Judiciary II - Criminal Law Committee
Filed: 10/11/2007
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1 | AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 563
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2 | AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 563, AS AMENDED, by | ||||||
3 | replacing everything after the enacting clause with the | ||||||
4 | following:
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5 | "Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the | ||||||
6 | Internet Dating Disclosure and Safety Awareness Act. | ||||||
7 | Section 5. Definitions. As used in this Act: | ||||||
8 | "Communicate" or "communicating" means free-form text | ||||||
9 | authored by a member or real-time voice communication through | ||||||
10 | an online dating service provider. | ||||||
11 | "Member" means a person who submits to an online dating | ||||||
12 | service provider the information required by the provider to | ||||||
13 | access the provider's service for the purpose of engaging in | ||||||
14 | dating, participating in compatibility evaluations with other | ||||||
15 | persons, or obtaining matrimonial matching services. | ||||||
16 | "Online dating service provider" or "provider" means a |
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1 | person engaged in the business of offering or providing to its | ||||||
2 | members for a fee access to dating, compatibility evaluations | ||||||
3 | between persons, or matrimonial matching services through the | ||||||
4 | Internet. | ||||||
5 | "Sex offender registrant search" means a search for a | ||||||
6 | person's current and historical registration status on each | ||||||
7 | state's available sex offender registry, including the | ||||||
8 | District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, initiated by an online | ||||||
9 | dating service provider conducted through one of the means | ||||||
10 | provided for in Section 10 of this Act. | ||||||
11 | "Sex offense conviction" means a conviction for an offense | ||||||
12 | that would qualify the offender for registration as a sex | ||||||
13 | offender pursuant to the Sex Offender Registration Act or under | ||||||
14 | another state's equivalent statute. | ||||||
15 | Section 10. Sex offender registrant search. For purposes of | ||||||
16 | this Act, a sex offender registrant search shall be conducted | ||||||
17 | through one of the following means: | ||||||
18 | (1) by searching each available and regularly updated | ||||||
19 | state-wide sex offender registry database in all 50 states | ||||||
20 | plus Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico; or | ||||||
21 | (2) by searching a database maintained and regularly | ||||||
22 | updated by a private vendor whose database contains | ||||||
23 | state-wide sex offender registrant information for all 50 | ||||||
24 | states plus Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico as would be | ||||||
25 | otherwise accessible through searches of all the available |
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1 | government databases specified in item (1) of this Section. | ||||||
2 | Section 15. Sex offender registrant search; disclosures. | ||||||
3 | (a) An online dating service provider offering services to | ||||||
4 | residents of this State shall disclose clearly and | ||||||
5 | conspicuously, to any member who provides a billing address or | ||||||
6 | a zip code in this State when registering with the provider, | ||||||
7 | that the online dating provider either initiates a sex offender | ||||||
8 | registrant search of sex offender registrations on each member | ||||||
9 | prior to permitting any member to communicate with a member in | ||||||
10 | this State or that the online dating service provider does not | ||||||
11 | initiate such a sex offender registrant search. | ||||||
12 | (b) If the online dating service provider does not initiate | ||||||
13 | sex offender registrant searches, the provider must make a | ||||||
14 | disclosure that shall read: | ||||||
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"NO SEX OFFENDER REGISTRY SEARCH IS DONE ON MEMBERS | ||||||
16 | WHO USE THIS SERVICE. PLEASE TAKE APPROPRIATE SAFETY | ||||||
17 | MEASURES TO INCREASE AWARENESS OF POSSIBLE RISKS | ||||||
18 | ASSOCIATED WITH DATING."
