House considering a zone for kids on the Net
As the Web continues its sometimes disreputable slide into the proverbial gutter, Congressional legislators in the House of Representatives are discussing a bill that would create an Internet zone for young people.
The bill (HR 3833) would require the Commerce Department’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to create a zone for Web sites with addresses ending in “.kids.us.” Sponsor John Shimkus (R-Ill.) bills the zone as “a haven for material that promotes positive experiences for children and families using the Internet, a safe online environment for children,” and a way to help “prevent children from being exposed to harmful material.” The new bill is aimed at children 13 years old and younger.
At press time, some issues were still being discussed by the House Energy and Commerce Committee. CQ Daily Monitor reported that some wording would probably need to be changed in order to avoid free-speech challenges.
Shimkus attempted to introduce a similar bill last summer for children younger than 18. It would have required the Commerce secretary to work with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to create a new domain. ICANN balked at the notion.
The dot-us domain is operated by NeuStar, a company that plans to begin selling dot-us addresses later this year. To follow the progress of HR 3833 and all other Congressional bills, long into http://thomas.loc.gov.
A sharp site for election preparedness
The 9.5 million people in Los Angeles County are lucky to have a voter portal as user-friendly as www.lavote.net. And while we’re speaking of kids, the Student Pollworker Program featured on this site is not only a way to find inexpensive labor at Election Day polls, but the program teaches high school seniors about the voting process and about how to make a few bucks.
California appears to be the leader in student pollworkers, and L.A. County alone has had 2,200 since 1997 and hopes to recruit an additional 1,500 for its 2002 primary election. There are a few requirements to be a student pollworker listed at the site. Meanwhile, the average student pay throughout California counties is $50-$75 for a long day of work, plus paid training. The site makes it easy for any qualified resident to become a poll worker with its instant Online Pollworker Application.
If student pollworking is not your thing, the site is your one-stop shop for everything from marriage ceremonies to finding a name for your business to registering to vote and locating election results.
HUD funding announced online
More than $2.2 billion in 41 grant categories was recently announced through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Grant Programs. The notice provides funding opportunities for competitive grant programs in areas such as community development, economic development and homeless assistance. To view the Federal Register Notice, visit www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fedreg/a020326c.html. Deadlines for application submittals range from April 26 to July 23.
