SENATE FILE 304

BY  SODDERS

A BILL FOR

An Act creating a child and school communication protection registry, providing for a fee, creating a fund, providing an appropriation, and providing a penalty.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

   Section 1.  NEW SECTION.  82.1  Title and purpose —— rules of construction.
   1.  This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the “Iowa Child and School Communication Protection Registry Act”.
   2.  The purpose of this chapter is to provide safeguards to prevent certain messages regarding tobacco, alcohol, pornography, gambling, illegal drugs, and other illegal products from reaching the minor children of this state.
   3.  This chapter shall be construed broadly to effectuate its purposes.
   Sec. 2.  NEW SECTION.  82.2  Definitions.
   As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires:
   1.  “Contact point” means any electronic identification to which messages can be sent, including but not limited to any of the following:
   a.  An instant message identity.
   b.  A wireless telephone, a personal digital assistant, a pager, or any other similar wireless communication device.
   c.  A facsimile machine.
   d.  An electronic mail address.
   e.  An internet domain name.
   f.  Other electronic means of receiving messages, as described in rules promulgated by the department pursuant to chapter 17A.
   2.  “Department” means the department of public safety.
   3.  “Internet domain name” means a globally unique, hierarchical reference to an internet host or service, assigned through centralized internet authorities, comprising a series of character strings separated by periods, with the right-most string specifying the top of the hierarchy.
   4.  “Minor” means an individual under the age of eighteen years.
   5.  “Registry” means the child and school communication protection registry established under section 82.3.
   6.  “School” means any entity whose primary responsibility is serving children, including but not limited to camps, day care facilities, preschool facilities, and public or private institutions that provide teaching for any grade from kindergarten through grade twelve.
   Sec. 3.  NEW SECTION.  82.3  Child and school communication protection registry —— establishment, operation, and fees.
   1.  The department shall establish and operate the child and school communication protection registry. The department shall establish procedures to prevent, to the extent possible, the use or disclosure of protected contact points or internet domain names. 
   2.  A parent, guardian, individual, or school, that is responsible for a contact point to which a minor may have access, may register that contact point with the department pursuant to rules promulgated by the department. The department shall establish procedures to ensure that a registrant meets the requirements of this subsection.
   3.  A registration under this section shall be for not more than three years. However, if the contact point is established for a specific minor, the registration expires the year the minor turns eighteen years of age. A registration can be terminated or renewed by the registrant upon notification to the department.
   4.  A school may register one or more contact points with the department. A school may make a registration for all contact points of the school, including the contact points of clients or students of the school, and the registration may include the school’s internet domain name.
   5.  The department shall not assess, and a registrant shall not incur, a fee or charge for registering a contact point.
   Sec. 4.  NEW SECTION.  82.4  Child and school communication protection registry fund —— creation.
   1.  The child and school communication protection registry fund is created as a separate fund in the state treasury and administered by the department. Fees collected and penalties paid under this chapter shall be deposited into the fund.
   2.  The moneys in the fund are appropriated to the department and shall be used by the department for the purposes of administering this chapter and for the investigation and enforcement of the provisions of this chapter.
   3.  Notwithstanding section 8.33, moneys credited to the fund shall not revert to the general fund at the end of the fiscal year but shall remain in the fund. Notwithstanding section 12C.7, interest or earnings deposited in the fund shall be credited to the fund.
   Sec. 5.  NEW SECTION.  82.5  Prohibited activity. 
   1.  Except as otherwise provided under this section and section 82.6, a person shall not send, cause to be sent, or conspire with a third party to send a message to a contact point that has been registered for more than thirty calendar days with the department if the primary purpose of the message is to, directly or indirectly, advertise or otherwise link to a message that advertises a product or service that a minor is prohibited by law from purchasing, viewing, possessing, participating in, or otherwise receiving.
   2.  A person does not violate this chapter because the person unknowingly and indirectly provides transmission of messages described in subsection 1 over the person’s computer network or contact point to a contact point registered under this chapter.
   3.  The consent of a minor or third party to receive the message is not a defense to a violation of this section.
   Sec. 6.  NEW SECTION.  82.6  Exception from the general prohibition.
   1.  The sending of a message described in section 82.5 is not prohibited if prior to sending the message the sender has obtained from the intended receiver verification that the intended receiver is eighteen years of age or older and an affirmative statement of consent to receive the message at the contact point designated by the intended receiver. To comply with this subsection, the sender shall do all of the following:
