Council tightens rules on library computers

HUNTINGTON BEACH -- The City Council adopted a policy Monday limiting

children’s access to Internet pornography on public library computers.

The new policy, approved with a 6-0 vote, will allow the city to qualify

for continued state funding for the library. Councilwoman Pam Julian was

absent.

State law prompted the city to come up with a formal policy by the end of

the year or risk losing more than $300,000 in grants, said Ron Hayden,

the city’s library director.

The policy doesn’t have to be strict, but it’s a “safe bet” that’s what

the state Legislature would prefer, he said.

City Councilman Dave Sullivan was shocked to learn that until late last

week, the library had allowed 16- and 17-year-olds to use computers with

unlimited Internet access.

“I just feel that most parents would consider their offspring children

until [the age of] 18,” he said.

But parents shouldn’t harbor a false sense of security now because the

software used to filter out objectionable material isn’t infallible,

Hayden wrote in a memo dated Monday.

Some offensive images may slip through, the memo states. That’s why the

policy states that the library “cannot be held responsible for what a

child accesses while on the Internet.”

The council also discussed ways to limit what adults can search for on

the Web, but concerns about violating civil rights forced them to hold

off until staff further researches the issue.

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