Instructions: In this task, you are given text for US Congressional and California state bills, your task is to generate a summary for this bill.
Input: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ''Electronic Mailbox Protection Act of
1997''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress makes the following findings:
(1) The Internet has increasingly become a critical mode of
global communication and now presents unprecedented
opportunities for the development and growth of global commerce
and an integrated worldwide economy.
(2) In order for global commerce on the Internet to reach
its full potential, individuals and entities using the Internet
and other online services should be prevented from engaging in
activities that prevent other users and Internet service
providers from having a reasonably predictable, efficient, and
economical online experience.
(3) Unsolicited electronic mail can be an important
mechanism through which commercial vendors, nonprofit
organizations, and other providers of services recruit members,
advertise, and attract customers in the online environment.
(4) The receipt of unsolicited electronic mail may result
in undue monetary costs to recipients who cannot refuse to
accept such mail and who incur costs for the storage of such
mail, or for the time spent accessing, reviewing, and
discarding such mail, or for both.
(5) Unsolicited electronic mail sent in bulk may impose
significant monetary costs on the Internet service providers,
businesses, and educational and non-profit institutions that
carry and receive such mail, as there is a finite volume of
mail that such providers, businesses, and institutions can
handle at any one point in time. The sending of such mail is
increasingly and negatively affecting the quality of service
provided to customers of Internet service providers.
(6) While many senders of bulk unsolicited electronic mail
provide simple and reliable ways for recipients to reject (or
''opt-out'' of) receipt of unsolicited electronic mail from
such senders in the future, other senders provide no such
''opt-out'' mechanism, or refuse to honor the requests of
recipients not to receive electronic mail from such senders in
the future, or both.
(7) An increasing number of senders of bulk unsolicited
electronic mail purposefully disguise the source of such mail
so as to prevent recipients from responding to such mail
quickly and easily.
(8) Many senders of unsolicited electronic mail collect (or
''harvest'') electronic mail addresses of potential recipients
without the knowledge of their intended recipients and in
violation of the rules or terms of service of the fora from
which such addresses are collected.
(9) Because recipients of unsolicited electronic mail are
unable to avoid the receipt of such mail through reasonable
means, such mail may threaten the privacy of recipients. This
privacy threat is enhanced for recipients whose electronic mail
software or server alerts them to new mail as it arrives, as
unsolicited electronic mail thereby disrupts the normal
operation of the recipient's computer.
(10) In legislating against certain abuses on the Internet,
Congress and the States should be very careful to avoid
infringing in any way upon constitutionally protected rights,
including the rights of assembly, free speech, and privacy.
(11) In order to realize the full potential for online
electronic commerce, senders of bulk unsolicited electronic
mail should be required to abide by the requests of electronic
mail recipients, Internet service providers, businesses, and
educational and non-profit institutions to cease sending such
mail to such recipients, providers, businesses, and educational
and non-profit institutions.

SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON CERTAIN ACTIVITIES THAT MISAPPROPRIATE THE
RESOURCES OF ONLINE SERVICE PROVIDERS.

