[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 66 (Tuesday, May 21, 2002)]
[House]
[Pages H2669-H2676]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
DOT KIDS IMPLEMENTATION AND EFFICIENCY ACT OF 2002
Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill
(H.R. 3833) to facilitate the creation of a new, second-level Internet
domain within the United States country code domain that will be a
haven for material that promotes positive experiences for children and
families using the Internet, provides a safe online environment for
children, and helps to prevent children from being exposed to harmful
material on the Internet, and for other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read as follows:
H.R. 3833
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 ``Dot Kids Implementation and
Efficiency Act of 2002''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.
(a) Findings.--The Congress finds that--
(1) the World Wide Web presents a stimulating and
entertaining opportunity for children to learn, grow, and
develop educationally and intellectually;
(2) Internet technology also makes available an extensive
amount of information that is harmful to children, as studies
indicate that a significant portion of all material available
on the Internet is related to pornography;
(3) young children, when trying to use the World Wide Web
for positive purposes, are often presented--either mistakenly
or intentionally--with material that is inappropriate for
their age, which can be extremely frustrating for children,
parents, and educators;
(4) exposure of children to material that is inappropriate
for them, including pornography, can distort the education
and development of the Nation's youth and represents a
serious harm to American families that can lead to a host of
other problems for children, including inappropriate use of
chat rooms, physical molestation, harassment, and legal and
financial difficulties;
(5) young boys and girls, older teens, troubled youth,
frequent Internet users, chat room participants, online risk
takers, and those who communicate online with strangers are
at greater risk for receiving unwanted sexual solicitation on
the Internet;
(6) studies have shown that 19 percent of youth (ages 10 to
17) who used the Internet regularly were the targets of
unwanted sexual solicitation, but less than 10 percent of the
solicitations were reported to the police;
(7) children who come across illegal content should report
it to the congressionally authorized CyberTipline, an online
mechanism developed by the National Center for Missing and
Exploited Children, for citizens to report sexual crimes
against children;
(8) the CyberTipline has received more than 64,400 reports,
including reports of child pornography, online enticement for
sexual acts, child molestation (outside the family), and
child prostitution;
(9) although the computer software and hardware industries,
and other related industries, have developed innovative ways
to help parents and educators restrict material that is
harmful to minors through parental control protections and
self-regulation, to date such efforts have not provided a
national solution to the problem of minors accessing harmful
material on the World Wide Web;
(10) the creation of a ``green-light'' area within the
United States country code Internet domain, that will contain
only content that is appropriate for children under the age
of 13, is analogous to the creation of a children's section
within a library and will promote the positive experiences of
children and families in the United States; and
(11) while custody, care, and nurture of the child reside
first with the parent, the protection of the physical and
psychological well-being of minors by shielding them from
material that is harmful to them is a compelling governmental
interest.
(b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are--
(1) to facilitate the creation of a second-level domain
within the United States country code Internet domain for the
location of material that is suitable for minors and not
harmful to minors; and
(2) to ensure that the National Telecommunications and
Information Administration oversees the creation of such a
second-level domain and ensures the effective and efficient
establishment and operation of the new domain.
SEC. 3. NTIA AUTHORITY.
Section 103(b)(3) of the National Telecommunications and
Information Administration Organization Act (47 U.S.C.
902(b)(3)) is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(2) in subparagraph (B), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``; and''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
``(C) shall assign to the NTIA responsibility for providing
for the establishment, and overseeing operation, of a second-
level Internet domain within the United States country code
domain in accordance with section 157.''.
SEC. 4. CHILD-FRIENDLY SECOND-LEVEL INTERNET DOMAIN.
The National Telecommunications and Information
Administration Organization Act (47 U.S.C. 901 et seq.) is
amended in part C by adding at the end the following new
section:
``SEC. 157. CHILD-FRIENDLY SECOND-LEVEL INTERNET DOMAIN.
``(a) Responsibilities.--The NTIA shall require the
registry selected to operate and
[[Page H2670]]
maintain the United States country code Internet domain to
establish, operate, and maintain a second-level domain within
the United States country code domain that provides access
only to material that is suitable for minors and not harmful
to minors (in this section referred to as the `new domain').
``(b) Conditions of Contract Renewal.--The NTIA may not
renew any contract to operate and maintain the domain with
the initial registry, or enter into or renew any such
contract with any successor registry, unless such registry
enters into an agreement with the NTIA, during the 90-day
period beginning upon the date of the enactment of the Dot
Kids Implementation and Efficiency Act of 2002 in the case of
the initial registry or during the 90-day period after
selection in the case of any successor registry, as
applicable, which provides for the registry to carry out, and
the new domain operates pursuant to, the following
requirements:
``(1) Written content standards for the new domain, except
that the NTIA shall not have any authority to establish such
standards.
``(2) Written agreements with each registrar for the new
domain that require that use of the new domain is in
accordance with the standards and requirements of the
registry.
``(3) Written agreements with registrars, which shall
require registrars to enter into written agreements with
registrants, to use the new domain in accordance with the
standards and requirements of the registry.
``(4) Rules and procedures for enforcement and oversight
that minimize the possibility that the new domain provides
access to content that is not in accordance with the
standards and requirements of the registry.
``(5) A process for removing from the new domain any
content that is not in accordance with the standards and
requirements of the registry.
``(6) A process to provide registrants to the new domain
with an opportunity for a prompt, expeditious, and impartial
dispute resolution process regarding any material of the
registrant excluded from the new domain.
``(7) Continuous and uninterrupted service for the new
domain during any transition to a new registry selected to
operate and maintain new domain or the United States country
code domain.
``(8) Procedures and mechanisms to promote the accuracy of
contact information submitted by registrants and retained by
registrars in the new domain.
``(9) Operationality of the new domain not later than one
year after the date of the enactment of the Dot Kids
Implementation and Efficiency Act of 2002.
