[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2036 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2036

                          To protect children.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              June 8, 1999

   Mr. Hyde introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
    Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on 
Education and the Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined 
 by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as 
        fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
                          To protect children.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Children's Defense Act of 1999''.

SEC. 2. PROTECTING CHILDREN FROM EXPLICIT MATERIAL.

    (a) In General.--Chapter 71 of title 18, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 1471. Protection of minors
    ``(a) Prohibition.--Whoever in interstate or foreign commerce 
knowingly solicits, sells, loans, or exhibits to a minor, any picture, 
photograph, drawing, sculpture, video game, motion picture film, or 
similar visual representation or image, book, pamphlet, magazine, 
printed matter, or sound recording, containing explicit sexual or 
violent material or detailed verbal descriptions or narrative accounts 
of explicit sexual or violent material which, taken as a whole--
            ``(1) predominantly appeals to the prurient, shameful, or 
        morbid interest of minors;
            ``(2) is patently offensive to prevailing standards in the 
        adult community as a whole with respect to what is suitable 
        material for minors; and
            ``(3) is utterly without redeeming social importance for 
        minors;
shall be punished as provided in subsection (c) of this section.
    ``(b) Definitions.--As used in subsection (a)--
            ``(1) the term `knowingly' means having general knowledge 
        of, or reason to know, or a belief or ground for belief which 
        warrants further inspection or inquiry of--
                    ``(A) the character and content of any material 
                described in subsection (a) which is reasonably 
                susceptible of examination by the defendant; and
                    ``(B) the age of the minor;
        but an honest mistake is a defense against a prosecution under 
        this section if the defendant made a reasonable bona fide 
        attempt to ascertain the true age of such minor;
            ``(2) the term `minor' means any person under the age of 17 
        years; and
            ``(3) the term `sexual or violent material' means the 
        depiction of the human male or female genitals, pubic area or 
        buttocks with less than a full opaque covering; the female 
        breast with less than a fully opaque covering of any portion 
        thereof below the top of the nipple; covered male genitals in a 
        discernibly turgid state; acts of masturbation, homosexuality, 
        or sexual intercourse; physical contact with a person's clothed 
        or unclothed genitals, pubic area, buttocks, or if such person 
        be a female, breast; or sadistic or masochistic activity, 
        including flagellation or torture by or upon a person, acts of 
        mutilation of the human body, or rape.
    ``(c) Penalties.--The punishment for an offense under this section 
is--
            ``(1) a fine under this title or imprisonment for not more 
        than 5 years, or both, in the case of an offense which does not 
        occur after a conviction for another offense under this 
        section; and
            ``(2) a fine under this title or imprisonment for not more 
        than 10 years, or both, in the case of an offense which occurs 
        after a conviction for another offense under this section.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
chapter 71 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 
end the following new item:

``1471. Protection of minors.''.

SEC. 3. PRE-PURCHASE DISCLOSURE OF LYRICS PACKAGED WITH SOUND 
              RECORDINGS.

    (a) In General.--Chapter 121 of title 18, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 2712. Disclosure of lyrics packaged with sound recordings
    ``(a) Pre-Purchase Right of Review.--Any retail establishment 
engaged in the sale of sound recordings in interstate or foreign 
commerce shall make available for on-site review, upon the request of a 
person over the age of 18 years, the lyrics packaged with any sound 
recording offered for sale by such retail establishment.
    ``(b) Definition.--The term `retail establishment' means any 
physical place of business which sells directly to a consumer, but does 
not include mail order, catalog, or on-line sales of sound recordings.
    ``(c) Penalties.--If it is known that a retail establishment 
described in subsection (a) is knowingly not making available for 
review lyrics in the manner required by that subsection, such retail 
establishment shall be notified by a lawfully authorized law 
enforcement officer or agent of the United States and if thereafter 
such retail establishment continues to knowingly not make available for 
review such lyrics, such retail establishment shall be fined $1,000 for 
each day in which it knowingly fails to make available for review such 
lyrics until such time as it comes into compliance with subsection 
(a).''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of chapters at the beginning of 
chapter 121 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding after 
the item relating to section 2711 the following:

``2712. Disclosure of lyrics packaged with sound recordings.''.

