04/08/2003 03:40 PM Senate STA

           HB  52-SEX CRIME AND PORNOGRAPHY OFFENSES                                                                        
                                                                                                                              
CHAIR GARY  STEVENS announced  HB 52  is a  bill relating  to the                                                               
forfiture  of  property  used  to  possess  or  distribute  child                                                               
pornography.                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE LESIL  McGUIRE, bill  sponsor, explained  the bill                                                               
passed the  House in this form  both last year and  this year and                                                               
they would appreciate support from the Senate.                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
This  would allow  the sentencing  judge the  additional punitive                                                               
option of  seizing the  equipment used in  the commission  of the                                                               
sex  or   pornography  crime.  Of   course  the   offender  could                                                               
repurchase  the same  type  of  equipment at  some  point in  the                                                               
future, but the point is to  be punitive and not return equipment                                                               
that  used to  commit  the  crime. An  ancillary  benefit to  law                                                               
enforcement agencies is they may  use the offender's equipment to                                                               
learn more about predatory techniques.                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
She  was aware  Senator Dyson  had  an amendment  to include  the                                                               
corpus of SB 96 and she supported the inclusion.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR  GARY   STEVENS  asked  if   the  bill  passed   the  House                                                               
unanimously  during the  previous session,  which would  mean the                                                               
three former  House members  on the committee  voted in  favor of                                                               
the legislation.                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE McGUIRE agreed that was the case.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR JOHN  COWDERY commented he receives  numerous unsolicited                                                               
and unsavory  emails on  his home computer  and he  finds filters                                                               
not  altogether satisfactory.  He wondered  if she  might address                                                               
that problem in future legislation.                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE McGUIRE said she is  committed to continue to work                                                               
on the problem.  There are some first  amendment concerns related                                                               
to eliminating SPAM. She believes  legislation is appropriate but                                                               
not entirely effective.                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR  COWDERY   suggested  requesting   help  from   the  U.S.                                                               
Senators.                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR  FRED  DYSON said  he  appreciates  the concern  and  has                                                               
become increasingly  cynical. The  amendment he  proposes targets                                                               
the money connection. Six states have  passed laws that make it a                                                               
crime to service  the billing function of  pornographic sites. To                                                               
his  knowledge,  none of  those  billing  services are  currently                                                               
operating in Alaska, but there may  well be in the future. Server                                                               
farms  where all  the electronic  data resides  don't have  to be                                                               
where  the  originator, the  consumer,  or  the billing  function                                                               
occurs. His  amendment [SB  96] allows  the law  to go  after the                                                               
billing firms that provide the connections.                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR DYSON  made a motion  to adopt a conceptual  amendment to                                                               
include  the  contents  of  SB  96   with  CSHB  52.  It  is  his                                                               
understanding that  if both pass,  legislative legal  would merge                                                               
the two bills and possibly  change the title, which would require                                                               
a  concurrent  resolution.  Amendment   #1  was  adopted  without                                                               
objection.                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR   GRETCHEN  GUESS   asked  if   "providing  the   billing                                                               
collection" applied  only to billing companies  in Alaska because                                                               
if every  state passed  this type of  legislation it  would force                                                               
these billing companies to go overseas to conduct business.                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR DYSON said  this posts a "no trespassing"  sign at Alaska                                                               
boundaries  and  those companies  would  stay  away. States  that                                                               
don't pass  this type  of legislation would  become a  refuge and                                                               
they would have a growth industry.                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR COWDERY  suggested contacting  the U.S. Senators  to make                                                               
the law as tough as possible.                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR  GUESS agreed  with Senator  Cowdery and  noted the  next                                                               
difficulty is overseas.                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR GARY STEVENS  asked the record to reflect  Lt. Matt Leveque                                                               
from Anchorage was on line to answer questions.                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
There were no further questions or comments.                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR  GUESS made  a  motion to  move SCS  CSHB  52 (STA)  from                                                               
committee  with individual  recommendations  and attached  fiscal                                                               
note.  Included was  a  motion for  a  concurrent resolution  for                                                               
change of title. There being no objection, it was so ordered.