On July 10, the House Judiciary Committee approved, by voice vote, the Child Protection Act of 2012 (H.R. 6063).
The legislation, sponsored by Chair Lamar Smith (R-TX), would increase the maximum penalty from 10 to 20 years for possession of child pornography involving children under the age of 12. The measure also would allow a federal court to issue a protective order if a minor victim or witness is being subjected to harassment or intimidation that is likely to deter the minor from testifying in court; violation of such a protective order would be punishable by imprisonment for up to five years. The court would be directed to presume that the posting of a person’s information or photograph online serves no legitimate purpose in harassment and intimidation cases, unless it has been authorized by the witness, victim, or the victim’s immediate family member, or is being used to locate a person reported as missing.
The bill would authorize $300 million for a five-year renewal of the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) task force. The ICAC task force is designed to help state and local law enforcement track and respond to child exploitation on the Internet. Additionally, the cap on grant funds for ICAC training programs would be increased from $2 million to $4 million. The measure also would require the Department of Justice to submit a report to the committee on the progress of implementation of the National Internet Crimes Against Children Data System.
The U.S. Marshals would be granted administrative subpoena authority to investigate sex offenders who fail to comply with sex offender registry requirements. Subpoenas issued by the U.S. Marshals would not be subject to court approval