``(10) Written agreements with registrars, which shall
require registrars to enter into written agreements with
registrants, to prohibit two-way and multiuser interactive
services in the new domain, unless the registrant certifies
to the registrar that such service will be offered in
compliance with the content standards established pursuant to
paragraph (1) and is specifically constructed and operated to
protect minors from harm.
``(11) Written agreements with registrars, which shall
require registrars to enter into written agreements with
registrants, to prohibit hyperlinks in the new domain that
take new domain users outside of the new domain.
``(12) Any other action that the NTIA considers necessary
to establish, operate, or maintain the new domain in
accordance with the purposes of this section.
``(c) Treatment of Registry and Other Entities.--
``(1) In general.--Only to the extent that such entities
carry out functions under this section, the following
entities are deemed to be interactive computer services for
purposes of section 230(c) of the Communications Act of 1934
(47 U.S.C. 230(c)):
``(A) The registry that operates and maintains the new
domain.
``(B) Any entity that contracts with such registry to carry
out functions to ensure that content accessed through the new
domain complies with the limitations applicable to the new
domain.
``(C) Any registrar for the registry of the new domain that
is operating in compliance with its agreement with the
registry.
``(2) Savings provision.--Nothing in paragraph (1) shall be
construed to affect the applicability of any other provision
of title II of the Communications Act of 1934 to the entities
covered by subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) of paragraph (1).
``(d) Education.--The NTIA shall carry out a program to
publicize the availability of the new domain and to educate
the parents of minors regarding the process for utilizing the
new domain in combination and coordination with hardware and
software technologies that provide for filtering or blocking.
The program under this subsection shall be commenced not
later than 30 days after the date that the new domain first
becomes operational and accessible by the public.
``(e) Coordination With Federal Government.--The registry
selected to operate and maintain the new domain shall--
``(1) consult with appropriate agencies of the Federal
Government regarding procedures and actions to prevent minors
and families who use the new domain from being targeted by
adults and other children for predatory behavior,
exploitation, or illegal actions; and
``(2) based upon the consultations conducted pursuant to
paragraph (1), establish such procedures and take such
actions as the registry may deem necessary to prevent such
targeting.
The consultations, procedures, and actions required under
this subsection shall be commenced not later than 30 days
after the date that the new domain first becomes operational
and accessible by the public.
``(f) Compliance Report.--The registry shall prepare, on an
annual basis, a report on the registry's monitoring and
enforcement procedures for the new domain. The registry shall
submit each such report, setting forth the results of the
review of its monitoring and enforcement procedures for the
new domain, to the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the
House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce,
Science, and Transportation of the Senate.
``(g) Selection of Contractor.--
``(1) Withdrawal of registry.--
``(A) Election by registry.--Upon a good faith showing by
the registry of the new domain to the NTIA of extreme
financial hardship in the operation of the new domain
occurring any time after the date of the enactment of the Dot
Kids Implementation and Efficiency Act of 2002, the registry
may elect to relinquish the right to operate and maintain the
new domain. Notwithstanding the time of occurrence of such
extreme financial hardship or the time of such election, the
registry may not relinquish such right before the expiration
of the 3-year period beginning upon such date of enactment.
``(B) Selection of new contractor.--If the registry elects
to relinquish such right pursuant to subparagraph (A), the
NTIA shall select a contractor to operate and maintain the
new domain under the competitive bidding process established
pursuant to paragraph (2).
``(C) Extreme financial hardship.--For purposes of this
paragraph, the term `extreme financial hardship' means that
each quarter, for a period of 6 or more consecutive quarters,
the costs of establishing, operating, and maintaining the new
domain exceed the revenues generated from registrants by more
than 25 percent.
``(2) Competitive bid selection process.--The NTIA shall
establish a process for soliciting applications and selecting
a contractor to operate and maintain the new domain pursuant
to this subsection), which process shall comply with the
following requirements:
``(A) Timing.--The selection process shall commence and
complete not later than (i) 120 days after the registry
elects to relinquish the new domain for extreme financial
hardship, or (ii) the expiration of a contract referred to in
paragraph (4), as applicable.
``(B) Notice.--The selection process shall provide adequate
notice to prospective applicants of--
``(i) the opportunity to submit such an application; and
``(ii) the criteria for selection under subparagraph (C).
``(C) Criteria.--The selection shall be made pursuant to
written, objective criteria designed to ensure--
``(i) that the new domain is operated and maintained in
accordance with the requirements under subsection (b); and
``(ii) that the contractor selected to operate and maintain
the new domain is the applicant most capable and qualified to
do so.
``(D) Review.--Not more than 60 days after the conclusion
of the period established for submission of applications, the
NTIA shall--
``(i) review and apply the selection criteria established
under subparagraph (C) to each application submitted; and
``(ii) based upon such criteria and subject to submission
of an application meeting such criteria, select an
application and award to the applicant a subcontract for the
operation and maintenance of the new domain.
``(E) Failure to find contractor.--If the NTIA fails to
find a suitable contractor pursuant to the process under this
paragraph, the NTIA shall permit the registry to cease
operation of the new domain.
``(3) Rights and duties.--A contractor selected pursuant to
this subsection shall have all of the rights and duties of
the registry specified under this section, except that such
duties shall not include the technical maintenance of the new
domain.
``(4) Conditions of contract renewal.--In the case of the
expiration of a contract for operation and maintenance of the
new domain with a contractor selected pursuant to paragraph
(2), the NTIA may renew such contract or, subject to
paragraph (2), rebid the contract to a new contractor.
Nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent the
registry of the United States country code Internet domain
from bidding to become the contractor of the new domain.
``(h) Suspension of New Domain.--If the NTIA finds,
pursuant to its own review or upon a good faith petition by
the registry, that the new domain is not serving its intended
purpose, the NTIA shall instruct the registry to suspend
operation of the new domain until such time as the NTIA
determines that the new domain can be operated as intended.
