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2006 SESSION
063417782Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That § 42.1-36.1 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:
§ 42.1-36.1. Power and duty of library boards and certain governing bodies regarding acceptable Internet use policies.
A. On or before December 1, 1999, and biennially thereafter,
(i) every library board established pursuant to § 42.1-35 or (ii) the governing
body of any county, city, or town which that, pursuant to § 42.1-36, has not established a library board
pursuant to § 42.1-35, shall file with the Librarian of Virginia an acceptable
use policy for the international network of computer systems
commonly known as the Internet. At a minimum, the policy shall
contain provisions which (i) that (a)
are designed to prohibit use by library employees and patrons of the library's
computer equipment and communications services for sending, receiving, viewing,
or downloading illegal material via the Internet, (ii) (b) seek to prevent access by library patrons under the age of eighteen 18 to material which that is harmful to juveniles, and (iii) (c) establish appropriate measures to be taken against persons who
violate the policy. For libraries that receive state funding for any
purpose, the policy shall also contain provisions requiring the selection, installation, and
activation on those computers that have Internet access a
technology protection measure, as selected by the Library of Virginia, to
filter or block Internet access through such computers to child pornography as
set out in § 18.2-374.1:1, obscenity as defined in § 18.2-372, and, with respect to
minors, materials deemed harmful to juveniles as defined in § 18.2-390. Such policy shall provide that a person authorized by the library board shall
disable the technology protection measure required by this section at the
request of a patron to enable access to bona fide research or other lawful
purpose. The library board or the governing body may include such
other terms, conditions, and requirements in the library's policy as it deems
appropriate, such as requiring written parental authorization for Internet use
by juveniles or differentiating acceptable uses between elementary, middle, and
high school students.
B. The library board or the governing body shall take such
steps as it deems appropriate to implement and enforce the library's policy
which may include, but are not limited to, (i) the use of software programs
designed to block access by (a) library employees and patrons to illegal
material or (b) library patrons under the age of eighteen 18 to material which that is harmful to juveniles or (c) both; (ii) charging library
employees to casually monitor patrons' Internet use; or (iii) installing privacy
screens on computers which that
access the Internet. For libraries that receive state funding for any
purpose, the library board or governing body shall select, install, and activate on those computers that have Internet access a technology protection measure as
required by the policy established pursuant to subsection A.
C. On or before December 1, 2000, and biennially thereafter,
the Librarian of Virginia shall submit a report to the Chairmen of the House
Committee on Education, the House Committee on Science and Technology, and the
Senate Committee on Education and Health which that summarizes the acceptable use policies filed with the
Librarian pursuant to this section and the status thereof.