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19 | (c) If the online dating service provider does initiate sex | ||||||
20 | offender registrant searches, the disclosure shall read: | ||||||
21 | "...............(NAME OF PROVIDER)......... INITIATES | ||||||
22 | A SEX OFFENDER REGISTRY SEARCH OF ALL 50 STATES PLUS | ||||||
23 | WASHINGTON, D.C. AND PUERTO RICO BEFORE A MEMBER IS | ||||||
24 | PERMITTED TO COMMUNICATE WITH ANY MEMBER FROM ILLINOIS." | ||||||
25 | (d) The disclosure required by either subsection (b) or |
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1 | subsection (c) of this Section shall appear on a web page | ||||||
2 | required to be viewed by a person applying to be a member who | ||||||
3 | has indicated a billing address or zip code in this State in | ||||||
4 | the registration process. The disclosure cannot be more than 3 | ||||||
5 | inches from the top of the web page and must be: | ||||||
6 | (1) in bold capital letters; | ||||||
7 | (2) in at least 12 point type; and | ||||||
8 | (3) in a color that contrasts from the background. | ||||||
9 | The provider shall require the applicant in this State to | ||||||
10 | make an electronic acknowledgement that the applicant has been | ||||||
11 | provided the disclosure before the applicant is accepted as a | ||||||
12 | member. The disclosure required by either subsection (b) or | ||||||
13 | subsection (c) of this Section shall additionally appear on any | ||||||
14 | page that appears to a member in this State each time that | ||||||
15 | member initiates or receives a communication with another | ||||||
16 | member through the provider's service. | ||||||
17 | (e) If the online dating service provider conducts sex | ||||||
18 | offender registry searches and the provider has a policy | ||||||
19 | allowing a member who has been identified as being on a sex | ||||||
20 | offender registry to have access to its service to communicate | ||||||
21 | with any member in this State, the provider shall clearly and | ||||||
22 | conspicuously disclose on any communication to a member in this | ||||||
23 | State from the member who has been identified
as having been on | ||||||
24 | a sex offender registry, and on any web page that is seen by or | ||||||
25 | transmitted to a member in this State that contains the | ||||||
26 | personal information for the member who has been identified as |
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1 | having been on a sex offender registry and that is seen by or | ||||||
2 | communicated to a member in this State, a disclosure that shall | ||||||
3 | read:
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4 | "THIS PERSON HAS BEEN IDENTIFIED AS A CURRENT OR FORMER | ||||||
5 | SEX OFFENDER REGISTERED ON ONE OR MORE SEX OFFENDER | ||||||
6 | REGISTRIES." | ||||||
7 | Section 20. Provider policies; disclosure. An online | ||||||
8 | dating service provider that conducts sex offender registry | ||||||
9 | searches shall establish an automatic electronic link from any | ||||||
10 | web page containing the disclosure required by subsection (c) | ||||||
11 | of Section 15 to a web page that provides a safety awareness | ||||||
12 | notification. The web page containing the safety awareness | ||||||
13 | notification shall be configured such that it shall | ||||||
14 | automatically appear each time a member makes the electronic | ||||||
15 | acknowledgement of the disclosure under subsection (c) of | ||||||
16 | Section 15. The member is required to make an electronic | ||||||
17 | acknowledgement of the safety awareness notification each time | ||||||
18 | it appears and the acknowledgement shall appear at the bottom | ||||||
19 | of the web page containing the notification. At a minimum, the | ||||||
20 | safety awareness notification shall provide the following:
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21 | (1) A statement that reads: | ||||||
22 | "PERSONAL SAFETY AWARENESS NOTICE CAUTION: Before | ||||||
23 | allowing Illinois members to communicate with other | ||||||
24 | members . . . [Name of provider] . . . initiates a sex | ||||||
25 | offender registry search of all 50 states' plus |
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1 | Washington, D.C.'s and Puerto Rico's sex offender | ||||||
2 | registries to determine if a member is a current or | ||||||
3 | former sex offender registrant. The purpose is to | ||||||
4 | provide a preliminary background screening for | ||||||
5 | protection of our members before they are permitted to | ||||||
6 | begin communicating directly with each other. | ||||||
7 | The sex offender registrant searches for sex | ||||||
8 | offenders convictions are not foolproof and are not | ||||||
9 | intended to give members a false sense of security. Sex | ||||||
10 | offender registrant searches are not a perfect safety | ||||||
11 | solution and offenders may circumvent even the most | ||||||
12 | sophisticated search technology or registration | ||||||
13 | requirements. | ||||||
14 | Not all sex offender records are public in all | ||||||
15 | states and not all databases are up-to-date. Only | ||||||
16 | publicly available sex offender registrant data is | ||||||
17 | included in the search. | ||||||
18 | Anyone who is able to commit identity theft can | ||||||
19 | also falsify a dating profile. | ||||||
20 | There is no substitute for using good common sense | ||||||
21 | and acting with caution when communicating with any | ||||||
22 | stranger who wants to meet you."
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23 | (2) A list and description of safety measures | ||||||
24 | reasonably designed to increase awareness of safer dating | ||||||
25 | practices as determined by the provider. |
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1 | Section 25. Application. Any online dating service | ||||||
2 | provider that signs up members from Illinois must comply with | ||||||
3 | the provisions of this Act.
