NY State Senate Bill 2011-S2256

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Codes Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Date of Action	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 18, 2011	referred to codes

2011-S2256 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Codes
Law Section:: Penal Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §235.20, Pen L; add Art 29-JJ §§613 & 614, Gen Bus L
Versions Introduced in 2009-2010 Legislative Session:: S923

2011-S2256 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Increases the age at which young persons may be legally exposed to obscene materials by raising the legal age at which young persons may be legally exposed to obscene materials from eighteen to twenty-one years of age; prohibits retailers from employing persons under twenty-one years of age to participate in the sale of obscene materials; imposes a civil penalty of not more than one hundred dollars per violation.

2011-S2256 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                BILL NUMBER:S2256

TITLE OF BILL:
An act
to amend the penal law and the general business law, in relation to
increasing protection for minors from exposure to obscene materials

PURPOSE:
To increase the age at which young persons may be legally
exposed to obscene materials and to protect young employees from such
exposure.

SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
The bill amends 235.20 of the
penal law by
raising the legal age at which young persons may be legally exposed
to obscene materials from 18 to 21 years of age. The bill also
creates a new article 29-JJ of the general business law which
prohibits retailers from employing persons under 21 years of age to
participate in the sale of obscene materials.

JUSTIFICATION:
While the United States has a long and
honored
tradition of protecting freedom of speech, every society has to agree
to reasonable and considered limits on that speech. Similar to the

classic example used by Justice Louis Brandels which prohibited a
citizen from yelling "fire" in a crowded theater, pornography is a
type of speech which has to have clear and enforceable limitations on
its exposure to certain populations. Pornography depicts graphic and
sexually explicit images which mostly feature the subordination of
people. Some men are depicted as subordinate but most often women are
the ones in these degrading roles. Pornography presents people in a
dehumanized manner, often as sexual objects, things or commodities.
Often people are depicted as enjoying pain or humiliation, or they
are presented as experiencing sexual pleasure in being forcibly
raped. In pornography people are often presented in postures of
sexual submission and servility who are tied up, cut up, mutilated,
bruised or physically hurt. This bill would shield young people from
exposure to materials in which people, and mostly women, are
presented in scenarios of degradation, injury, torture, or are shown
as filthy or inferior. There is extensive academic
research which suggests that such dehumanizing pornography
causes measurable harm toward women. While this bill does not attempt
to outlaw pornography -- it does attempt to increase protections for
young populations who may be the people most influenced by such
material.

FISCAL IMPACT TO STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
None.

EFFECTIVE DATE:
One hundred and eighty days after it
shall have become
a law.

2011-S2256 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  2256

                       2011-2012 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                            January 18, 2011
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sen.  KRUGER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
  printed to be committed to the Committee on Codes

AN ACT to amend the penal law and the general business law, in  relation
  to increasing protection for minors from exposure to obscene materials

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 235.20 of the penal law, as  added
by chapter 791 of the laws of 1967, is amended to read as follows:
  1.    "Minor"  means any person less than [seventeen] TWENTY-ONE years
old.
  S 2. The general business law is amended by adding a new article 29-JJ
to read as follows:
                               ARTICLE 29-JJ
                  EMPLOYEE EXPOSURE TO OBSCENE MATERIAL
SECTION 613. DEFINITIONS.
        614. RETAIL SALE OF OBSCENE MATERIALS AND EMPLOYEE PROTECTION.
  S 613. DEFINITIONS.  AS USED IN THIS ARTICLE THE FOLLOWING TERMS SHALL
HAVE THE FOLLOWING MEANINGS:
  1. "OBSCENE." ANY MATERIAL IS "OBSCENE" IF  (A)  THE  AVERAGE  PERSON,
APPLYING  CONTEMPORARY  COMMUNITY STANDARDS, WOULD FIND THAT, CONSIDERED
AS A WHOLE, ITS PREDOMINANT APPEAL IS TO THE PRURIENT INTEREST  IN  SEX,
AND  (B)  IT DEPICTS OR DESCRIBES IN A PATENTLY OFFENSIVE MANNER, ACTUAL
OR SIMULATED: SEXUAL INTERCOURSE, SODOMY, SEXUAL  BESTIALITY,  MASTURBA-
TION,  SADISM,  MASOCHISM, EXCRETION OR LEWD EXHIBITION OF THE GENITALS,
AND (C) CONSIDERED AS A WHOLE,  IT  LACKS  SERIOUS  LITERARY,  ARTISTIC,
POLITICAL, AND SCIENTIFIC VALUE. PREDOMINANT APPEAL SHALL BE JUDGED WITH
REFERENCE TO ORDINARY ADULTS UNLESS IT APPEARS FROM THE CHARACTER OF THE
MATERIAL  OR  THE  CIRCUMSTANCES OF ITS DISSEMINATION TO BE DESIGNED FOR
CHILDREN OR OTHER SPECIALLY SUSCEPTIBLE AUDIENCE.
  2. "MINOR" MEANS ANY PERSON LESS THAN TWENTY-ONE YEARS OLD.

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD07043-01-1

S. 2256                             2

  3. "MATERIALS" MEANS ANYTHING TANGIBLE WHICH IS CAPABLE OF BEING  USED
OR  ADAPTED  TO  AROUSE INTEREST, WHETHER THROUGH THE MEDIUM OF READING,
OBSERVATION, SOUND OR IN ANY OTHER MANNER.
  S  614.  RETAIL SALE OF OBSCENE MATERIALS AND EMPLOYEE PROTECTION.  1.
NO PERSON, INDIVIDUAL, PARTNERSHIP, CORPORATION,  ASSOCIATION  OR  OTHER
LEGAL  ENTITY  SHALL EMPLOY ANY MINOR TO PARTICIPATE IN THE RETAIL SALE,
MAILING, DELIVERY, TRANSFER, DISTRIBUTION,  CIRCULATION,  DISSEMINATION,
PRESENTATION, EXHIBITION OR ADVERTISEMENT OF ANY OBSCENE MATERIALS.
  2.  A VIOLATION OF SUBDIVISION ONE OF THIS SECTION SHALL BE PUNISHABLE
BY A CIVIL PENALTY OF NOT MORE THAN ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS PER VIOLATION.
  S 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
it shall have become a law.

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Senate Bill S2256

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Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Codes Committee

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2011-S2256 (ACTIVE) - Details

2011-S2256 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2011-S2256 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2011-S2256 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

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Sponsored By

Carl Kruger

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Codes Committee

Actions

2011-S2256 (ACTIVE) - Details

2011-S2256 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2011-S2256 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2011-S2256 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments