Rep. Mulligan’s Opponent Misleads Voters
Local Legislator has Supported Toughest Internet Safety Laws in the Country

September 25, 2008

Des Plaines, IL…Despite slanderous accusations by her opponent, State Representative Rosemary Mulligan (R-Des Plaines) has been a leader in protecting children from sexual predators and promoting Internet safety. Her opponent’s mail piece contains half-truths that do not accurately reflect Rep. Mulligan’s voting record in Springfield.

Rep. Mulligan has supported some of the toughest Internet safety laws in the country including House Bill 2858 which became law and makes it illegal for anyone 17 years or older to even discuss an act of sexual conduct with a child over the Internet. Rep. Mulligan was also a lead sponsor on legislation (Senate Bill 2512) that was signed into law and requires online safety to be taught to children starting at the third grade level.

Just last year, Rep. Mulligan sponsored Senate Bill 14 that was enacted into law and requires sex offenders to register all email addresses, instant messaging and chat room identities, uniform resource locators (URL’s), Web sites, blog posts, and all other Internet identities with the appropriate law enforcement agency. Thanks to this legislation, law enforcement can now stop sex offenders in their tracks before they prey on innocent children.

“My opponent’s negative claims against my record are weak at best. I have been an outspoken advocate in Springfield to protect our children and keep them safe,” Rep. Mulligan said. “If you compare our records, she has done nothing.”

Rep. Mulligan also sponsored an Internet Safety package (House Bill 4874, House Bill and 4875) that will significantly protect children from online predators by:

• Requiring owners of social networking Web sites like MySpace and Facebook to receive parental notification of minors accessing the Web sites

• Banning sex offenders from accessing social networking Web sites

“I am appalled by my opponent’s attempts to mislead the voters about what I have done to protect our children. I am acutely aware that Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan has identified 2,644 MySpace and 123 Facebook profiles belonging to 1,812 sex offenders in Illinois. I will continue to combat the dangers that exist online for our children,” Rep. Mulligan said.