(a) In General.--Whoever, in or affecting interstate or foreign
commerce--
(1) initiates the transmission of an unsolicited electronic
mail message from an unregistered or fictitious Internet
domain, or an unregistered or fictitious electronic mail
address, for the purpose of--
(A) preventing replies to such message through use
of a standard reply mechanism in the recipient's
electronic mail system; or
(B) preventing receipt of standard notices of non-
delivery;
(2) uses a computer program or other technical mechanism or
procedure to disguise the source of unsolicited electronic mail
messages for the purpose of preventing recipients, or recipient
interactive computer services, from implementing a mail
filtering tool to block the messages from reaching the intended
recipients;
(3) initiates the transmission of an unsolicited electronic
mail message and fails to comply with the request of the
recipient of the message, made to the sender or the listserver
as appropriate, to cease sending electronic messages to the
recipient in the future;
(4) distributes a collection or list of electronic mail
addresses, having been given prior notice that one or more of
the recipients identified by such addresses does not wish to
receive unsolicited electronic mail and knowing that the
recipient of such addresses intends to use such addresses for
the purpose of sending unsolicited electronic mail;
(5) initiates the transmission of an unsolicited electronic
mail message to a recipient despite having been given prior
notice (either directly or through a standard method developed,
adopted, or modified by an Internet standard setting
organization (such as the Internet Engineering Task Force or
the World Wide Web Consortium) to better facilitate pre-emptive
consumer control over bulk unsolicited electronic mail) that
the recipient does not wish to receive such messages;
(6) registers, creates, or causes to be created an Internet
domain or applies for, registers, or otherwise obtains the use
of an Internet electronic mail account for the sole or primary
purpose of initiating the transmission of an unsolicited
electronic mail message in contravention of paragraph (1) or
(2);
(7) directs an unsolicited electronic mail message through
the server of an interactive computer service to one or more
subscribers of the interactive computer service, knowing that
such action is in contravention of the rules of the interactive
computer service with respect to bulk unsolicited electronic
mail messages;
(8) knowing that such action is in contravention of the
rules of the interactive computer service concerned, accesses
the server of the interactive computer service and uses a
computer program to collect electronic mail addresses of
subscribers of the interactive computer service for the purpose
of sending such subscribers unsolicited electronic mail or
distributing such addresses knowing that the recipient of such
addresses intends to use such addresses for the purpose of
sending unsolicited electronic mail; or
(9) initiates the transmission of bulk unsolicited
electronic mail messages and divides the mailing of such
messages into smaller mailings for the purpose of circumventing
another provision of this Act,
shall be subject to a civil penalty of not more than $5,000 per
individual violation.
(b) Enforcement.--The Federal Trade Commission shall have the
authority to commence civil actions under subsection (a).

SEC. 4. RECOVERY OF CIVIL DAMAGES.

(a) In General.--Any person whose interactive computer service or
electronic mailbox is intentionally misused or infiltrated, or whose
requests for cessation of electronic mail messages have been ignored,
in violation of section 3 may in a civil action recover from the person
or entity which engaged in that violation such relief as may be
appropriate.
(b) Relief.--In an action under this section, appropriate relief
includes--
(1) such preliminary and other equitable or declaratory
relief as may be appropriate;
(2) actual monetary loss from a violation, statutory
damages of not more than $500 for each violation, and, if the
court finds that the defendant's actions were particularly
egregious, willful, or knowing violations of section 3, the
court may, in its discretion, increase the amount of an award
to an amount equal to not more than 10 times the amount
available hereunder; and
(3) a reasonable attorney's fee and other litigation costs
reasonably incurred.

SEC. 5. STATE LAW.

Nothing in this Act shall be construed to prevent any State from
enforcing any State law that is consistent with this Act. No cause of
action may be brought and no liability may be imposed under any State
or local law that is inconsistent with this Act.

SEC. 6. FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION STUDY INTO EFFECTS OF UNSOLICITED
ELECTRONIC MAIL.

Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this Act,
the Federal Trade Commission shall submit to Congress a report
detailing the effectiveness of, enforcement of, and the need, if any,
for Congress to modify the provisions of this Act.

SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS.

