Outgoing governor signs new measures to protect children. This year he signed 386 bills, vetoed 44 and let nine become law without his signature. He kept the pen he used on the last one Wednesday.

Gov. Bill Owens signed what is probably his final bill as governor Wednesday, approving a measure cracking down on predators who use the Internet to entice children.

"It's a very nice way to end up," Owens said during the bill signing at the Boys & Girls Club. "I'm feeling great. It's a very important issue."

This year, Owens signed 386 bills, four of which had line-item vetoes. He vetoed 44 - down from his record 47 last year - and allowed nine to become law without his signature.

House Bill 1011 makes it a felony to use the Internet to set up a meeting with a child younger than 15 without the parents' permission. The law also makes it a felony to expose oneself or ask a child to expose him or herself over the Internet and makes possession of child pornography a felony.

Before the new bill, police could only arrest a suspect once he showed up at a meeting with the child, and the first conviction on child porn possession was a misdemeanor.

In a letter to the legislature sent with Senate Bill 51, