Sponsored by Utah County's Rep. Mike Morley the proposal would require the state's Consumer Protection agency to issue a "seal of approval" to Internet providers who promise to block access to nasty material. If the ISP accepts this smut-fighter seal, it could be fined up to $10,000 if porno slips through.

"It's a positive thing for those who are looking for a site that is dedicated to fighting pornography," says Morley.

Maybe, but it makes XMission's Pete Ashdown crazy. On his blog, he calls it "another sweet gem of ignorance" from the Lege.

Where it gets fun is how it asks the ISP to voluntarily give up the 4th Amendment protection of its customers. Line 85 reads, “cooperate with any law enforcement agency by providing records sufficient to identify a customer if the law enforcement agency requests the information and supplies reasonable proof that a crime has been committed using the Internet service provider’s service”. It says nothing of reasonable proof being determined by a judge and thusly issuing a court order. ...

XMission has always taken the stand that if you want customer information you’re going to need a court order. This act asks us to discard that stance in order to use a “seal” in our marketing. ... No thanks.

Candice Daly, representing the American Electronics Association, tried to dissuade the House committee from approving the bill, saying the companies she represents, including Google and Yahoo, "don't see themselves as signing up for this seal."