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4 | Section 30. Jurisdiction. An online dating service that | ||||||
5 | engages in the act of transmitting files over the Internet | ||||||
6 | addressed to residents of the State, and the act of accepting | ||||||
7 | membership fees from residents of the State, means that the | ||||||
8 | online dating service is operating, conducting, engaging in, | ||||||
9 | and otherwise carrying on a business in the State, subjecting | ||||||
10 | the online dating service providers to regulation by the State | ||||||
11 | and to the jurisdiction of the State's courts. | ||||||
12 | Section 35. Unlawful practice. Failure to comply with the | ||||||
13 | disclosure requirements of this Act shall constitute a an | ||||||
14 | unlawful business practice under the Consumer Fraud and | ||||||
15 | Deceptive Business Practices Act. Each failure to provide the | ||||||
16 | required disclosure constitutes a separate violation. | ||||||
17 | Section 40. Exemptions. | ||||||
18 | (a) An Internet service provider does not violate this Act | ||||||
19 | solely as a result of serving as an intermediary for the | ||||||
20 | transmission of electronic messages between members of an | ||||||
21 | online dating service provider. | ||||||
22 | (b) An Internet access service or other Internet service | ||||||
23 | provider shall not be considered an online dating service |
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1 | provider within the meaning of this Act as to any online dating | ||||||
2 | service website provided by another person or entity. | ||||||
3 | (c) An Internet service provider that has fewer than 1,000 | ||||||
4 | members is exempt from the requirements of this Act. | ||||||
5 | Section 45. Severability. If any provision of this Act or | ||||||
6 | its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, | ||||||
7 | the invalidity of that provision or application does not affect | ||||||
8 | other provisions or applications of this Act that can be given | ||||||
9 | effect without the invalid provision or application. | ||||||
10 | Section 500. The Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business | ||||||
11 | Practices Act is amended by changing Section 2Z as follows:
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12 | (815 ILCS 505/2Z) (from Ch. 121 1/2, par. 262Z)
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13 | Sec. 2Z. Violations of other Acts. Any person who knowingly | ||||||
14 | violates
the Automotive Repair Act, the Automotive Collision | ||||||
15 | Repair Act,
the Home Repair and Remodeling Act,
the Dance | ||||||
16 | Studio Act,
the Physical Fitness Services Act,
the Hearing | ||||||
17 | Instrument Consumer Protection Act,
the Illinois Union Label | ||||||
18 | Act,
the Job Referral and Job Listing Services Consumer | ||||||
19 | Protection Act,
the Travel Promotion Consumer Protection Act,
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20 | the Credit Services Organizations Act,
the Automatic Telephone | ||||||
21 | Dialers Act,
the Pay-Per-Call Services Consumer Protection | ||||||
22 | Act,
the Telephone Solicitations Act,
the Illinois Funeral or | ||||||
23 | Burial Funds Act,
the Cemetery Care Act,
the Safe and Hygienic |
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1 | Bed Act,
the Pre-Need Cemetery Sales Act,
the High Risk Home | ||||||
2 | Loan Act, the Payday Loan Reform Act, the Mortgage Rescue Fraud | ||||||
3 | Act, subsection (a) or (b) of Section 3-10 of the
Cigarette Tax | ||||||
4 | Act, the Payday Loan Reform Act, subsection
(a) or (b) of | ||||||
5 | Section 3-10 of the Cigarette Use Tax Act, the Electronic
Mail | ||||||
6 | Act, paragraph (6)
of
subsection (k) of Section 6-305 of the | ||||||
7 | Illinois Vehicle Code, the Internet Dating Disclosure and | ||||||
8 | Safety Awareness Act, Article 3 of the Residential Real | ||||||
9 | Property Disclosure Act, the Automatic Contract Renewal Act, or | ||||||
10 | the Personal Information Protection Act commits an unlawful | ||||||
11 | practice within the meaning of this Act.
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12 | (Source: P.A. 93-561, eff. 1-1-04; 93-950, eff. 1-1-05; 94-13, | ||||||
13 | eff. 12-6-05; 94-36, eff. 1-1-06; 94-280, eff. 1-1-06; 94-292, | ||||||
14 | eff. 1-1-06; 94-822, eff. 1-1-07.)".
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