FCC: Web Filters At Schools, Libraries By July 2002

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Schools and libraries that receive federal funding to help pay for computers and Internet access must comply with a new law mandating the installation of Web content filters by July 1, 2002, or risk losing the funds, federal regulators said Thursday.

At issue is the effective date of the Childrens Internet Protection Act (CIPA), a law enacted last year that requires all schools and libraries that receive federal E-Rate funding to install Internet content filters. The new law also requires that schools and libraries maintain and enforce a policy of monitoring the online activity of minors.

The FCC, which oversees the E-Rate program, ruled Thursday that schools and libraries must show that they are working to comply with the mandate by October 28, 2001, and must be in full compliance by July 1, 2002.

The FCCs rule came as a setback for a number of groups that have challenged the laws constitutionality; many of them argued that the schools and libraries should be given at least an additional year to factor in the changes.

"Were very disappointed in this decision," said Lynne Bradley, director of government relations for the American Library Association (ALA). "This is going to be a burden both financially and technically in terms of installing and implementing this in such a short time period."

The FCC rule also denied the ALAs request for an exception to CIPAs requirement that library staff computers must also have filtering software. However, Bradley said, the rule does allow some flexibility for libraries that file for certification as a library system; if one library in a group fails to certify, it would not hold up the application for the rest of the consortium members.

Last month, the ALA, the American Civil Liberties and nearly a dozen other rights groups filed suit to overturn the law on the grounds that it muzzles constitutionally protected speech. The groups argued that most filtering technologies block material that is not at all related to pornographic content or hate sites and that most filters let at least some of that content through.

The case will be heard in the same Pennsylvania District Court that overturned two similarly controversial laws on Internet content. In 1996, the court overturned the Communications Decency Act (CDA), which sought to ban many different types of speech on the Internet.

The court also struck down the Child Online Protection Act (COPA), a law that restricts minors access to Web sites deemed inappropriate for their viewing. An appeals court upheld that ruling, and the Justice Department has since appealed the decision to the Supreme Court.

In its rule, the FCC said it would not specify how a technology protection measure should be achieved, but rather it concluded that "local authorities are best situated to choose which technology measures and Internet safety policies will be most appropriate for their relevant communities."

Information Technology Association of American President Harris Miller said the FCC was smart to leave implementation of the statute up to states and localities.

"The FCC wisely avoided proscriptive approaches that would have placed the Commission squarely in the role of determining content management for schools and libraries," Miller said.

Brian Krebs, Newsbytes