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WASHINGTON—U.S. Sen. John Cornyn has been named to the Senate Republican High Tech Task Force by Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, M.D. (R-Tenn.), in an announcement of the new members for the 109th Congress. "I’m pleased that Majority Leader Frist has named me to the High Tech Task Force, providing me the opportunity to continue working on various cutting-edge issues," Sen. Cornyn said. "High tech issues, especially effective, safe and proper use of the Internet, have always been important to me."The mission of the High Tech Task Force, established in May, 1999, is to act as the Republican Leadership’s outreach effort to the technology community and to advise the Republican Caucus on technology issues. Cornyn continued: "Among the high tech issues that Congress must continue to address this year are the need for cyber security, copyright and privacy issues, and the OPEN Government Act, which I introduced this week, in part to promote openness in government and the Internet. I hope our work on the High Tech Task Force will help raise the visibility of these issues, so that our Senate colleagues and the American people will better see their importance.""The High Tech Task Force reflects Republicans’ commitment to ensuring technology development is a top priority for the United States Senate," Frist said. "Technology is changing the way Americans live and work, and we must ensure that our agenda fosters and protects innovation. And with the addition of these new members, I’m confident the High Tech Task Force will continue to lead on the technology issues that are driving our economy and improving our quality of life."Meanwhile, Sen. Cornyn introduced pro-Internet bipartisan legislation on Wednesday to improve open government laws, especially the Freedom of Information Act. The Openness Promotes Effectiveness in our National Government Act of 2005 (OPEN Government Act), S. 394, is aimed at substantially enhancing and expanding the accessibility, accountability, and openness of the federal government. "This legislation is not just pro-openness, pro-accountability, and pro-accessibility – it’s also pro-Internet," Cornyn said. The bill includes a hotline enabling citizens to track their requests, including Internet tracking, and grants privileged FOIA fees for bloggers and writers for Internet outlets, providing the same status as traditional media.Sen. Cornyn’s remarks on the OPEN Government Act also marked the first time that the word "blog" has ever been uttered on the Senate floor. As Sen. Cornyn stated:"The news media is of course the main way people get information about government. The media pushes government entities, and elected officials and bureaucrats and agencies to release information that the people have a right to know, occasionally exposing waste, fraud and abuse. And hopefully, more often than that, letting the American people know what a good job their public officials are doing. But we’ve also seen in recent years the expansion of other outlets for sharing information outside of the mainstream media – to online communities, discussion groups, and blogs. I believe all these outlets can and do contribute to the health of our political democracy."In January, Sen. Cornyn reintroduced the bipartisan Artists’ Rights and Theft Prevention Act (ART Act) as part of a legislative package aimed at combating the growing threat that copyright piracy poses to consumers, the entertainment industry, and the U.S. economy. The ART Act, passed by the Senate in June, increases penalties for distribution of pre-release copyrighted works, and provides a means for copyright owners to be compensated for economic harm caused by the theft and release of their work. Use of camcorders in theaters will also be criminalized at the federal level for the first time.The ART Act was reintroduced as part of the Family Entertainment and Copyright Act (FECA) which is comprised of four independent bills introduced in the 108th Congress, including the ART Act (S.1932), the Family Movie Act (H.R. 4586), the National Film Preservation Act (H.R. 3569) and the Preservation of Orphan Works Act (H.R. 5136).In addition to support for legitimate uses of the web by bloggers and others, Cornyn has built a strong record, primarily as Texas Attorney General, of finding and prosecuting those who seek to use the Internet to harm children. As Attorney General, he opened a specialized unit within the Prosecutor Assistance Division intended to fight this type of Internet crime, and in the United States Senate, he has worked to ensure that law enforcement agencies have every tool they need to bring these criminals to justice. Then-Attorney General Cornyn created the Texas Internet Bureau in 2000 to coordinate and direct efforts to fight Internet crimes such as fraud, child pornography, and privacy concerns. Under his leadership as Attorney General, several Internet predators were caught, prosecuted and convicted. Along with Sen. Cornyn, the following Senators will serve as members of the Senate Republican High Tech Task Force for the 109th Congress: Sen. John Ensign, Nevada – Chairman; Sen. Wayne Allard, Colorado; Sen. George Allen, Virginia; Sen. Robert Bennett, Utah; Sen. Conrad Burns, Montana; Sen. Richard Burr, North Carolina; Sen. Norm Coleman, Minnesota; Sen. Mike Crapo, Idaho; Sen. Orrin Hatch, Utah; Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, Texas; Sen. Gordon Smith, Oregon; Sen. John Sununu, New Hampshire; Sen. John Thune, South Dakota.The following committee chairmen will join Sen. Frist in serving as ex-officio members of the Task Force: Sen. Chuck Grassley, Finance Committee; Sen. Arlen Specter, Judiciary Committee; Sen. Ted Stevens, Commerce Committee; Sen. John Warner, Armed Services Committee.