A mark up is scheduled for Wednesday June 23, in the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee. Pending legislation includes bills pertaining to Encryption, Digital Signatures and School Internet Subsidies. All other exports of date-scrambling software would be restricted. An Encryption Export Advisory Board would also be created to review exports of unlimited-strength encryption to allied countries. The President would be allowed to overrule the board's decision for purposes of national security.
Encryption software uses complex mathematical formulas to scramble information stored in computers.
At the present time there are no limits on the domestic use of encryption software but the government does limit the export of encryption products with a strength of 56 bits or more. It would not limit the nations to which companies can export, but would require the Commerce Department to approve export licenses. S. 97, also scheduled for mark up, would deny federal Internet subsidies to schools and libraries that do not use software to block children's access to indecent material. Schools and libraries would be free to choose any filtering or blocking system that would best fit their community standards and local needs. The Committee will also take up S. 76, a bill that would require companies and individuals to accept electronic signatures as they would handwritten signatures.