Change to anti-spam law approved by Virginia House

RICHMOND

A bill intended to fix the state’s anti-spam law advanced today in the House.

The bill specifically targets unsolicited commercial e-mail that tries to hide its source, as opposed to the current law, which the Virginia Supreme Court ruled in September to be overbroad and unconstitutional.

The patron, Del. Manoli Loupassi, R-Richmond, said the constitutional concerns have discouraged authorities from going after spammers.

There were no misdemeanor or felony convictions in 2006 and 2007 under the existing anti-spam law, which was enacted in 2003, according to an impact statement from the Virginia Criminal Sentencing Commission.

“They haven’t been prosecuting them because they can’t right now,” Loupassi said.

The state Supreme Court found that Virginia’s current law prohibits the anonymous transmission of all unsolicited bulk e-mails, violating free-speech protections, according to the impact statement. The ruling overturned the conviction of a prolific spammer from North Carolina.