WASHINGTON – Although the next U.S. Presidential election is more than two years away, congresscritters already are banging the “eradicate pornography” drum.
The latest is U.S. Congressman Mark Meadows [R-NC]. Following disclosure that an Environmental Protection Agency employee remained on the payroll despite disciplinary action for watching up to six hours of porn daily on his office computer, Meadows introduced the Eliminating Pornography from Agencies Act. The act would prohibit federal employees from accessing pornographic or explicit material on government computers and devices.
It’s worth noting that federal regulations already prohibit private use of government equipment. Evidently adult entertainment is such a serious infraction that it warrants special mention in the federal criminal code.
“It’s appalling that it requires an act of Congress to ensure that federal agencies block access to [porn] sites at work,” Meadows said. “It’s not just casual porn viewing, but hours and hours of unproductive time doing things we shouldn’t be condoning. There seems to be a need to reinforce agency rules that might be in place, but not enforced.”
The irony of a member of congress chastising anyone else for spending hours and hours of unproductive time on the federal payroll apparently escapes Meadows.
The Environmental Protection Agency is as subject to federal regulations as any other government agency, but the EPA’s specific rules make no mention of watching adult entertainment by name.
“Unauthorized or inappropriate use of government office equipment may result in the loss or limitation of your privilege to use government office equipment,” according to the EPA’s policy. “You may also face administrative disciplinary action ranging from closer supervision to removal from the agency, as well as any criminal penalties or financial liability, depending on the severity and nature of the misuse.”
If Meadows has his way, porn may go down in history right alongside prohibitions against alcohol and voting by some genders and ethnicities.
Should the act become law, the federal Office of Management and Budget will be tasked with issuing regulations and enforcement guidelines, though it is unclear how the OMB might proceed. If it really tried, perhaps the OMB could create yet another snarl of red tape by authorizing a new agency referred to by one of the lovely acronyms feds love to toss around: PIP, or the Porn Interdiction Police.
