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House Passes Anti-Spam Bill
The House early this morning overwhelmingly passed a bill to curb unsolicited e-mail, as the federal government moves closer to attacking the growing wave of spam that has overwhelmed computer in-boxes and cost businesses billions of dollars a year.
The bill would sweep away more than 35 state anti-spam laws, including some that imposed significantly tighter restrictions on e-mail marketing. Congressional leaders said the measure, which was endorsed in the House on a 392-5 vote, would be quickly ratified by the Senate, which passed a version of the bill last month. |
Although consumers are unlikely to see immediate reductions in spam after the law takes effect, it would give federal law enforcers and regulators broad authority to prosecute the most unsavory senders of unsolicited commercial e-mail, who peddle everything from financial scams to body-enhancement products and pornography.
But the bill would hardly quell the controversy over how best to crack down on spam. Some consumer groups and anti-spam activists argue that such a law would be largely ignored by the worst spammers, many of whom operate overseas. Meanwhile, they say, the bill would codify rules by which legitimate companies can send even more unwanted e-mail.
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