENERAL SESSION
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STATE OF UTAH
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Sponsor: Dana C. Love
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This concurrent resolution of the Legislature and the Governor urges the Federal
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Government to address abuses of Internet technology that deceptively expose Internet
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users to objectionable material and illegal activities and urges states to join in
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recommending federal action. The resolution also urges Utah and other states to study
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ways states can address these threats to their citizens.
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Be it resolved by the Legislature of the state of Utah, the Governor concurring therein:
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WHEREAS, in just a few years, the Internet has become a pervasive influence in
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societies throughout the world;
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WHEREAS, in the wake of increased use of the Internet for everything from shopping
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to research comes the increased use of Internet technology that is harmful to Internet users;
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WHEREAS, the proliferation of computer viruses transmitted through use of the
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Internet has resulted in the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars for companies and
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individuals due to crashed computer equipment and corrupted data;
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WHEREAS, many websites fail to accurately disclose the nature of their site or what
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product they may sell;
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WHEREAS, Internet technology is sometimes used to prevent an Internet user from
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leaving a website while credit card numbers and other sensitive information is stolen from the
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user;
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WHEREAS, some obscene websites disguise their objectionable products, thereby
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snaring unsuspecting users, then use Internet technology to prevent users from leaving the
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website;
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WHEREAS, if websites prevent users from leaving the site, the only way a user can
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escape credit card theft or exposure to objectionable material may be to turn off the computer,
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which in some cases crashes the computer or results in the loss of important information stored
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on the user's computer;
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WHEREAS, constitutional protections such as the Commerce Clause and the First
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Amendment may restrict state efforts to regulate harmful Internet activities;
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WHEREAS, although these constitutional protections address basic and important
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rights, these protections should not be used to protect criminal actions taken by website owners
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or operators who use technology to victimize computer users;
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WHEREAS, because of the interstate and international aspects of the Internet the
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Federal Government may be best positioned to regulate these harmful Internet activities;
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WHEREAS, Internet users' rights to choose what they are exposed to through the
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Internet, should be upheld by laws such as laws that require clear identification of a website's
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content and when notified of a website's content permit users to easily remove themselves from
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the website;
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WHEREAS, the Federal Government should enforce laws that protect the citizens of
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the United States from theft, damage to property, and deceptive exposure to objectionable
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material through criminal use of Internet technology and should refine or create new federal
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laws where necessary;
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WHEREAS, these laws should be crafted so that they do not have unintended
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consequences for the many legitimate businesses that provide Internet services;
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WHEREAS, the Federal Government should consider adapting laws that protect
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citizens from pornographic mail to provide similar protections to electronic forms of
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pornographic mail;
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WHEREAS, Utah and other states should carefully study these encroachments on the
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rights of citizens and develop strategies to combat these abuses; and
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WHEREAS, the state and Federal Government's responsibility of protecting the rights
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of its citizens must include protection of its citizens while they are on the Internet:
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NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of the state of Utah, the
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Governor concurring therein, urge the Federal Government to enforce laws, and develop
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appropriate new laws, that will protect its citizens from theft, damage to property, and
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deceptive exposure to objectionable material through use of Internet technology.
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BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge other states
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to also petition the Federal Government to protect its citizens.
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BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge Utah and
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other states to study ways states can address these threats to the well being of their citizens.
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BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution be sent to the Federal
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Communications Commission, the United States Attorney General, the attorney general of each
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of the fifty states, the National Conference of State Legislatures, and to the members of Utah's
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congressional delegation.
Legislative Review Note
as of 1-23-03 4:04 PM
A limited legal review of this legislation raises no obvious constitutional or statutory concerns.