``(i) Definitions.--For purposes of this section, the
following definitions shall apply:
``(1) Harmful to minors.--The term `harmful to minors'
means, with respect to material, that--
``(A) the average person, applying contemporary community
standards, would find, taking the material as a whole and
with respect to minors, that it is designed to appeal to, or
is designed to pander to, the prurient interest;
[[Page H2671]]
``(B) the material depicts, describes, or represents, in a
manner patently offensive with respect to minors, an actual
or simulated sexual act or sexual contact, an actual or
simulated normal or perverted sexual act, or a lewd
exhibition of the genitals or post-pubescent female breast;
and
``(C) taken as a whole, the material lacks serious,
literary, artistic, political, or scientific value for
minors.
``(2) Minor.--The term `minor' means any person under 13
years of age.
``(3) Registry.--The term `registry' means the registry
selected to operate and maintain the United States country
code Internet domain
``(4) Suitable for minors.--The term `suitable for minors'
means, with respect to material, that it--
``(A) is not psychologically or intellectually
inappropriate for minors; and
``(B) serves--
``(i) the educational, informational, intellectual, or
cognitive needs of minors; or
``(ii) the social, emotional, or entertainment needs of
minors.''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Michigan (Mr. Upton) and the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Markey)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Upton).
General Leave
Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks
and to insert extraneous material on the bill.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Michigan?
There was no objection.
Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 5 minutes.
Mr. Speaker, sometimes I think that the World Wide Web should be
renamed perhaps the World's Wicked Web. I woke up this morning
listening to the Today Show, and I heard this very sad case of a young
girl in Danbury, Connecticut. I read from CNN: ``The body of a 13-year-
old girl missing since Friday has been found. The FBI has arrested a
Brazilian national living in Connecticut who allegedly met the girl on
the Internet, the agency said Monday. Christina Long's body was found
Monday. She had been missing since Friday evening.'' She had been
contacted through a chat room on the Internet.
Last week in Kalamazoo, Michigan, we held a hearing on chat rooms. We
know as parents that there is no better way to watch over our children
than with parental involvement. The story, whether it be in Danbury
Connecticut, or other communities across the country, is a nightmare
waiting to happen in virtually anyplace in the country.
Last Friday, I visited an elementary school just outside of
Kalamazoo, Northeastern Elementary School, where I spoke to about 80 or
90 sixth grade children. I asked the question, as I often do as I go to
an elementary school, how many of you use the Internet on a fairly
routine basis? They all raised their hands, every one of them.
I then asked the question: How many of you have seen something that
is inappropriate coming into your house or your classroom on that
Internet? And again, virtually every hand went up.
Mr. Speaker, what this legislation does is creates a new domain for
the Internet. Like we have a dot-org and a dot-com and a dot-gov, we
are now going to have a dot-kids. Actually, it may be a dot-kids dot-
U.S. It may be a dot-Disney dot-kids; it may be a dot-Boy Scouts or
dot-Girl Scouts, it may be a dot-games. But whatever it is, it will be
aimed and earmarked towards children that are 12 and under. In essence,
it will be a children's section of the library.
When my 10-year-old son, Stephen, goes to the library in my hometown,
I know that that children's library in the basement of the Maud Preston
Palenske Memorial Library has children's books and he is safe in that
area. We know that as 10- and 12-year-olds and even 9-year-old
children, they often have their own Internet identity name. They use
the Internet for their school and home. They chat with their friends.
As parents, we want to make sure that they are safe, because that
Internet will be their tool of learning for business and school the
rest of their lives. But obviously, for so many of those young minds,
they are not ready for some of those folks that would like to lure and
prey on them.
That is what this legislation does. By setting up a new domain, we as
parents will know that that road map for them is a safe, safe place.
{time} 1030
This legislation, Mr. Speaker, is bipartisan. It passed in the
subcommittee and full committee without dissent. We had great
leadership from the author of the bill, the gentleman from Illinois
(Mr. Shimkus), the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Markey), the
ranking member of the subcommittee, my chairman, the gentleman from
Louisiana (Mr. Tauzin), the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell), the
ranking member, the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Terry) and other
members of the subcommittee who were very involved in making sure this
legislation passed and moved.
I would note that the bill has been endorsed by the National Center
for Missing and Exploited Children, the Family Research Council, the
American Center for Law and Justice, the National Law Center for
Children and Families and a Safe America for Everyone, SAFE. And I want
to thank them all for their support.
Mr. Speaker, this legislation is needed. As parents, as members in a
community, we know that we can stop some of this awful stuff that comes
to our homes. Mr. Speaker, when someone rings the doorbell or knocks on
a door, often as we go to that door we look through the peephole, we
look through the windows to see who is there before they come in. On
the Internet you are not able to do that.
In so many cases we see other folks masquerading maybe as 12 or 13 or
15-year-old children. Maybe they are in their 40s or 50s looking to
prey on our kids. We had an arrest last week in Kalamazoo, and they
found out just in 72 hours that that individual had 20 other victims
that he will probably be charged with as he moved across county lines
to try and seek and prey on kids just like this very sad story of the
young girl in Danbury, Connecticut.
Mr. Speaker, as Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce
Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet, I rise in strong
support of H.R. 3833, the ``Dot Kids Implementation and Efficiency Act
of 2002''. This bill was introduced by the gentleman from Illinois, Mr.
Shimkus, the gentleman from Massachusetts, the ranking member of the
Telecommunications and Internet Subcommittee, Mr. Markey, and myself--
and the bill has 40 bipartisan cosponsors.
Mr. Speaker, more and more parents have recognized that they are
losing some control over what enters their home as their children spend
more and more time on the home computer surfing the Internet. While the
Internet is an excellent tool for children to learn, there are all
sorts of inappropriate material that--with just one wrong click--comes
right into your living room, den, or bedroom--wherever the computer is
located. I visit a school every week in my district, and at every
middle school I ask for a show of hands about how many kids use the
Internet, and about every hand goes up. I then ask how many have seen
inappropriate material--pornography or bad language--and virtually
every time about 80 percent of the hands stay in the air. This has got
to stop.
