House strengthens child-protection registry, adds domain-name coverage and penalties

The Utah House on Feb. 17 approved a third substitute of House Bill 174 to revise the state's child-protection registry, expanding the types of contact points that may be registered and increasing penalties for sending harmful material to minors.

Representative Duval (sponsor) said the substitute adds domain names and strengthens protections for minors, including felony penalties for certain conduct and greater authority for the consumer-protection division to issue warnings and notifications if the registry is compromised. "We have provided some greater protection if individuals send material harmful to a minor. We have felony penalties in here as a result of that," Duval said while outlining changes.

Several representatives questioned what constitutes "harmful to a minor." The sponsor cited a statutory definition, noting it appears in state law as "76 dash 10 dash 1201," and read portions of that statutory language into the record to show the term is defined in statute. Lawmakers also pressed the sponsor on security safeguards for the registry and noted that, because of delayed enactment from a prior year, "no one has subscribed to this in the past year," and the state was still in the bidding process for a private vendor.

Representative Dayton and others urged caution and suggested delaying enactment to allow federal FTC findings and security concerns to be addressed; the sponsor said that delayed enactment and further study in the interim were options and that the bill aimed to improve an existing statute rather than create a new untested system.

The House passed the third substitute by voice and recorded votes (69–0). The bill will be sent to the Senate.