SEC. 4. STUDY OF EFFECTS OF ENTERTAINMENT ON CHILDREN.

    (a) Requirement.--The National Institutes of Health shall conduct a 
study of the effects of video games and music on child development and 
youth violence.
    (b) Elements.--The study under subsection (a) shall address--
            (1) whether, and to what extent, video games and music 
        affect the emotional and psychological development of 
        juveniles; and
            (2) whether violence in video games and music contributes 
        to juvenile delinquency and youth violence.

SEC. 5. TEMPORARY ANTITRUST IMMUNITY TO PERMIT THE ENTERTAINMENT 
              INDUSTRY TO SET GUIDELINES TO HELP PROTECT CHILDREN FROM 
              HARMFUL MATERIAL.

    (a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) Television is seen and heard in nearly every United 
        States home and is a uniquely pervasive presence in the daily 
        lives of Americans. The average American home has 2.5 
        televisions, and a television is turned on in the average 
        American home 7 hours every day.
            (2) Television plays a particularly significant role in the 
        lives of children. Figures provided by Nielsen Research show 
        that children between the ages of 2 years and 11 years spend an 
        average of 21 hours in front of a television each week.
            (3) Television has an enormous capability to influence 
        perceptions, especially those of children, of the values and 
        behaviors that are common and acceptable in society.
            (4) The influence of television is so great that its images 
        and messages often can be harmful to the development of 
        children. Social science research amply documents a strong 
        correlation between the exposure of children to televised 
        violence and a number of behavioral and psychological problems.
            (5) Hundreds of studies have proven conclusively that 
        children who are consistently exposed to violence on television 
        have a higher tendency to exhibit violent and aggressive 
        behavior, both as children and later in life.
            (6) Such studies also show that repeated exposure to 
        violent programming causes children to become desensitized to 
        and more accepting of real-life violence and to grow more 
        fearful and less trusting of their surroundings.
            (7) A growing body of social science research indicates 
        that sexual content on television can also have a significant 
        influence on the attitudes and behaviors of young viewers. This 
        research suggests that heavy exposure to programming with 
        strong sexual content contributes to the early commencement of 
        sexual activity among teenagers.
            (8) Members of the National Association of Broadcasters 
        (NAB) adhered for many years to a comprehensive code of conduct 
        that was based on an understanding of the influence exerted by 
        television and on a widely held sense of responsibility for 
        using that influence carefully.
            (9) This code of conduct, the Television Code of the 
        National Association of Broadcasters, articulated this sense of 
        responsibility as follows:
                    (A) ``In selecting program subjects and themes, 
                great care must be exercised to be sure that the 
                treatment and presentation are made in good faith and 
                not for the purpose of sensationalism or to shock or 
                exploit the audience or appeal to prurient interests or 
                morbid curiosity.''.
                    (B) ``Broadcasters have a special responsibility 
                toward children. Programs designed primarily for 
                children should take into account the range of 
                interests and needs of children, from instructional and 
                cultural material to a wide variety of entertainment 
                material. In their totality, programs should contribute 
                to the sound, balanced development of children to help 
them achieve a sense of the world at large and informed adjustments to 
their society.''.
                    (C) ``Violence, physical, or psychological, may 
                only be projected in responsibly handled contexts, not 
                used exploitatively. Programs involving violence 
                present the consequences of it to its victims and 
                perpetrators. Presentation of the details of violence 
                should avoid the excessive, the gratuitous and the 
                instructional.''.
                    (D) ``The presentation of marriage, family, and 
                similarly important human relationships, and material 
                with sexual connotations, shall not be treated 
exploitatively or irresponsibly, but with sensitivity.''.
                    (E) ``Above and beyond the requirements of the law, 
                broadcasters must consider the family atmosphere in 
                which many of their programs are viewed. There shall be 
                no graphic portrayal of sexual acts by sight or sound. 
                The portrayal of implied sexual acts must be essential 
                to the plot and presented in a responsible and tasteful 
                manner.''.
            (10) The National Association of Broadcasters abandoned the 
        code of conduct in 1983 after three provisions of the code 
        restricting the sale of advertising were challenged by the 
        Department of Justice on antitrust grounds and a Federal 
        district court issued a summary judgment against the National 
        Association of Broadcasters regarding one of the provisions on 
        those grounds. However, none of the programming standards of 
        the code were challenged.