While there is no substitute for proper parental supervision,
responsible parents want more tools to assist them in protecting their
kids on the Internet. Filters are one solution, but we believe more
must be done to help.
The ``Dot Kids Implementation and Efficiency Act of 2002'' (H.R.
3833), would enable the establishment of a kid-friendly space on the
Internet. We have made passage of this important bipartisan
legislation, a top priority of the House Energy and Commerce Committee
and its Telecommunications and Internet Subcommittee, and I want to
thank Chairman Tauzin and Ranking Member Dingell for their assistance
in moving this legislation forward.
Just like ``.com'', or ``.gov'', or ``.org''--``.kids'' will be an
Internet address code, but the difference is that only websites with
content which is both ``not harmful to minors'' and ``suitable for
minors'' could get access. Under the bill, a ``minor'' is defined as a
person 12 years old and under. The ``.kids'' space would be a safe
place devoted solely to material which is appropriate for kids--where
parents could choose to send their kids. This is really no different in
concept than the children's section at the public library--which is the
only part of the library where kids are allowed to check out books.
More specifically, the ``.kids'' space would be housed within our
country's Internet code, otherwise known as ``.us'', which would result
in ``.kids.us.''. For instance, if the Boy Scouts of America, whose
website currently is: www.scouting.org, decided to set up an additional
mirror site in the ``.kids.us'' space it
[[Page H2672]]
would be: www.scouting.kids.us. The U.S. Department of Commerce's
National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) would
oversee the implementation of ``.kids.us'', and while the bill
stipulates that only websites with content that is ``not harmful to
minors'' and is ``suitable for minors'' can get into the ``.kids.us''
space, the written content standards and rules of the road would be
developed and enforced by the private sector, under the direction of
the registry which has the contract from the Department of Commerce to
manage the ``.us'' country code.
While the Supreme Court has cited the First Amendment as the basis
for striking down previous efforts by Congress to protect kids on the
Internet, H.R. 3833 is drafted in a manner which is consistent with the
First Amendment. First, the proposal doesn't affect anyone's ability to
put whatever kind of speech they want on the World Wide Web, on a ``dot
com,'' ``dot net,'' ``dot org'' or anywhere else. This bill only
addresses a subset of Internet--the ``dot us'' space. Moreover, it
doesn't even curtail speech throughout the entirety of the ``dot us''
space. Speech more appropriate for adults or teenagers will not be
affected by this bill and can appear elsewhere in the ``dot us'' space.
The bill solely says that if you want to operate in the ``dot kids''
area--a subset of the ``dot us'' country code domain--you have entered
a kid-friendly zone--where the content is suitable for children 12 and
under. Again, this is completely voluntary for parents to use if they
wish and content providers to avail themselves of if they are so
inclined.
Moreover, now more than ever, parents recognize the dangers posed to
their children in Internet chat rooms, where pedophiles can prey on
children right in the comfort of the family living room. This is why
the bill also bans chat rooms and instant messaging in the ``.kids.us''
space--unless such can be done without jeopardizing the safety of kids,
through effective monitoring for example. Also, hyperlinks, which would
take kids outside of the ``.kids.us'' space, would be banned.
Mr. Speaker, I would note that this bill has been endorsed by the
National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the Family Research
Council, the American Center for Law and Justice, the National Law
Center for Children and Families, and a Safer America For Everyone
(SAFE), and I want to thank all of them for their support.
Again, I want to thank the gentleman from Illinois and the gentleman
from Massachusetts for all of their hard work and perseverance on this
bill, and I urge an ``aye'' vote on the bill on this measure which will
help protect children and families on-line.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. MARKEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this bill. I am an original
co-sponsor, along with the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Shimkus), of
this legislation as well as many other Members. I want to commend the
gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Tauzin), the ranking member, the
gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell) and everyone else who is involved
with this excellent process that has led to a consensus, a bipartisan
proposal.
The bill was approved unanimously by the House Committee on Energy
and Commerce, and I want to congratulate the subcommittee chairman, the
gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Upton) for his fine work in the processing
of this legislation. It is, in fact, a very good bill.
As many parents today know, the Internet often appears to be a
veritable jungle of websites. When a child logs on to search for games,
stories or educational material, search engines often churn up pages
for kids laden with pornography, violence or other content that is
simply not appropriate for young children. To give children their own
playground on the Internet and to facilitate the easier browsing and
filtering of contents that many parents desire, we have introduced H.R.
3833, the Dot Kids Implementation and Efficiency Act. This bill directs
the Department of Commerce through the National Telecommunications and
Information Administration to accelerate the creation of a dot kids
domain by making it a secondary domain under our Nation's country code
top level domain which is dot U.S. The Department of Commerce awarded a
free contract last October to authorize private sector management and
commercialization of dot U.S. Therefore, what we are talking about here
today is the creation of a place on the Internet for websites that end
in dot kids-dot U.S.; for example, www.example.Kids.U.S. The proposed
``dot kids'' domain will be a cyber space sanctuary for content that is
suitable for kids and will be an area devoid of content that is harmful
to such minors.
I want to address at this point very briefly some of the free speech
concerns that any endeavor of this type will inevitably raise. First,
let me emphasize how this approach departs from previous congressional
activities in this policy area. First, the proposed legislation will
not subject all of the Internet communications to a harmful-to-minors
standard. If you are in Tennessee, Taiwan, or Timbuktu, you can publish
or speak any content you want on the Internet. This proposal does not
affect your ability to do so on a dot com, dot net, dot org or anywhere
else. This proposal now only addresses a subset of Internet commerce,
the dot U.S. space.
Moreover, it does not even curtail speech through the entirety of the
dot U.S. country code domain. If you are in Providence, Rhode Island or
Provo, Utah, under this bill you are free to exercise your
constitutional rights and this legislation contains no proposal which
would subject anyone utilizing the dot U.S. space to a standard
suitable only for kids. Speech more appropriate for adults or teenagers
will not be affected by this bill and can appear anywhere else in the
dot U.S. domain.
