[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 213 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







105th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 213

   To amend section 223 of the Communications Act of 1934 to repeal 
     amendments on obscene and harassing use of telecommunications 
   facilities made by the Communications Decency Act of 1996 and to 
restore the provisions of such section on such use in effect before the 
          enactment of the Communications Decency Act of 1996.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 28, 1997

Mr. Leahy (for himself, Mr. Feingold, and Mr. Jeffords) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                 Commerce, Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend section 223 of the Communications Act of 1934 to repeal 
     amendments on obscene and harassing use of telecommunications 
   facilities made by the Communications Decency Act of 1996 and to 
restore the provisions of such section on such use in effect before the 
          enactment of the Communications Decency Act of 1996.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. REPEAL OF PROVISIONS ON OBSCENE AND HARASSING USE OF 
              TELECOMMUNICATIONS FACILITIES ENACTED BY COMMUNICATIONS 
              DECENCY ACT OF 1996.

    Section 223 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 223) is 
amended by striking subsections (a) and (d) through (h).

SEC. 2. RESTORATION OF PROVISIONS ON OBSCENE AND HARASSING USE OF 
              TELECOMMUNICATIONS FACILITIES IN EFFECT BEFORE 
              COMMUNICATIONS DECENCY ACT OF 1996.

    Section 223 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 223), as 
amended by section 1 of this Act, is further amended by inserting 
before subsection (b) the following new subsection (a):
    ``(a) Whoever--
            ``(1) in the District of Columbia or in interstate or 
        foreign communications by means of telephone--
                    ``(A) makes any comment, request, suggestion or 
                proposal which is obscene, lewd, lascivious, filthy, or 
                indecent;
                    ``(B) makes a telephone call, whether or not 
                conversation ensues, without disclosing his identity 
                and with intent to annoy, abuse, threaten, or harass 
                any person at the called number;
                    ``(C) makes or causes the telephone of another 
                repeatedly or continuously to ring, with intent to 
                harass any person at the called number; or
                    ``(D) makes repeated telephone calls, during which 
                conversation ensues, solely to harass any person at the 
                called number; or
            ``(2) knowingly permits any telephone facility under his 
        control to be used for any purpose prohibited by this section,
shall be fined not more than $50,000 or imprisoned not more than six 
months, or both.''.
                                 <all>