   a.  Verify that the person making the affirmative statement is of legal age by inspecting, in a face-to-face transaction, a valid government-issued photo identification with proof of age.
   b.  Obtain a written record stating that the recipient has consented to receive the type of messages described in section 82.5. The consent form required under this paragraph shall be signed by the recipient. The sender shall retain the consent form required under this paragraph and make it available for verification.
   c.  All messages allowed under this subsection shall include notice to the recipient that the recipient may rescind consent and provide an opportunity for the recipient to, in a single declination, decline to receive any future messages.
   d.  After complying with paragraphs“a” through “c”, notify the department that the sender intends to send messages as allowed under this subsection. The department may adopt procedures to verify that the sender is in compliance with this subsection.
   2.  The consent of a minor or third party to receive the message is not a defense to a violation of this section.
   3.  The department shall establish a mechanism for senders to verify their compliance with the registry restrictions.
   4.
  a.  A person desiring to send a message described in section 82.5 shall pay the department a fee, established in rule for access to the verification mechanism. The fee required under this subsection shall be set by the department, not to exceed three cents per contact point.
   b.  The fees collected under this subsection shall be credited to the fund created under section 82.4.
   Sec. 7.  NEW SECTION.  82.7  Release of information.
   Notwithstanding chapter 22, information contained in the registry shall be kept confidential.
   Sec. 8.  NEW SECTION.  82.8  Penalties.
   1.  The department may assess a civil penalty for violation of this chapter not to exceed twenty-five thousand dollars per violation. Penalties collected under this section shall be credited to the child and school communication protection registry fund created under section 82.4.
   2.  Before assessing a penalty under this section, the department shall provide written notice and the opportunity to request a contested case hearing. The hearing must be requested within thirty days of the date provided in the notice for the assessment of the penalty and shall be conducted as provided in chapter 17A.
   3.  A person aggrieved by the imposition of a civil penalty under this section may seek judicial review in accordance with section 17A.19.
   4.  The department shall notify the attorney general of the failure to pay a civil penalty within thirty days of final agency action, or within ten days following final judgment in favor of the department if an order has been stayed pending judicial review. The attorney general may commence an action to recover the amount of the penalty, including reasonable attorney fees and costs.
   Sec. 9.  NEW SECTION.  82.9  Investigation of certain business transactions.
   1.  If the department has reason to believe that a person operating a business has violated this chapter, the department may investigate the business transactions of that person. The department may require the attendance and testimony of witnesses and the production of evidence under oath and the production of such documents, all as are necessary to determine whether the person is in compliance with the requirements of this chapter.
   2.  Investigative subpoenas shall be enforced as provided in section 17A.13.
   3.  Witnesses shall be paid the same fees and mileage that are paid witnesses in the district courts of this state.
EXPLANATION
   This bill creates a program to prevent certain electronic messages regarding tobacco, alcohol, pornography, gambling, illegal drugs, and other illegal products from reaching the minor children of this state. The bill is to be construed broadly to effectuate its purposes.
   The bill creates a child and school communication protection registry within the department of public safety. A parent, guardian, individual, or school that is responsible for a contact point to which a minor may have access may register that contact point with the department. “School” and “contact point” are defined in the bill.
   The bill prohibits any person from sending an electronic message to a registered contact point of a computer or wireless communication device if the primary purpose of the message is to advertise or otherwise link to a message that advertises a product or service that a minor is prohibited by law from purchasing, viewing, possessing, participating in, or otherwise receiving. The bill provides an exception for persons wishing to send such messages to a consenting adult who verifies their age and if the sender complies with other requirements specified in the bill. Senders may check the registry to ensure verification compliance. The department may charge a fee, not to exceed 3 cents per contact point.
   The bill authorizes the department to investigate the business transactions of a person operating a business that sends such messages under this exception if the department has reason to believe that person has violated the provisions of this bill. The department has the authority to issue investigative subpoenas.
   The department may assess a civil penalty for violation of new Code chapter 82, not to exceed $25,000 per violation.
   The bill creates the child and school communication protection registry fund, administered by the department. All fees and penalties are deposited into the fund, to be used for the purposes of administering the program and for the investigation and enforcement of the program. The moneys and interest in the fund do not revert to the general fund of the state.