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Council Adopts Model Tech Bills
by Liza Porteus
The National Board of Directors of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) on Wednesday approved several pieces of model legislation involving tech-related issues. State legislatures may adopt, debate and approve the legislation in upcoming sessions.
The measures are as follows:
- The Anti-Automated Enforcement Act would prohibit the use of automated devices to detect traffic violations except in specified areas and when a police officer is distributing citations.
- The Personal Information Security Act would make identity theft a crime and define penalties for people convicted of theft or fraud. The measure also would create an ID theft bureau and an ID theft division in a state's attorney general's office to coordinate investigations and serve as a clearinghouse for victims of identity theft to clear their personal records.
- The Resolution Supporting Private Scholarships Tax Credits would call for the creation of a tax credit for contributions to nonprofit scholarship or educational assistance organizations.
- The Electronic Commerce and New Economy Data-Collection Act would require a taxing authority to collect data on the sales and use taxes lost because states cannot tax online sales. The measure would require a state to track its number of e-commerce vendors, in-state and out-of-state e-commerce transactions, and taxes paid by e-commerce vendors.
- The Electronic Government Services Act would prohibit any government agency from engaging in e-commerce service.
Connecticut Scrutinizes Privacy Policies
Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal last month announced that he is asking three Connecticut-based Internet companies -- insure.com, CDuniverse.com, and netmarket.com -- to amend their privacy policies and disclose accurately how their Web sites may supply consumer information to telemarketers and other companies.
"I am deeply concerned that they do not adequately protect consumers' privacy rights on the Internet," Blumenthal said. "Consumers must be fully aware of the risk of releasing private information before accessing a particular Internet site."
Blumenthal said the companies' privacy policies do not disclose that third parties may place "cookies" on their computers that track Internet activity. The policies also do not disclose that by allowing third-party "cookies," the addresses of sites a person visits also are being transmitted and may include specific, private information.
Michigan and Missouri joined Connecticut in asking companies to revise their privacy policies. California and Texas are analyzing policies in their states.
Meanwhile, the Connecticut Gov. John Rowland signed several tech-related measures into law. The measures include:
- S.B. 140, which provides for the replacement of existing voting machines with new technologies and bans the use of punch-cards ballots.
- S.B. 530, which expands the state's information technology scholarship program to provide grants of $3,000 maximum.
- S.B. 1045, which requires the Economic and Community Development commissioner to implement a tech-training program.
- S.B. 1345, which provides financial aid for students who pursue careers in the tech sector and other high-need fields.
- H.B. 5120, which allows voters to use e-signatures to register.
- H.B. 5122, which establishes a task force to study online voting technology.
- H.B. 5123, which requires the state to establish a statewide voter-registration system by July 1, 2002. The bill allows localities to conduct bond sales to raise money for computers and other technology that will be used to transmit data into the system.
- H.B. 6679, which reserves 15 percent of all student financial aid to college freshman planning to major in a high-tech field or other highly skilled area.
- H.B. 6866, which establishes an Office of Workforce Competitiveness to advise the governor and provide forecasts of future workplace shortages.
Michigan Senate To Consider Sales-Tax Bill
The Michigan House has passed a measure making it part of the multi-state sales-tax simplification group that is working to develop a streamlined system to collect taxes on e-commerce sales. Ten states have passed some sales-tax simplification model, with other states considering similar measures.
The Michigan House passed its bill, H.B. 5080, on a 57-50. The Senate Finance Committee then approved the measure, which will be considered on the Senate floor Thursday.
Texas Secretary of State Resigns
Texas Secretary of State Henry Cuellar, the highest-ranking Hispanic in Gov. Rick Perry's administration, announced Tuesday that he is resigning immediately and considering a race for statewide office, reports The Dallas Morning News.
Cuellar said he did not want to jeopardize the neutrality of his office, which oversees elections, as he contemplates a possible political bid. He also said he is considering an opportunity in higher education.
South Dakotans Talk Educational Technology
South Dakotan teachers, administrators and university faculty were in Rapid City, S.D., at an educational technology conference this week. The Distance Learning Showcase features national award-winning experts on the use of technology in teaching and learning.
Experts made recommendations on future use of the state's Digital Dakota Network, which links schools, universities, libraries and other facilities throughout South Dakota. Gov. William Janklow gave opening remarks on Tuesday.
Drexel To Wire Pennsylvania Colleges To Internet2
Drexel University has received approval to sponsor connections to the Abilene network -- an Internet2, high-speed research network -- for Pennsylvania's 14-school higher education system, University President Constantine Papadakis recently announced.
The 14 colleges in the system will connect to the network through Drexel's Keystone Crossroads Partnership for Internet2. Last year, Drexel became the first major university to operate a fully wireless cyber campus and ranks sixth in this year's Yahoo Internet Life poll of America's 100 Most Wired Universities.
Some Advice On Voting Standards
The California Voter Foundation is one of the many groups that submitted comments on voting-system standards to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) after the agency released its draft Voluntary Standards for Computerized Voting Systems.
Among other things, the foundation recommended that the FEC: ensure that officials responsible for choosing voting systems are aware that remote Internet voting is not an alternative; clarify that the general Internet voting standards are for poll-site Internet voting exclusively; ensure that the standards allow voters not to vote in a given contest; address design and usability issues; and make sure voter privacy is considered in standards for voter-registration databases.
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