In this Act:
(1) Bulk unsolicited electronic mail message.--The term
''bulk unsolicited electronic mail message'' means any
substantially identical unsolicited electronic mail message
with 25 or more intended recipients.
(2) Electronic mail address.--
(A) In general.--The term ''electronic mail
address'' means a destination (commonly expressed as a
string of characters) to which electronic mail can be
sent or delivered.
(B) Inclusion.--In the case of the Internet, the
term ''electronic mail address'' may include an
electronic mail address consisting of a user name or
mailbox (commonly referred to as the ''local part'')
and a reference to an Internet domain (commonly
referred to as the ''domain part'').
(3) Initiates the transmission.--The term ''initiates the
transmission'', in the case an electronic mail message, refers
to the action of the original sender of the message and not to
any intervening computer service that may handle or retransmit
the message, unless the intervening computer service
retransmits the message with an intent to engage in activities
prohibited by this Act.
(4) Interactive computer service.--The term ''interactive
computer service'' has the meaning given that term in section
230(e)(2) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C.
230(e)(2)).
(5) Internet.--The term ''Internet'' has the meaning given
that term in section 230(e)(1) of the Communications Act of
1934 (47 U.S.C. 230(e)(1)).
(6) Internet domain.--The term ''Internet domain'' refers
to a specific computer system (commonly referred to as a
''host'') or collection of computer systems attached to or able
to be referenced from the Internet which are assigned a
specific reference point on the Internet (commonly referred to
as the ''Internet domain name'') and registered with an
organization recognized by the computer industry as a
registrant of Internet domains.
(7) Listserver.--The term ''listserver'' refers to a
computer program that provides electronic mailing list
management functions, including functions that allow
individuals to subscribe and unsubscribe to and from electronic
mailing lists.
(8) Mail filtering tool.--The term ''mail filtering tool''
means any computer program, procedure, or mechanism used by an
individual recipient or interactive computer service to block,
return, reroute, or otherwise screen or sort incoming
electronic mail messages.
(9) Server.--The term ''server'' refers to any computer
that provides support or services of any kind, including
electronic mailboxes, to other computers (commonly referred to
as ''clients'').
(10) Unsolicited electronic mail message.--The term
''unsolicited electronic mail message'' means any electronic
mail other than electronic mail sent by persons to others with
whom they have a prior relationship, including a prior business
relationship, or mail sent by a source to recipients where such
recipients, or someone authorized by them, have at any time
affirmatively requested to receive communications from that
source.

SEC. 8. EFFECTIVE DATE.

This provisions of this Act shall take effect 45 days after the
date of enactment of this Act.
Output:
Electronic Mailbox Protection Act of 1997 - Subjects to a $5,000 civil penalty any person who, in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce: (1) initiates the transmission of an unsolicited electronic mail message from an unregistered or fictitious electronic mail address to prevent replies through use of a standard reply mechanism in the recipient's electronic mail system or to prevent receipt of standard notices of non-delivery; (2) uses a technical mechanism or procedure to disguise the source of unsolicited electronic mail messages to prevent recipients or recipient interactive computers services from implementing a mail filtering tool to block the messages from reaching the intended recipients; (3) initiates the transmission of an unsolicited electronic mail message and fails to comply with the request of the recipient, made to the sender or listserver, to cease sending electronic messages to the recipient in the future; (4) distributes electronic mail addresses having been given prior notice that addressees do not wish to receive unsolicited electronic mail and knowing that the recipient of such addresses intends to use such addresses for that purpose; (5) initiates the transmission of an unsolicited electronic mail message to a recipient despite having been given prior notice that the recipient does not wish to receive such messages; (6) registers, creates, or causes to be created an Internet domain or obtains the use of an Internet electronic mail account for the purpose of initiating the transmission of an unsolicited electronic mail message in contravention of this Act; (7) directs an unsolicited electronic mail message through the server of an interactive computer service to subscribers of the interactive computer service, knowing that such action is in contravention of the rules of the interactive computer service with respect to bulk unsolicited electronic mail messages; (8) knowing that such action is in contravention of the rules of the interactive computer service concerned, accesses the server of the interactive computer service and uses a computer program to collect electronic mail addresses of subscribers to send unsolicited electronic mail or distributes such addresses knowing that the recipient intends to use the addresses to send unsolicited electronic mail; or (9) initiates the transmission of bulk unsolicited electronic mail messages and divides the mailing of such messages into smaller mailings to circumvent another provision of this Act.
Vests authority in the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to commence civil actions under this Act.
Sets forth provisions allowing recovery of civil damages for persons whose interactive computer service or electronic mailbox is intentionally misused or infiltrated, or whose requests for cessation of electronic mail messages have been ignored, in violation of this Act.
Requires the FTC to report to the Congress on the effectiveness of, enforcement of, and the need, if any, for the Congress to modify the provisions of this Act.