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Act of 1988, as amended, relating to the sexual exploitation and other 
abuse of children.

DATES: This final rule is effective June 23, 2005.


FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Andrew Oosterbaan, Chief, Child 
Exploitation and Obscenity section, Criminal Division, United States 
Department of Justice, Washington, DC 20530; (202) 514-5780. This is 
not a toll-free number.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On June 25, 2004, the Department of Justice published a proposed 
rule in the Federal Register at 69 FR 35547, to update the regulations 
implementing the record-keeping requirements of the Child Protection 
and Obscenity Enforcement Act of 1988. The proposed rule updated those 
regulations to account for changes in technology, particularly the 
Internet, and to implement the Prosecutorial Remedies and Other Tools 
to End the Exploitation of Children Today (PROTECT) Act of 2003, Pub. 
L. 108-21, 117 Stat. 650 (April 30, 2003) (``2003 Amendments''). The 
statute requires producers of sexually explicit matter to maintain 
certain records concerning the performers to assist in monitoring the 
industry. See 18 U.S.C. 2257. The statute requires the producers of 
such matter to ``ascertain, by examination of an identification 
document containing such information, the performer's name and date of 
birth,'' to ``ascertain any name, other than the performer's present 
and correct name, ever used by the performer including maiden name, 
alias, nickname, stage, or professional name,'' and to record this 
information. 18 U.S.C. 2257(b). Violations of these record-keeping 
requirements are criminal offenses punishable by imprisonment for not 
more than five years for a first offense and not more than ten years 
for subsequent offenses. See 18 U.S.C. 2257(i). These provisions 
supplement the federal statutory provisions criminalizing the 
production and distribution of materials visually depicting minors 
engaged in sexually explicit conduct. See 18 U.S.C. 2251, 2252.