            (11) While the code of conduct was in effect, its 
        programming standards were never found to have violated any 
        antitrust law.
            (12) Since the National Association of Broadcasters 
        abandoned the code of conduct, programming standards on 
        broadcast and cable television have deteriorated dramatically.
            (13) In the absence of effective programming standards, 
        public concern about the impact of television on children, and 
        on society as a whole, has risen substantially. Polls routinely 
        show that more than 80 percent of Americans are worried by the 
        increasingly graphic nature of sex, violence, and vulgarity on 
        television and by the amount of programming that openly 
        sanctions or glorifies criminal, antisocial, and degrading 
        behavior.
            (14) At the urging of Congress, the television industry has 
        taken some steps to respond to public concerns about 
        programming standards and content. The broadcast television 
        industry agreed in 1992 to adopt a set of voluntary guidelines 
        designed to ``proscribe gratuitous or excessive portrayals of 
        violence''. Shortly thereafter, both the broadcast and cable 
        television industries agreed to conduct independent studies of 
        the violent content in their programming and make those reports 
        public.
            (15) In 1996, the television industry as a whole made a 
        commitment to develop a comprehensive rating system to label 
        programming that may be harmful or inappropriate for children. 
        That system was implemented at the beginning of 1999.
            (16) Despite these efforts to respond to public concern 
        about the impact of television on children, millions of 
        Americans, especially parents with young children, remain angry 
        and frustrated at the sinking standards of television 
        programming, the reluctance of the industry to police itself, 
        and the harmful influence of television on the well-being of 
        the children and the values of the United States.
            (17) The Department of Justice issued a ruling in 1993 
        indicating that additional efforts by the television industry 
        to develop and implement voluntary programming guidelines would 
        not violate the antitrust laws. The ruling states that ``such 
        activities may be likened to traditional standard setting 
        efforts that do not necessarily restrain competition and may 
        have significant procompetitive benefits. . . . Such guidelines 
        could serve to disseminate valuable information on program 
        content to both advertisers and television viewers. Accurate 
        information can enhance the demand for, and increase the output 
        of, an industry's products or services.''.
            (18) The Children's Television Act of 1990 (Public Law 101-
        437) states that television broadcasters in the United States 
        have a clear obligation to meet the educational and 
        informational needs of children.
            (19) Several independent analyses have demonstrated that 
        the television broadcasters in the United States have not 
        fulfilled their obligations under the Children's Television Act 
        of 1990 and have not noticeably expanded the amount of 
        educational and informational programming directed at young 
        viewers since the enactment of that Act.
            (20) The popularity of video and personal computer (PC) 
        games is growing steadily among children. Although most popular 
        video and personal computer games are educational or harmless 
        in nature, many of the most popular are extremely violent. One 
        recent study by Strategic Record Research found that 64 percent 
        of teenagers played video or personal computer games on a 
        regular basis. Other surveys of children as young as elementary 
        school age found that almost half of them list violent computer 
        games among their favorites.
            (21) Violent video games often present violence in a 
        glamorized light. Game players are often cast in the role of 
        shooter, with points scored for each ``kill''. Similarly, 
        advertising for such games often touts violent content as a 
        selling point--the more graphic and extreme, the better.
            (22) As the popularity and graphic nature of such video 
        games grows, so do their potential to negatively influence 
        impressionable children.
            (23) Music is another extremely pervasive and popular form 
        of entertainment. American children and teenagers listen to 
        music more than any other demographic group. The Journal of 
        American Medicine reported that between the 7th and 12th grades 
        the average teenager listens to 10,500 hours of rock or rap 
        music, just slightly less than the entire number of hours spent 
        in the classroom from kindergarten through high school.
            (24) Teens are among the heaviest purchasers of music, and 
        are most likely to favor music genres that depict, and often 
        appear to glamorize violence.
            (25) Music has a powerful ability to influence perceptions, 
        attitudes, and emotional state. The use of music as therapy 
        indicates its potential to increase emotional, psychological, 
        and physical health. That influence can be used for ill as 
        well.
    (b) Purposes; Construction.--
            (1) Purposes.--The purposes of this section are to permit 
        the entertainment industry--
                    (A) to work collaboratively to respond to growing 
                public concern about television programming, movies, 
                video games, Internet content, and music lyrics, and 
