The Honorable J. Dennis Hastert
Speaker
United States House of Representatives
H232 The Capitol Building
Washington, DC 20515

The Honorable Trent Lott
Majority Leader
United States Senate
S-230 The Capitol Building
Washington, DC 20515

The Honorable Richard A. Gephardt
Minority Leader
United States house of Representatives
H204 The Capitol Building
Washington, DC 20515

The Honorable Tom Daschle
Democratic Leader
United States Senate
S-221 The Capitol Building
Washington, DC 20515

Re: Internet Filtering for Schools and Libraries

Dear Senator Lott, Representative Hastert, Senator Daschle, and Representative Gephardt:

We the undersigned members of the software and Internet industries and the Internet public interest community write to express our concern with the inclusion of an Internet filtering mandate on libraries and schools -- the "Children's Internet Protection Act" -- in the pending FY2001 Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations conference agreement (H.R.4577). High-tech companies believe it is inappropriate for the federal government to impose a specific technology solution on local communities already choosing effective approaches from a rapidly growing market of tools. We therefore urge that school and library filtering provisions be dropped from H.R. 4577 or any other bill this year.

The Internet industry and the Internet community are committed to protecting children online. Through our development of child protection products and services and our support for industry-wide initiatives such as GetNetWise.org, we are working to provide families and communities with the information and tools they need to safeguard their children online. Through public-private partnerships, industry is helping empower students, teachers and parents with invaluable learning technologies that support the desire for children to have an age-appropriate, safe and educational online experience.

We are concerned the Internet filtering mandates being considered by Congress fail to recognize constantly evolving technology, alternative strategies, and the prerogative of local citizens to make these decisions in light of unique local needs, values and educational goals. While this issue is perceived with great variance across the nation, these provisions would place the federal government in the position of dictating to all communities the single technology solution of blocking and filtering. In effect, the federal government would be picking technology winners and losers from among the many approaches and tools, rather than allowing the marketplace to evolve to meet demand. We believe the decision about how to protect children will be made most effectively at the direction of local parents and school and library boards, and not through a one-size-fits-all federal mandate.

Most communities are already addressing this issue of student Internet access and have implemented such approaches as acceptable use policies, adult oversight and monitoring, family education programs, blocking and filtering, and other technological controls that best reflect local norms. A filtering mandate will reduce the development and implementation of such alternative and complementary strategies. And while filtering technology can be effective, it may not be the perfect solution for all communities. Yet, federal endorsement will inevitably create a false sense of security that reduces the use of other effective approaches, community involvement, parental decision-making, and the market for new and improved methods.

The filtering mandate sets a troubling precedent for federal regulation of Internet use and Internet access. Rather than using the power of the federal purse to impose use of a particular tool, we believe federal policy should support a robust market for child protection technologies along with local control over which technologies and approaches best reflect community values.

This community stands ready to continue our work with Congress and the Administration to find effective ways to protect Americašs children on the Internet. Please do not hesitate to call on us if we can be of further assistance.

Sincerely,

Association for Competitive Technology

Center for Democracy & Technology

Commercial Internet eXchange Association

Computer & Communications Industry Association

Information Technology Association of America

Internet Alliance

Internet Content Coalition

cc: Members of the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations Conference Committee

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