ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Monday, April 1, 1996 TAG: 9604010140
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DWAYNE YANCEY STAFF WRITER
HAVE A QUESTION about what the federal government is doing on computer- related issues? Here's your chance to ask two experts.
Surf's up in these hills: Western Virginia has two congressmen who have become leaders on Internet issues.
Rep. Rick Boucher, D-Abingdon, has long been an authority on telecommunication issues generally, and cyberspace specifically. He has been involved in setting up the "electronic villages" in first Blacksburg and now Abingdon to put entire communities on-line.
Now Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Roanoke, has joined him as a computer expert, albeit sometimes on the opposite side.
Both Boucher and Goodlatte were on the conference committee to thrash out the final version of the recent telecommunication bill, but they went head-to-head over the provisions to deal with on-line smut. Goodlatte was one of the leaders in pushing to prohibit not just pornography, but "indecency," a much tougher standard that riled many civil libertarians. Goodlatte has also co-sponsored computer-related bills dealing with encryption and cracking down on those who counterfeit software.
Last week, both congressmen helped set up the new Internet Caucus on Capitol Hill. Farm state legislators have a caucus; now net-surfing congressmen have their own forum to talk about on-line issues. Boucher was one of the four organizers; Goodlatte was one of the founding members.
What does this mean for the folk back home? For those who are already on-line, it should mean easier access to your congressman. Boucher was one of the first in Congress with his own World Wide Web "home page" - http://www.house.gov/boucher/ - where you can keep up with his activities. Goodlatte will have one in a few weeks.
And both have e-mail: Boucher is Ninthnet@hr.house.gov
Goodlatte's cyberaddress is talk2bob@hr.house.gov
It also means Western Virginians have two convenient sources to ask about the computer-related issues that are become more prominent in Washington.
Have a question for Boucher or Goodlatte? You could e-mail them directly. Or, if you have a question about an Internet-related issue that you think others would be interested in, you could e-mail us, and we can share their answers in a future edition.
There are plenty of Internet-related issues that members of Congress might have to deal with, from getting schools on-line to various forms of government regulation.
HOW?
E-MAIL: roatimes@infi.net (please put "Internet Issues" in the subject field and include your name, address and phone number).
WRITE: Internet Issues, The Roanoke Times, P.O. Box 2491, Roanoke 24010.
FAX: 981-3346. Attention: Internet Issues.
LENGTH: Medium: 58 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: headshots of Boucher and Goodlatte colorby CNB