                the harmful influence of such programming, movies, 
                games, content, and lyrics on children;
                    (B) to develop a set of voluntary programming 
                guidelines similar to those contained in the Television 
                Code of the National Association of Broadcasters; and
                    (C) to implement the guidelines in a manner that 
                alleviates the negative impact of television 
                programming, movies, video games, Internet content, and 
                music lyrics on the development of children in the 
                United States and stimulates the development and 
                broadcast of educational and informational programming 
                for such children.
            (2) Construction.--This section may not be construed as--
                    (A) providing the Federal Government with any 
                authority to restrict television programming, movies, 
                video games, Internet content, or music lyrics that is 
                in addition to the authority to restrict such 
                programming, movies, games, content, or lyrics under 
                law as of the date of the enactment of this Act; or
                    (B) approving any action of the Federal Government 
                to restrict such programming, movies, games, content, 
                or lyrics that is in addition to any actions undertaken 
                for that purpose by the Federal Government under law as 
                of such date.
    (c) Exemption of Voluntary Agreements on Guidelines for Certain 
Entertainment Material From Applicability of Antitrust Laws.--
            (1) Exemption.--Subject to paragraph (2), the antitrust 
        laws shall not apply to any joint discussion, consideration, 
        review, action, or agreement by or among persons in the 
        entertainment industry for the purpose of developing and 
        disseminating voluntary guidelines designed--
                    (A) to alleviate the negative impact of telecast 
                material, movies, video games, Internet content, and 
                music lyrics containing--
                            (i) violence, sexual content, criminal 
                        behavior; or
                            (ii) other subjects that are not 
                        appropriate for children; or
                    (B) to promote telecast material, movies, video 
                games, Internet content, or music lyrics that are 
                educational, informational, or otherwise beneficial to 
                the development of children.
            (2) Limitation.--The exemption provided in paragraph (1) 
        shall not apply to any joint discussion, consideration, review, 
        action, or agreement that--
                    (A) results in a boycott of any person; or
                    (B) concerns the purchase or sale of advertising, 
                including restrictions on the number of products that 
                may be advertised in a commercial, the number of times 
                a program may be interrupted for commercials, and the 
                number of consecutive commercials permitted within each 
                interruption.
            (3) Definitions.--In this subsection:
                    (A) Antitrust laws.--The term ``antitrust laws''--
                            (i) has the meaning given it in subsection 
                        (a) of the first section of the Clayton Act (15 
                        U.S.C. 12(a)), except that such term includes 
                        section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act 
                        (15 U.S.C. 45) to the extent such section 5 
                        applies to unfair methods of competition; and
                            (ii) includes any State law similar to the 
                        laws referred to in subparagraph (A).
                    (B) Internet.--The term ``Internet'' means the 
                combination of computer facilities and electromagnetic 
                transmission media, and related equipment and software, 
                comprising the interconnected worldwide network of 
                computer networks that employ the Transmission Control 
                Protocol/Internet Protocol or any successor protocol to 
                transmit information.
                    (C) Movies.--The term ``movies'' means theatrical 
                motion pictures.
                    (D) Person in the entertainment industry.--The term 
                ``person in the entertainment industry'' means a 
                television network, any person that produces or 
                distributes television programming (including 
                theatrical motion pictures), the National Cable 
                Television Association, the Association of Independent 
                Television Stations, Incorporated, the National 
                Association of Broadcasters, the Motion Picture 
                Association of America, each of the affiliate 
                organizations of the television networks, the 
                Interactive Digital Software Association, any person 
                that produces or distributes video games, the Recording 
                Industry Association of America, and any person that 
                produces or distributes music, and includes any 
                individual acting on behalf of any of the above.
                    (E) Telecast.--The term ``telecast material'' means 
                any program broadcast by a television broadcast station 
                or transmitted by a cable television system.
    (d) Sunset.--Subsection (d) shall apply only with respect to 
conduct that occurs in the period beginning on the date of the 
enactment of this Act and ending 3 years after such date.

