[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 177 (Thursday, November 15, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2453]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    PROTECT OUR CHILDREN ACT OF 2007

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                               speech of

                           HON. HEATH SHULER

                           of north carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, November 15, 2007

  Mr. SHULER. Madam Speaker, I rise today to express my strong support 
for H.R. 3845, the PROTECT (Providing Resources Officers and Technology 
to Eradicate Cyber Threats) Act. This legislation takes a strong stand 
against the exploitation of our children on the Internet.
  H.R. 3845 will authorize the largest increase ever in funding for 
state and local law enforcement agencies to investigate child 
exploitation, through the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) task 
force program.
  Expanding the ICAC program will build state and local capacity and 
also modernize the way U.S. law enforcement at every level investigate 
crimes against children.
  Current technologies have assisted local law enforcement to identify 
over 500,000 individuals trafficking child pornography. Without the 
necessary resources, however, local law enforcement officials have only 
been able to investigate 2 percent of these cases.
  The PROTECT Act would provide our law enforcement officials the tools 
and resources to investigate and prosecute these offenders.
  I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting the PROTECT Act to 
ensure the safety of our Nation's children.

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