The bill solely stipulates that if you want to operate in the dot
kids areas, a subset of dot U.S. country code domain, you have entered
a kid-friendly zone, a green light district, where the content is
suitable for children 12 and under. The dot kids proposal is not aimed
at censoring Internet contents, per se; rather, it is crafted to help
organize content suitable for kids in a safe and secure cyber zone
where the risk of young children clicking outside of that zone to
suitable contents or being preyed upon or exploited online by adults
posing as kids is vastly diminished.
Organizing kid-friendly contents in this manner will enhance the
effectiveness of filtering software and enable parents to set their
children's browsers so their kids only surf within the dot kids domain.
I also want to emphasize that use of the dot kids domain is not
compulsory. Signing up for a dot kids domain or parents sending their
kids to websites in that location remains completely voluntary and the
free choice of both speakers and parents.
Finally, I want to note that this bill is not meant in any way to
diminish or thwart the many laudable private sector efforts to create
new and affirmative ways for kids to have a safe and educational online
experience. Our efforts here today are meant to supplement, not
supplant, initiatives underway elsewhere by ensuring that our dot kids
country code reflects our public interest goals as a society in a way
that hopefully can harness the best of advanced technology for kids
across the country.
Again, I want to thank the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Shimkus) for
his leadership on this legislation, and I want to thank the gentleman
from Louisiana (Mr. Tauzin), the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell),
and the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Upton) for his excellent work in
this area.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Louisiana (Mr. Tauzin), the chairman of the full committee.
Mr. TAUZIN. Mr. Speaker, I, too, want to join my friend, the
gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Markey) in congratulating the
gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Shimkus) and the gentleman from Michigan
(Mr. Upton) for the loving care they have given this legislation. And I
think it is going to be landmark legislation for the kids of America in
dealing with the Internet. And I want to thank the gentleman from
Massachusetts (Mr. Markey) and the gentleman from Michigan (Mr.
Dingell) in particular for the great assistance they have played in
putting this together and making something very good happen for the
families of America.
Like other filtering tools, this is just another great tool that
American families will have to have their children go to a site that is
monitored and where they can enjoy, indeed, the tremendous potential of
the Internet without being assaulted by so many of the bad features we
find on the Internet. And I think this is exactly the right kind of
response to the Supreme Court which
[[Page H2673]]
has recently ruled that virtual pornography is somehow protected under
our Constitution. When you live on the Internet in a digital age, 1's
and O's can be real. They can be virtual. They can be anything. And to
say while one form of presentation is legally protected while another
is not was a rather strange decision for our high court.
This is a good answer. This says regardless of what the court says
about it, here is going to be a safe place for kids to go and enjoy,
indeed, the tremendous educational entertainment features of the
Internet without running into the bad features that somehow afflict
their lives.
Again, I want to thank the chairman of our subcommittee, the
gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Upton), for his great work in working with
us and, most importantly, to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Shimkus)
and the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Markey) for the excellent
work they have done in putting this together.
We should also thank Senator Byron and Senator Dorgan on the Senate
side who have done such a great job in advancing this legislation and
give them great credit for, again, working across the two bodies and
perfecting it.
Again, Mr. Speaker, that is a good day for kids in America, and I
think the Committee on Energy and Commerce, particularly its
Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet, deserves a great
deal of credit for bringing this legislation to the floor. I commend it
to all Members. It deserves passage.
Mr. MARKEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman
from Silicon Valley, California (Ms. Eshoo).
Ms. ESHOO. Mr. Speaker, I thank my wonderful colleague, the gentleman
from Massachusetts (Mr. Markey) for yielding me time.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the bill, the Dot Kids
Implementation and Efficiency Act. I think it takes a very important
step of trying to provide a kid-safe zone on the Internet. We know that
in raising our children that we always wanted to keep them out of
tough, rough neighborhoods, and I think that this important step will
do that on the Internet for our Nation's children.
When we considered this bill at the subcommittee, I expressed my
support for the intent of the bill, but I also raised some questions as
to whether this approach was totally realistic. Through the efforts and
the cooperation of the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Tauzin) and the
gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Upton), and the bill's sponsors, the
gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Shimkus) and the gentleman from
Massachusetts (Mr. Markey), changes were made that in my view make the
dot kids space a safe and more effective domain. And that is the way it
should be as we work these bills from subcommittee to full committee to
the floor.
To make the site more secure, the bill now contains language that
prohibits interactive services in the domain. This protects users, the
young children under the age of 13, from inappropriate emails, online
discussions in chatrooms, and from intentionally or unintentionally
being able to hyperlink their way to inappropriate contents.
For the agency and the companies charged with establishing the
standards and securing the site, this is a monumental task. They must
find a way to operate a domain that is educational and entertaining for
young children and at the same time keep it secure from inappropriate
outside influences. I am very pleased that the substitute now gives
NTIA the authority to suspend operation of the new domain if it is not
serving its intended purposes. The revised bill also gives Neustar the
ability to relinquish its right to operate the domain if it suffers
from extreme financial hardship. Because the costs of maintaining this
domain are still imprecise, I think the allowance of an exit strategy
is an important addition to the bill.
As this very well intended bill stands, it is still my strong belief
that one of the best Internet filters for children is an involved
parent. Nothing takes the place of that, not even government action and
legislation. So I want to thank the sponsors of the bill, the work of
the committee, certainly the full committee chairman, the ranking
member, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell), certainly the
gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Markey), one of the most eloquent and
knowledgeable Members of Congress in this area, and the gentleman from
Illinois (Mr. Shimkus). I think we are taking an important and a
correct step today.
Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from
Illinois (Mr. Shimkus), the sponsor of the legislation, the one who
shepherded this bill through the subcommittee and full committee. We
appreciate his leadership on this with so many others.
(Mr. SHIMKUS asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. SHIMKUS. Mr. Speaker, it is with great pride that I rise today to
speak on H.R. 3833, the Dot Kids Implementation and Efficiency Act of
2002.
