<BillNo> <Sponsor>
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION 65
By Cepicky
HJR0065
002151
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A RESOLUTION to urge the U.S. Congress to pass the Shielding
Children's Retinas from Egregious Exposure on
the Net (SCREEN) Act.
WHEREAS, it is estimated that eighty percent of minors between the ages of twelve and
seventeen have been exposed to pornography, with fifty-four percent of teenagers seeking it
out; and
WHEREAS, the internet is the most common source for minors to access pornography,
with pornographic websites receiving more web traffic in the United States than X, Netflix,
Pinterest, and LinkedIn combined; and
WHEREAS, the Kaiser Family Foundation has found that filters do not work on one in
ten pornography sites accessed intentionally and one in three pornography sites that are
accessed unintentionally; and
WHEREAS, since 2022, nineteen states, including Tennessee, have passed laws
requiring entities disseminating material harmful to minors online to comply with age verification
standards, but with the exception of Texas, there has been little evidence of change in such
states, and nearly all such content remains accessible online to children in the U.S.; and
WHEREAS, the obscenity industry considers the line of legality to be drawn by
prosecutors, not by legislators, and pornographers have responded by self-regulating when
obscenity laws have been enforced; and
WHEREAS, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that, "transmitting obscenity and child
pornography, whether via the Internet or other means, is... illegal under federal law for both
adults and juveniles" in Reno v. ACLU, 521 U.S. 844 (1998); and
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WHEREAS, although obscenity is not constitutionally protected speech, and violations of
federal obscenity laws are criminal offenses, the U.S. Department of Justice has failed to
prioritize enforcement of these laws, which neglect has contributed to the uninhibited access of
harmful material online by children: Miller v. California [1973]; 18 U.S.C. ยง 1460-1470; and
WHEREAS, members of the U.S. Congress have made recent attempts to curb
children's access to obscene and harmful material online, for example the Shielding Children's
Retinas from Egregious Exposure on the Net (SCREEN) Act, sponsored by Senator Mike Lee of
Utah and Representative Mary Miller of Illinois, which would create an age-verification standard
nationwide, but such legislation has yet to become law; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED
FOURTEENTH GEN ERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE, THE SENATE
CONCURRING, that we urge the United States Congress to pass the Shielding Children's
Retinas from Egregious Exposure on the Net (SCREEN) Act or any similar legislation that holds
online pornographers accountable for obscene and harmful material they make available to
children.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that we urge the State of Tennessee to aggressively
enforce the Protect Tennessee Minors Act to ensure children are protected from obscene and
harmful material online.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that we urge the U.S. Department of Justice to prioritize
the enforcement of federal obscenity laws and especially violations committed via interactive
computer service.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that a certified copy of this resolution be transmitted to
the Speaker and the Clerk of the United States House of Representatives, the President and the
Secretary of the United States Senate, each member of the Tennessee Congressional
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delegation, the Attorney General of the United States of America, and the Attorney General of
the State of Tennessee.