SEC. 6. PROMOTING GRASSROOTS SOLUTIONS TO YOUTH VIOLENCE.

    (a) Establishment of National Youth Crime Prevention Demonstration 
Project.--The Attorney General shall, subject to appropriations, award 
a grant to the National Center for Neighborhood Enterprise (referred to 
in this section as the ``National Center'') to enable the National 
Center to award subgrants to grassroots entities in the following 9 
cities:
            (1) Washington, District of Columbia.
            (2) Detroit, Michigan.
            (3) Hartford, Connecticut.
            (4) Indianapolis, Indiana.
            (5) Chicago (and surrounding metropolitan area), Illinois.
            (6) Dallas, Texas.
            (7) Los Angeles, California.
            (8) Norfolk, Virginia.
            (9) Houston, Texas.
    (b) Eligibility.--
            (1) In general.--To be eligible to receive a subgrant under 
        this section, a grassroots entity referred to in subsection (a) 
        shall submit an application to the National Center to fund 
        intervention models that establish violence-free zones.
            (2) Selection criteria.--In awarding subgrants under this 
        section, the National Center shall consider--
                    (A) the track record of a grassroots entity and key 
                participating individuals in youth group mediation and 
                crime prevention;
                    (B) the engagement and participation of a 
                grassroots entity with other local organizations; and
                    (C) the ability of a grassroots entity to enter 
                into partnerships with local housing authorities, law 
                enforcement agencies, and other public entities.
    (c) Uses of Funds.--
            (1) In general.--Funds received under this section shall be 
        used for youth mediation, youth mentoring, life skills 
        training, job creation and entrepreneurship, organizational 
        development and training, development of long-term intervention 
        plans, collaboration with law enforcement, comprehensive 
        support services and local agency partnerships, or other 
        activities to further community objectives in reducing youth 
        crime and violence.
            (2) Technical assistance.--The National Center, in 
        cooperation with the Attorney General, shall also provide 
        technical assistance for startup projects in other cities.
            (3) Fiscal Controls.--The Attorney General is authorized to 
        establish and maintain all appropriate fiscal controls of sub-
        grantees under subsection (a).
    (d) Reports.--The National Center shall submit a report to the 
Attorney General evaluating the effectiveness of grassroots agencies 
and other public entities involved in the demonstration project.
    (e) Definitions.--
    For purposes of this section--
            (1) the term ``grassroots entity'' means a not-for-profit 
        community organization with demonstrated effectiveness in 
        mediating and addressing youth violence by empowering at-risk 
        youth to become agents of peace and community restoration; and
            (2) the term ``National Center for Neighborhood 
        Enterprise'' is a not-for-profit organization incorporated in 
        the District of Columbia.
    (f) Authorization of Appropriations.--
            (1) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated to 
        carry out this section--
                    (A) $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2000;
                    (B) $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2001;
                    (C) $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2002;
                    (D) $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2003; and
                    (E) $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2004.
            (2) Reservation.--The National Center for Neighborhood 
        Enterprise may use not more than 20 percent of the amounts 
        appropriated pursuant to paragraph (1) in any fiscal year for 
        administrative costs, technical assistance and training, 
        comprehensive support services, and evaluation of participating 
        grassroots entities.
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