First, I would like to thank my friend and colleague, the gentleman
from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (Mr. Markey) for his great work
and efforts in education as we move this process forward.
{time} 1045
Of course, my chairman, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Upton), for
believing in this concept and joining the team, I appreciate that,
along with the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Tauzin) and the gentleman
from Michigan (Mr. Dingell) for their great work.
We do our best work in the committee when we work together; and this
floor, this House, does our best work together when we work together;
and this is a perfect example of doing that.
Of course, we are only as good as the other members of our team. I
have said this before in the committee briefings. Full committee staff
Kelly Zerzan and Mike O'Rielly, I want to thank them. Chairman Upton's
staff, Will Nordwind, I thank him for his help; of course, the
impeccable Collin Crowell from the staff of the gentleman from
Massachusetts (Mr. Markey); Brendan Kelsay from the gentleman from
Michigan's (Mr. Dingell) staff; and my own Courtney Anderson who did a
lot of lifting. Again, we are only as good as those people around us,
and we have got a good team of staffers that do that well.
The development of the Internet has been a mixed blessing. It has
moved our economy forward and provides us with a wealth of information
after only a few strokes of the keyboard. Unfortunately, this new
medium also has a dark side that holds a lot of danger for kids 12 and
under.
In addition to adult content and violence that kids inadvertently
stumble on as they surf the net, the recent well-publicized FBI sting
of the Candyman child porn news group reminds us that child predators
are running rampant in chat rooms and other places where they have the
opportunity to interact and entice minors.
Following the logic of a child's section of a library, the Dot Kids
Act will create a safe place for children on the Internet. H.R. 3833
facilitates the subdomain ``.KIDS.US,'' on our Nation's country code
that will host content that is especially intended for children.
A number of safeguards were put in this bill. ``.KIDS.US'' will be
monitored for content and safety; and should objectionable material
appear, it will be taken down immediately. The legislation does not
allow chat rooms, instant messaging or e-mails unless the entity
hosting the site certifies that they will be done safely. Furthermore,
hyperlinks, which would take children out of the safe ``.KIDS.US'' base
are expressly prohibited.
Knowing that this child-friendly subdomain is a grand experiment, we
have embedded in the bill an opt-out provision. If ``.KIDS.US'' turns
into something it was not intended to be, the bill requires the
Department of Commerce to take it down. While I believe strongly that
there is a huge demand for a child friendly domain, if ``.KIDS.US'' is
a place no one visits, then it can be eventually taken down.
Finally, ``.KIDS.US'' will cost the taxpayers nothing. When it comes
to the Internet, there is no replacement for good parenting. However,
``.KIDS.US'' will promote good Internet content for children and will
be a tool for parents to use to help keep their children safe online.
I urge my colleagues to join me this morning in voting to pass H.R.
3833. Again, I want to thank everyone that
[[Page H2674]]
has been involved, especially my good friend and colleague, the
gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Markey). It has been a long road. We
still have additional hurdles to overcome, but I am confident that we
can get our friends in the other body to take this up expeditiously,
get it passed, and get it to the President's desk.
Mr. MARKEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may
consume.
The goal of this legislation is to try to harness the best of the new
technology and to put it at the fingertips of kids and parents and
teachers across the country.
One of the things we have to remember about technology and innovation
is that the technology itself is neither good nor bad in and of itself.
It only becomes so after it is animated by human values. The great
truth of the Information Age is that the wondrous wire that brings
cyberspace into the home or the school or the business will have a
certain Dickensian quality to it. It will be both the best of wires and
the worst of wires simultaneously.
The Internet can debilitate and debase core values, but it also can
educate and ennoble us as well. The bill is designed to create a haven,
a cyberspace playground to ennoble, educate and entertain children 12
and under in a safe and secure way. It is an additional tool that we
can put into the hands of parents, and then each parent who decides to
do so can use it as another weapon to fight off the debasing effect
that parts of our culture can have upon children as they are growing
up.
It is about time that Congress and the Federal Government put
something on the books that gives this kind of a tool to the parents of
the country.
My friend, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Shimkus), already went
down the litany of saints, the staff who worked on this bill: Kelly
Zerzan, Will Nordwind, Brendan Kelsay, Mike O'Rielly, and on my staff,
Collin Crowell, who worked very closely with the majority in crafting
this bill, and he mentioned Courtney Anderson on their side. My mother
was a Courtney, and she always told me that the Courtneys are very
intelligent people. And we have Courtney Johnson on our side who worked
with Courtney Anderson on this bill, and I just did not want there to
be a Courtney intelligence gap that opened up between the Democrats and
Republicans on this bill. We were equally represented by these highly-
intelligent people.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, might I inquire how much time is remaining on
both sides.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Isakson). The gentleman from Michigan
(Mr. Upton) has 9 minutes remaining. The gentleman from Massachusetts
(Mr. Markey) has 7\1/2\ minutes remaining.
Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from
Nebraska (Mr. Terry), a co-sponsor of the legislation, a very valuable
member of the subcommittee.
(Mr. TERRY asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. TERRY. Mr. Speaker, I am an enthusiastic supporter and original
cosponsor. In fact, this is one of the reasons why I joined the
Committee on Energy and Commerce and the Subcommittee on
Telecommunications and the Internet is trying to find a safe harbor, a
constitutional way of protecting our children on the Internet; and I
was proud that two of my colleagues, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr.
Shimkus) and the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Markey), were
already lapping me in there and allowed me to join them in that
process, and I thank them for that because it is important that we
establish a safe haven, a secure area for our children on the Internet.
We have heard of a story of an 11-year-old boy looking for computer
games, typed in fun.com and unknowingly brought up a pornographic Web
site. Two elections ago, my opponent was Michael Scott and any junior
high physics class that typed in MichaelScott.com got a porn site. My
7-year-old, yes, 7-year-old, loves to get on the Internet, especially
this weekend after we saw ``Spiderman.'' I stand over him. I type it in
first because I fear that typing in something as simple as
``Spiderman'' or ``fun'' or a political name may bring up a
pornographic Web site.
