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Schwarzenegger Signs Sex-Offender Bills
by Michael Martinez
California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Wednesday signed into law a package of bills targeting sex offenders in his state.
The measures included S.B. 1128, a bill that enhances state penalties against child rapists and Internet predators, and makes possession of child pornography a felony. The bill also calls for expanding law enforcement databases and aims to ensure that police can use online decoys to catch predators lurking on the Web.
A separate bill, S.B. 1178, requires high-risk sex offenders to be equipped with global positioning devices so law enforcers can monitor their activities.
"Californians deserve laws that are tough on these crimes," said state Sen. Elaine Alquist, the author of S.B. 1128.
Californians also will have an opportunity to vote this November on a ballot initiative that includes similar provisions to the package of six bills signed into law by Schwarzenegger. The initiative has been dubbed "Jessica's Law," referring to a Florida statute named after 9-year-old kidnapping and murder victim Jessica Lunsford.
"My single greatest priority as governor is to protect the safety and well-being of all Californians," Schwarzenegger said in a statement. "High-risk sex offenders pose a threat to public safety, and we must take every necessary step to eliminate that threat."
Governors Want Unmanned Aerial Vehicles
Schwarzenegger has joined a group of governors in urging Congress to restore funding for an unmanned aerial vehicle program proposed by the White House earlier this year.
In a letter Wednesday to the leaders of the House and Senate Defense Appropriations Subcommittees, Schwarzenegger, Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano, New York Gov. George Pataki, North Dakota Gov. John Hoeven and Texas Gov. Rick Perry called on lawmakers to fully fund plans to expand the Air Force's Predator UAV program.
Air National Guard units in the governors' states have been identified as the first to participate in the expansion.
"We write this letter not only because our Air National Guards will be the next units to receive the Predator mission but because the Predator is one of the most vital tools used by our armed forces in the fight against terrorism," the governors said.
The Air National Guard Predator programs will be delayed by one to two years if funding is not restored by Congress this year, according to the governors.
Vermont Regulators To Continue Spying Probe
Utility regulators in Vermont this week said they intend to move forward with an investigation into whether AT&T and Verizon Communications violated privacy laws by providing the National Security Agency with the telephone records of the firms' customers without consent.
AP reports that the Vermont Public Service Board has rebuffed the Justice Department by continuing with its probe into the potential participation of the companies in the NSA's anti-terrorism program. Justice has said that such an investigation would compromise national security. The department has filed lawsuits in several other states this year to block similar probes.
"We have jurisdiction under state law to proceed in this matter, and it has not been shown that federal law pre-empts that jurisdiction," the board said.
According to the regulators, Justice cannot legitimately use the state-secrets privilege to stop the investigation from moving forward because much of the information the board is seeking regards aspects of the program that are no longer secret.
"Based on the record before us, we conclude that the state-secrets privilege does not apply here, largely because it has not been properly claimed, but also because it would not apply to all of the petitioners' claims and because some of the matters involved in these dockets are not secret," the Vermont board said.
Utah Lawmaker Tries To Revive Videogame Bill
In his last few days in office, a Utah lawmaker is looking to push a bill to curtail the sale of violent videogames to minors in his state.
State Rep. David Hogue is seeking support for a proposal he sponsored that won passage in the state House earlier this year but died in the Senate, AP reported Wednesday. He held a hearing this week on the measure during a special session and is actively seeking a sponsor to reintroduce it next session.
GamePolitics.com reports that state Rep. Scott Wyatt appears to be willing to carry the torch for the bill after Hogue leaves office.
According to Hogue, his bill is strong enough to withstand judicial scrutiny, unlike those enacted recently in other states. Videogame laws in California, Illinois, Louisiana, Michigan and Minnesota all were overturned by courts on constitutional grounds.
"What the other states have had a problem with was actually trying to keep the sale of those things off the shelf completely," he said. "We've identified these materials as being harmful to minors. I think it can be proved in court."
Hogue told AP that he believes both manufacturers and retailers are to blame for the sale of games that can negatively affect their behavior.
"My feeling is that the industry has not done a good job at all of being able to police this themselves," Hogue said. "The thing that bothers me is I've got a 13-year-old granddaughter right now that can walk into a Blockbuster and pick these things up."
Wisconsin Governor Slams Data-Protection Bill
Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle on Tuesday urged federal lawmakers from his state to reject a data-protection proposal he said will preempt stronger state-level laws already in place.
In a letter to his state's congressional delegation, Doyle said that pending federal legislation would weaken a measure he signed into law earlier this year to allow state residents who are at risk because of data breaches to freeze their credit reports. He said federal proposals only would allow consumers to obtain credit freezes after their identities already have been stolen.
"This is like saying that consumers can't put a lock on the doors to their homes until after they've already been burglarized," he said.
Identity theft cost consumers and businesses in Wisconsin about $950 million a year, according to Doyle. He said the current law in the Badger State and those in other states are much better suited to address such problems than proposals before Congress.
"The credit-freeze laws now in place in Wisconsin and in approximately 20 other states enable consumers to have a greater measure of confidence that they will not be identity-theft victims," Doyle said.
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