Friday, September 11, 1998

08:32:34 AM

Hearings Yesterday on Proposed McCain Legislation

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz introduced legislation two days ago that would require a filtering solution for libraries and schools providing internet access through Universal Service funding.

The Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee held hearings to examine the extent of obscene material available on the  Internet and measures to restrict its access, including S. 1619, to  direct the Federal Communications Commission to study systems for  filtering or blocking certain matter on the Internet.

An excerpt from the proposed bill

"(3) Certification for libraries --
Before receiving universal service assistance under subsection (h)(1)(B), a library that has a computer with Internet access shall certify to the Commission that, on one or more of its computers with Internet access, it employs a system to filter or block matter deemed to be inappropriate for minors. If a library that makes a certification under this paragraph changes the system it employs or ceases to employ any such system, it shall notify the Commission within 10 days after implementing the change or ceasing to employ the system."

According to Senator McCain, "To qualify for the subsidies, libraries would be required to use a filtering system on one or more of their computers so that at least one computer would be "suitable for minors' use."

CNN News Article

Wired News Article

AccessOhio on Track for Feb. 16th Kickoff

The new ILL process will begin for several libraries on Monday, February 16th. Many of the libraries observe the holiday, so many requests will wait til Tuesday for processing. If you have questions concerning this project, visit the AccessOhio website or contact Ken Bell or Holly Ryan at NOLA headquarters.

Items submitted by:
Kenneth S. Bell - Email
NOLA Regional Library System

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