75R8551 SRC-D By Corte H.B. No. 1300 Substitute the following for H.B. No. 1300: By Greenberg C.S.H.B. No. 1300 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-1 AN ACT 1-2 relating to the provision of certain software to persons who access 1-3 the Internet; providing a civil penalty. 1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-5 SECTION 1. Chapter 35, Business & Commerce Code, is amended 1-6 by adding Subchapter I to read as follows: 1-7 SUBCHAPTER I. PROVISION OF SOFTWARE TO BLOCK OR SCREEN 1-8 INTERNET MATERIAL 1-9 Sec. 35.101. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter: 1-10 (1) "Freeware" means software that is distributed to a 1-11 person free of charge regardless of whether use of the software is 1-12 subject to certain restrictions. 1-13 (2) "Internet" means the largest nonproprietary 1-14 nonprofit cooperative public computer network, popularly known as 1-15 the Internet. 1-16 (3) "Interactive computer service" means any 1-17 information service or system that provides or enables computer 1-18 access by multiple users to the Internet. 1-19 (4) "Shareware" means copyrighted software in which 1-20 the copyright owner sets certain conditions for its use and 1-21 distribution, including requiring payment to the copyright owner 1-22 after a person who has secured a copy of the software decides to 1-23 use the software, regardless of whether the payment is for 1-24 additional support or functionality for the software. 2-1 Sec. 35.102. SOFTWARE THAT RESTRICTS ACCESS TO CERTAIN 2-2 MATERIAL ON INTERNET. (a) A person who provides an interactive 2-3 computer service to another person for a fee shall provide free of 2-4 charge to each subscriber of the service in this state a link 2-5 leading to fully functional shareware, freeware, or demonstration 2-6 versions of software that, for at least one operating system, 2-7 enables the subscriber to automatically block or screen material on 2-8 the Internet. 2-9 (b) A provider is considered to be in compliance with this 2-10 section if the provider places, on the provider's first page of 2-11 world wide web text information accessible to a subscriber, a link 2-12 leading to the software described by Subsection (a). The identity 2-13 of the link or other on-screen depiction of the link must appear 2-14 set out from surrounding written or graphical material so as to be 2-15 conspicuous. 2-16 (c) This section does not apply to an institution of higher 2-17 education, as that term is defined by Section 61.003, Education 2-18 Code, that provides interactive computer service. 2-19 (d) A person who provides a link that complies with this 2-20 section is not liable to a subscriber for any temporary 2-21 inoperability of the link. 2-22 Sec. 35.103. CIVIL PENALTY. (a) A person who violates 2-23 Section 35.102 is liable to the state for a civil penalty not to 2-24 exceed $10,000 for each violation. 2-25 (b) The attorney general may institute a suit to recover the 2-26 civil penalty. 2-27 SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 1997, except 3-1 that a civil penalty for a violation of Section 35.102, Business & 3-2 Commerce Code, as added by this Act, may be imposed only for a 3-3 violation that occurs on or after January 1, 1998. 3-4 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the 3-5 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 3-6 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 3-7 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 3-8 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.