The House of Representatives is expected to consider legislation that would makes it unlawful to send unsolicited commercial e-mails, commonly referred to as “spam.” On November 22, the House passed a compromise version of S. 877, or the Act entitled “Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing (CAN SPAM)” by a vote of 392-5. The Senate followed suit, approving the measure by voice vote on November 25. Because of some technical changes, the House must approve the bill one more time before it goes to President Bush for his signature.

Violations could lead to a maximum of five years in prison, and up to $6 million in fines and damages. "With this bill, Congress is saying that if you are a spammer, you can wind up in the slammer. That is the bottom line. The bottom line is that there will be criminal penalties and real prosecution," said Sen. Charles Schumer (D-New York).