Public Affairs - State Legislation
Connecticut
NARM
hired Connecticut lobbyist Linda Sobin jointly with RIAA to monitor
entertainment-related legislation being proposed there.
The threat of the state’s efforts to restrict the sale of
certain music to minors being publicly supported by Senator Joseph
Lieberman made it necessary for NARM and RIAA to have someone there
protecting our interests. Committee Bill 229, in its original form,
prohibited retailers from selling stickered music with a Parental
Advisory to anyone under 18.
Retailers and trade association executives voiced strong
opposition to the bill at its public hearing in March. This resistance,
coupled with a general lack of support from other legislators, prompted
the Senator to revise the bill’s language.
It
currently requires retailers selling stickered product to post sales and
returns policies in a visible place and included no penalty for
non-compliance.
While NARM did not aggressively oppose the bill, a written
response was delivered to Senator Kissel by NARM’s lobbyist,
suggesting he give retailers time to address his concerns on their own
before seeking a legislated solution. NARM staff followed up with a
letter to Connecticut retailers advising them to consider being more
proactive in making sure parents are aware of store policies and
programs.
Retailers have indicated that incidences of parents voicing their
concern over music with Parental Advisory labels have been generally
non-existent.
Currently, the bill has been passed over for a Senate hearing,
with Connecticut’s legislative session technically ended on June 6.
Since it is unlikely bill 229 would be considered even in a
special session, it is effectively dead.
NARM also
opposed SB 1189, which required catalogs advertising music having a
Parental Advisory be identified as such with clear and conspicuous
language, because it attempts to make mandatory a voluntary system
already in place. RIAA staff has been working with Representative Stripp,
the bill’s sponsor and the constituent responsible for the bill’s
introduction, towards a mutually beneficial resolution. As of this
writing, the bill has not been voted out of committee, and is also
expected to die when the session ends.
New
Jersey Senator Gerald Cardinale’s SB1661 mandatory labeling bill came as a
result of his view that there is a correlation between teenagers
listening to music with objectionable lyrics and violent behavior.
This bill would prohibit the sale of a recording containing
lyrics describing suicide, incest, bestiality, sadomasochism,
involuntary sexual activity, murder, morbid violence, ethnic racial or
religious intimidation of the use of illegal drugs or alcohol unless it
carries a warning or Parental Advisory. NARM opposes the bill and, along
with RIAA, met with the Senator in February to explore options other
than legislative solutions. There has been no activity since that time,
but since New Jersey has a year-long session, we anticipate that another
meeting may be necessary with Senator Cardinale this summer.
Internet
Content/Harmful to Minors—NARM
has been monitoring Internet content bills in Florida, Indiana,
Massachusetts, Ohio, Washington, and Wisconsin. NARM historically has
not opposed “harmful to minors” legislation because most bills place
no unreasonable burden on retailers. However, some bills contain overly
broad language and attempt to change existing statutes to include
dissemination of material by computer. We oppose those bills because
they criminalize transmission of certain material to minors at the
expense of what is constitutional for adults to access. Florida’s
Senate Bill 144 was appreciably amended to read that it was unlawful to
disseminate material harmful to minors by electronic mail to a specific
person known or believed to be a minor. Therefore, NARM no longer
opposed the bill. The Governor signed the bill into law.
Massachusetts Senate Bill 991 is currently
in committee. The Attorney General is proposing new language to include
intent and prior knowledge that the recipient of the material is a
minor. If that occurs, NARM will withdraw its opposition. Ohio’s
Senate Bill 8 is currently being held in the Judiciary Committee.
Attempts by entertainment industry groups to amend the bill were
unsuccessful and a hearing was held on June 6. NARM and other
entertainment industry organizations registered their opposition. The
bill’s sponsor is still getting pressure to amend the bill’s
language so that it can pass constitutional muster. We anticipate some
action on this in the next few weeks. Indiana, Washington and
Wisconsin’s bills are either stalled in committee or dead.
Violent
Video Game Content
NARM
has opposed bills restricting minors’ access to violent video games in
Arkansas, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and New York. The bills in
Arkansas, Mississippi and Oklahoma appear dead. The New York bills are
still alive and NARM will continue to monitor any activity.
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