[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 7]
[Senate]
[Pages 9348-9349]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    PROTECT OUR CHILDREN ACT OF 2017

  Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, I am glad to see my friend from 
Connecticut, Senator Blumenthal, on the floor because last week the 
Senate Judiciary Committee reported the PROTECT Our Children Act, which 
helps protect children across the country from exploitation over the 
internet.
  This is a bipartisan bill, not surprisingly so because last time this 
legislation passed, originally back in 2008, it had 60 cosponsors, 
including 41 Democrats and 18 Republicans. But I have introduced this 
reauthorization with Senator Heller from Nevada and Senator Blumenthal 
from Connecticut. It is something we call the National Internet Crimes 
Against Children Task Force Program. It reauthorizes those.
  I have had the sad experience of seeing how dangerous the internet 
can be for our vulnerable children. When I was attorney general of 
Texas, I launched something we quaintly called at the time the Texas 
Internet Bureau. That was a long time ago, about 2000. Today, they call 
it the cyber crime unit, and they do a lot of even more sophisticated 
things. But the idea back then and the idea still today is to fight 
internet crimes and to work with law enforcement agencies around the 
State, including a Dallas-based task force.
  Now, 17 years later, these task forces are a national network of 61 
coordinated units dedicated to protecting children from internet 
predators and investigating perpetrators who engage in these horrific 
crimes. These task forces are on the frontline every day, protecting 
our children online and rescuing victims of exploitation and abuse. 
They also work with local agencies to create victim support programs 
and encourage proactive community education; for example, educating 
parents and adults of the sorts of things their children might be 
exposed to online that they might not know about. So we need to educate 
families and children about the risks the internet can hold, together 
with the wonderful opportunities it also presents. This is really the 
dark underbelly of the internet.
  It requires a depth of resources to fight child predators online. My 
experience as attorney general was that local law enforcement agencies 
didn't have the tax base. They didn't have the expertise. They didn't 
have the computers and the other sophistication they needed in order to 
combat this in their local communities.
  Over the past few years we have been able to save many lives from 
crime online, and it would be a mistake now to change course. We cannot 
lose this critical tool.
  Just for the information of colleagues, we put this on the hotline 
which, for those who don't work in the Senate, means we asked all 
Members of the Senate to comment on this and to let us know if they had 
any objection to its passage.
  Hearing none, Mr. President, as in legislative session, I now ask 
unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate 
consideration of Calendar No. 122, S. 782.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 782) to reauthorize the National Internet Crimes 
     Against Children Task Force Program, and for other purposes.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
  Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be 
considered read a third time and passed, and the motion to reconsider 
be considered made and laid upon the table.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The bill (S. 782) was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading, 
was read the third time, and passed, as follows:

                                 S. 782

       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 ``Providing Resources, 
     Officers, and Technology To Eradicate Cyber Threats to Our 
     Children Act of 2017'' or the ``PROTECT Our Children Act of 
     2017''.

     SEC. 2. REAUTHORIZATION OF THE NATIONAL INTERNET CRIMES 
                   AGAINST CHILDREN TASK FORCE PROGRAM.

       Title I of the PROTECT Our Children Act of 2008 (42 U.S.C. 
     17601 et seq.) is amended--
       (1) in section 105(h) (42 U.S.C. 17615(h)), by striking 
     ``2016'' and inserting ``2022''; and
       (2) in section 107(a)(10) (42 U.S.C. 17617(a)(10)), by 
     striking ``fiscal year 2018'' and inserting ``each of fiscal 
     years 2018 through 2022''.

  Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Connecticut.
  Mr. BLUMENTHAL. Mr. President, I came to the floor to talk about 
healthcare, but I wanted to be here on this occasion to join my 
distinguished colleague from Texas in supporting this measure because 
it is so vital to protecting children.
  Like the distinguished Senator from Texas, I, too, was attorney 
general, and we in Connecticut have been at the

[[Page 9349]]

forefront of fighting this internet and cyber threat to the welfare of 
our children.
  So I want to express my thanks to him for working in a very 
bipartisan way. At a time when the public, many commentators, and media 
question whether we work together across the aisle, this bill is a very 
apt example of how we can and we must work together to protect our 
children, to advance our national interests, and to make sure that 
criminal justice is effectively enforced in this country.
  I look forward to working with my colleague in making sure this 
measure becomes law.
  I yield the floor.

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