HARRISBURG – Blair County Rep. Jim Gregory is proposing legislation which will ensure that children are protected from accessing pornography on mobile devices. House Bill 1501, called the “Protection of Minors from Unfiltered Devices Act,” would require new smart phones and tablets activated in PA to have a filter enabled that would protect children from finding harmful material online such as pornography. The lawmaker said while we should be concerned about children having access to inappropriate sexual content and pornography in the school setting, we must also be diligent to ensure children are not able to access the same material on mobile devices outside of the school setting. He added when children are exposed to explicit sexual content at an early age, either by accident or indoctrination, it has a significant negative impact on their future development and ability to have a successful outcome. Technology already exists and can be easily placed on devices. The filters can also be disabled by adults, meaning requiring activation of filters at purchase will not impinge on the ability of anyone of legal age from accessing anything on their phone or tablet. The bill is before the state House Consumer Protection, Technology & Utilities Committee.
REP. JIM GREGORY