U.S. Senator Introduces Video Game Rating Legislation

July 24, 2008

Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS) yesterday introduced a bill in the United States Senate which would:

...prohibit the distribution or sale of video games that do not have age-based content rating labels [and] prohibit the sale or rental of video games with adult content ratings to minors...

The full text of the bill, S.3315 is not yet available on the Senate's legislative website. Thus far the bill has no co-sponsers. The measure has been referred to the Senate's Committe on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.

GamePolitics has received unconfirmed word that Wicker's bill is the Senate version of the Video Games Rating Enforcement Act introduced in the House by Reps. Jim Matheson (D-UT) and Lee Terry (R-KS) earlier this year.

Wicker, a longtime Congressman, was appointed to his Senate seat by Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour on New Year's Eve to fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Sen. Trent Lott. Perhaps not surprisingly, Wicker is running for election. He must face Mississippi voters in November in a special election to fill out the rest of Trent Lott's term.

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Comments

Re: U.S. Senator Introduces Video Game Rating Legislation

Submitted by wandererwillow (not verified) on Thu, 07/24/2008 - 17:01.

You're right, I completely missed that. This makes this even worse. Dear god...the video game industry needs to really band together and combat this immediately...

Re: U.S. Senator Introduces Video Game Rating Legislation

Submitted by Rodrigo Ybáñez ... on Thu, 07/24/2008 - 19:28.

Yeah, but they look very busy screwing up the E3...

The cynical side of videogames (spanish only): http://thelostlevel.blogspot.com/ My DeviantArt Page (aka DeviantCensorship): http://www.darkknightstrikes.deviantart.com/

Re: U.S. Senator Introduces Video Game Rating Legislation

Submitted by chadachada(123) (not verified) on Thu, 07/24/2008 - 22:40.

Hey, if this gets passed, I think the ESA, ECA, EVERYBODY will put everything on hold and take this to the supreme court. They've tried it with movies, right? And it was shown that the MPAA is doing a good enough job. Surely the same will be done with this. I bet there will be other rights groups besides game-related ones that'll want this shut down, and it WILL be shut down. If it isn't...well....maybe we can get all the gamers (or really, anyone that CARES about their rights) to move to a certain area and secede from the U.S.

Re: U.S. Senator Introduces Video Game Rating Legislation

Submitted by Adrian Lopez (not verified) on Thu, 07/24/2008 - 12:22.

All together now: Proposing unconstitutional laws should be an impeachable offense.

Re: U.S. Senator Introduces Video Game Rating Legislation

Submitted by sqlrob on Fri, 07/25/2008 - 13:45.

Screw that.

Make it treason. And no, I'm not saying it tongue in cheek.

Re: U.S. Senator Introduces Video Game Rating Legislation

Submitted by nighstalker160 on Thu, 07/24/2008 - 12:37.

Ah but no law in unconstitutional until declared so by an appropriate court.

The courts do not issue "advisory opinions" so there is no way to tell if a law in unconstitutional until it is signed into law, enforced, and challenged. Even though this law APPEARS unconstitutional, something as small as a single word change could convince the right judge (or justices as the case may be) that it is distinguished from a previous, invalid law.

Plus, members of Congress are protected by the Constitutional "Speech and debate" clause. Actions and words stated on the floor cannot be used as the basis of private suits or impeachment.

Re: U.S. Senator Introduces Video Game Rating Legislation

Submitted by Adrian Lopez (not verified) on Thu, 07/24/2008 - 13:16.

You're right, of course.

I intended my comment as a tongue-in-cheek statement, but I do think it's a shame that congresscriters can get away with this sort of thing. People such as these have no respect for the Bill of Rights. They make laws restricting freeedom of speech, some because they're shopping for votes, others because they honestly wish to prohibit certain kinds of speech and will do their best to draft their laws in such a way that it accomplishes their goals of censorship without technically being found unconstitutional.

Re: U.S. Senator Introduces Video Game Rating Legislation

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 07/25/2008 - 00:11.

They should just summarily lose their jobs when they suggest blatantly illegal laws.

If I proposed a design change at work that was clearly illegal, I'd lose my job. If I tried to push my illegal design change through, I'd lose my job and my professional license, and probably my freedom.

Why are lawmakers held to a lesser standard than engineers?

Re: U.S. Senator Introduces Video Game Rating Legislation

Submitted by kurisu7885 (can't log in) (not verified) on Thu, 07/24/2008 - 12:19.

THis is the type of cascade that the NY game law can lead to, if it isn't already.

Poll

Shout box

Andrew Eisen: Xbox One may not be always on but that doesn't mean you can use it without an internet connection. http://kotaku.com/xbox-one-does-require-internet-connection-cant-play-o-50916410905/21/2013 - 7:39pm

Andrew Eisen: Polygon says EA's CFO says it is developing games for Wii U but doesn't provide that quote. http://www.polygon.com/2013/5/21/4351844/ea-developing-wii-u-games05/21/2013 - 7:11pm

Andrew Eisen: Well, I was right. Both Sony and Microsoft's consoles will be out by the year's end and both will be significantly more powerful than the current gen.05/21/2013 - 5:06pm

james_fudge: thnx05/21/2013 - 4:47pm

Zen: Just to let ya know...you called it the "Xbox 260" in the backwards compatibility article lol.05/21/2013 - 4:26pm

Zen: @PHX Awesome, I will hit those up after class tonight. Going back to college finally! :) My kids have had a blast telling ME to do my homework now lol.05/21/2013 - 4:19pm

PHX Corp: @Zen I sent you a friend request on both PSN and XBL, just a heads up05/21/2013 - 4:16pm

Zen: I noticed it with the football players when EA showed off Madden as well.05/21/2013 - 4:11pm

Zen: Is it just me or is call of duty hitting the "uncanny valley" with their nicely modeled faces and dead looking eyes? I found it distracting and seemed actually "less" real to me lol.05/21/2013 - 4:10pm

james_fudge: it sounds like if you have an HD reciever you'll be able to use it with a pass-through cable... not 100 percent sure yet05/21/2013 - 2:41pm

james_fudge: happening now http://majornelson.com/2013/05/21/xbox-one-architecture-panel/05/21/2013 - 2:20pm

E. Zachary Knight: Some reading material for Microsoft on its used games blocks. That will hurt the console more than helping. http://ezknight.net/?page_id=20505/21/2013 - 2:18pm

james_fudge: yeah good luck with over the air TV05/21/2013 - 2:12pm

E. Zachary Knight: But what if I want to only watch over the air tv? I don't subscribe to pay tv. I never will. If that is a requirement, then MS wasted 45 minutes telling me how great TV will be.05/21/2013 - 2:08pm

james_fudge: EZK it will depend on your provider, just like HBO Go i'd imagine.05/21/2013 - 2:05pm

PHX Corp: @IanC there's also a chance that those titles might be Xbox one exclusive, but it's too early to tell afaik05/21/2013 - 2:03pm

IanC: @E. Zachary Knight - MS certainly got the checkbook out for EA, so no surprise on how negative they are over the Wii U.05/21/2013 - 1:54pm

MaskedPixelante: So now I have to wonder, how many of EA's games are skipping the PS4 because of their pro-used stance?05/21/2013 - 1:53pm

E. Zachary Knight: On the TV front, does the XBox One require a cable/satellite subscription or will I be able to use my over the air channels?05/21/2013 - 1:48pm

E. Zachary Knight: Also, that name was not one of the options on our poll.05/21/2013 - 1:42pm

All shouts

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