Nearly 24 million youths today use the Internet. By the year 2005, it
is expected that 77 million youth will regularly log on. This bill will
help preserve our children's innocence and prevent these types of
sexual encounters and predators and pornography online. It will create
a child-friendly zone within the United States. All contents of this
zone will be appropriate for children 12 and under.
An independent firm will methodically monitor and immediately remove
any content which is harmful to minors. No access to chat rooms, and
this is an important fact, because it is not that we were just putting
all the children in one safe, what we believe is a safe, area, so all
the predators know where they are. We bar that. That is an important
part of this bill, that there will not be any interactive component
here where a predator can break in. This is so our children can have a
safe haven.
Sexual predators, not only is it the pornographic Web sites that we
are trying to keep away from our children, but it is the predators.
In my closing remarks here, I want to point out to my colleagues that
the Crimes Against Children Research Center reported that one in five
teenagers who regularly use the Internet have received an unwanted
sexual solicitation, and one out of 33 youths have received what is
classified as an aggressive sexual solicitation where they are directly
trying to solicit a sexual meeting with a teenager. That is what we are
trying to prevent with this legislation; and I appreciate the efforts
of the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Markey), the gentleman from
Illinois (Mr. Shimkus), and our chairman.
Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Nebraska (Mr. Osborne), a fellow member of the Committee on Education
and the Workforce, and one who is also very supportive of this
legislation.
Mr. OSBORNE. Mr. Speaker, I would like to commend the gentleman from
Michigan (Mr. Upton) and the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Markey)
and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Shimkus) and others on the
committee for this legislation.
Yesterday, a young woman who had been sexually assaulted asked me
what Congress was going to do to address the problem. I mentioned my
support of the Dot Kids legislation. As was made mention, Dot Kids
provides a safe haven for children from Internet predators and sexually
explicit material.
Certainly this legislation is a step in the right direction. However,
it does not address the whole problem.
A few months ago my name, used as an Internet search vehicle, brought
up a porn site. Children wanting to find out about their Congressman
were exposed to graphic material.
We have done a good job of proving the link between smoking and
cancer and heart disease, and we have aggressively attacked the tobacco
problem with advertising, higher taxes and legislation. The connection
between pornography and sexual abuse of women and children is equally
clear. Yet we have done very little until now to address the problem.
Fifteen years ago, a Nebraska senator, Jim Exon, sponsored
legislation to outlaw pornography on the Internet. He was laughed at at
the time and the legislation went nowhere. Today, pornography is a $15
billion industry per year in the United States. It is the most
lucrative endeavor on the Internet of all other projects and commercial
attempts.
In attempting to protect free speech, we have badly trampled the
rights of women and children to be protected from exploitation and
physical harm. Dot Kids is an excellent start. I urge its support. I
also hope that this is just a beginning in attacking the pornography
industry.
Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Tennessee (Mr. Wamp), someone who is just as equally concerned about
kids and their lives, a cosponsor of the legislation.
Mr. WAMP. Mr. Speaker, it is an awesome responsibility to serve in
this House, but I have no more awesome a responsibility in my life than
to be a father of a 15-year-old son and a 13-
[[Page H2675]]
year-old daughter. The Internet is a powerful tool. It is also a very
dangerous tool.
I was reminded of F.S. Oliver's poem about politics when he speaks of
it being a noble profession. He says, and I paraphrase, there is no
other profession where someone can do more good for their fellow man
nor is there another profession where you can do such widespread harm,
and the Internet has the same potential for good or bad.
Dot Kids Act gives young people a domain for use under tight
guidelines with standards for content and registration; and as has been
stated, it is like a children's section in a library. It is only
appropriate. Recent Supreme Court rulings underscore the need to pursue
multiple approaches to protecting our children from pornographers and
demented individuals like pedophiles.
This is illegal pornography that we are trying to protect people
from. There is a difference between what is legal and protected under
the first amendment and what is illegal and not protected. It needs to
be pursued. It is a cancer on our culture that requires aggressive
treatment.
A journey of a 1,000 miles begins with a single step and this is just
one step, but it is an important step; and we have got miles to go to
continue coming to this floor and finding new, creative and innovative
ways to protect our children from the dangers of the Internet.
I applaud the authors of this legislation and the committees for
working together in a bipartisan way to do what is right for the
children of America in a very dangerous world.
{time} 1100
Mr. MARKEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Again I want to recommend to all the Members that they support this
legislation. It is a real step forward in giving parents a tool they
can use to protect their kids under 12 when they are on-line. The
sooner we pass this is the sooner we can put this additional protection
in place.
I want to thank again the majority for their cooperation in working
with us in a way in which we can craft a bill that we can honestly
recommend to every Member, Democrat, Republican, liberal or
conservative, that will move forward to help the families in our
country.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
I would note that at our very first hearing as chairman of the
Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet, we talked about
``I Can'' and the various domain names that were out there. All of us
jumped on the name of Dot Kids and how it could be protective of our
kids. The stories we hear virtually every day, whether it be this
morning, this young girl killed in Danbury, Connecticut, stories in our
own districts across the country, we know that we need something that
can protect our children from a nightmare that no family, no community
ever wants to experience. I would reiterate that groups who spend
literally every waking hour trying to protect families across this
country, groups like the National Center for Missing and Exploited
Children, Family Research Council, American Center for Law and Justice,
the National Law Center for Children and Families, a Safer America For
Everyone, all of them as well as every parent that serves in this
House, every Member of Congress that has watched some of this junk that
has come in unasked for, we know that Dot Kids can be a savior for all
of us. We compliment those Members of the Senate that are wishing to
pursue this legislation. We look forward to when this can be enacted
into law by President Bush. We know that the administration supports
this legislation.
Mr. WYNN. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased that the House of Representatives
is considering H.R. 3833, the ``Dot Kids Implementation and Efficiency
Act of 2002.'' I am a cosponsor of this legislation, which is important
to parents and their young children exploring the Internet.
This legislation makes good sense. As a parent of a 7-year-old who
surfs the net, I am concerned, as many parents across this Nation are,
about the unseemlier side of the Internet, which our children can be
exposed to, through a couple of mouse clicks, or the misspelling of a
website name.
Where monitoring our children's use and installing filtering software
helps, in the real world neither method is perfect. By creating the
domain ``.kids.us'' and setting up guidelines on what is unacceptable
in this domain, we go a long way to improving the safety of our
children on the Internet. This bill creates a safe space on the
Internet for our children, which is free from stalkers and free from
the harmful imagery to which we do not want our children exposed.
I applaud the work of the sponsors of this bill for this valuable
legislation that will help make the Internet safer for our kids.
Mr. PAUL. Mr. Speaker, as a parent, grandparent, and ob-gyn who has
delivered over three thousand babies, I certainly share the desire to
protect children from pornography and other inappropriate material
available on the internet. However, as a United States Congressman, I
cannot support measures which exceed the limitations on constitutional
power contained in Article one, Section 8 of the Constitution. The
Constitution does not provide Congress with the authority to spend
taxpayer funds to create new internet domains.
Furthermore, Mr. Speaker, the federal government is singularly
unqualified to act as the arbiter of what material is inappropriate for
children. Instead, this is a decision that should be made by parents.
Most of the problems pointed to by proponents of increased government
control of the internet are the result of a lack of parental, not
governmental, control of children's computer habits. Expanding the
government's control over the Internet may actually encourage parents
to disregard their responsibility to monitor their child's computer
habits. After all, why should parents worry about what websites their
children is viewing when the government has usurped this parental
function?
The market is already creating solutions to many of these problems
through the development of filtering software that responsible parents
can use to protect their children from inappropriate materials. The
best way to address this problem is by allowing this market process to
develop, not by creating new government regulations.
In addition to creating new Internet domains, Congress is also
expanding federal wiretapping powers. Mr. Speaker, my colleagues should
also remember that the Constitution creates only three federal crimes,
namely treason, piracy, and counterfeiting. Expansion of federal police
power for crimes outside these well-defined areas thus violates the
Constitution. In addition, expansion of federal wiretapping powers
raises serious civil liberties concerns, as such powers easily can be
abused by federal officials.
I therefore hope my colleagues will respect the constitutional
limitations on federal power. Instead of usurping powers not granted
the federal government, Congress should allow state and local law
enforcement, schools, local communities, and most of all responsible
parents to devise the best measures to protect children.
Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, as we enter the new millennium
the Internet has become a playground for our children. In today's'
playground there are many dangers, some examples are child pornography
and sexual predators to name a few. In the past we have drafted
legislation to insure the safety of our most precious resources,
children. The Dot-Kids Implementation and Efficiency Act is this
House's attempt to safeguard children.
The bill before the House today will go far to create a safer
environment for children to explore the Internet. The legislation will
create, within the United States a top-level ``dot-us'' country code
domain and a ``dot-kids'' subdomain. The Web address of any site
registered under the new subdomain would end with a ``.kid.us'' suffix.
The dot-kids subdomain would ban sexually explicit material and other
content deemed harmful for children under 13. The bill's definition of
``harmful'' includes any material that ``lacks serious, literally,
artistic, political or scientific value'' for children.
The legislation would authorize the Commerce Department's National
Telecommunications and Information Administration to remove from the
dot-kids subdomain any content that does not meet the bill's ``child-
friendly'' standards. That means that NeuStar, Inc.--the company that
manages the dot-us domain under a contract with Department's National
Telecommunications and Information Administration--would be required to
monitor the content of all Web sites registered with a ``.kid.us''
address.
According to the Congressional Budget Office there are no
intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded
Mandates Reform Act. The Act would impose no costs of state, local, or
tribal governments. Based on information from the Department of
Commerce, CBO estimates that launching a publicity and education
campaign for the new domain would cost less than $500,000 per year,
subject to the availability of appropriated funds.
[[Page H2676]]
Another provision in the bill would permit the Department's National
Telecommunications and Information Administration to pull the plug on
the subdomain if it fails to adequately protect children. This gives
the Department of Commerce the needed enforcement mechanism to maintain
a safe Internet environment for children. As the Chair of the
Children's Caucus and a mother I rise to support the passage of H.R.
3833.
Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3833, the
``Dot Kids Implementation and Efficiency Act.'' I am proud to be a
cosponsor of this important legislation, which was introduced by
Representatives Shimkus and Markey, and commend the efforts of this
House to protect our children on the Internet.
While the Internet has afforded our children amazing opportunities
for learning and discovery, it has also posed serious dangers. The
Internet makes it easy for children to gain access to inappropriate
materials, turning simple searches into avenues for pornographic or
violent web pages. As a parent of a young daughter, my hope is that she
will be able to search the Internet freely and use it as a tool to
explore books, stories, and educational games without worrying about
what might turn up. This bill will make this possible.
H.R. 3833 creates a safehaven for children using the Internet by
creating a separate domain name for content that is appropriate for
kids under 13, while filtering any subject matter that may be harmful
or threatening to this audience. By directing the National
Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to establish
and oversee the structure and rules for the new domain name, we are
ensuring that the criteria for the ``dot.kids'' domain meet the
necessary standards to protect children using the Internet. Further,
this bill requires that the NTIA publicize the availability of the new
domain and educate parents on how filter and block inappropriate
material.
In today's web-based environment, it is vitally important that we
work together with parents to ensure that our kids are safe in
cyberspace. Congress is taking a remarkable step forward in this
endeavor by passing this legislation. I urge my colleagues to support
the ``Dot Kids Implementation and Efficiency Act'' on the House floor
today.
Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Isakson). The question is on the motion
offered by the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Upton) that the House
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 3833, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds of
those present have voted in the affirmative.
Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be
postponed.
____________________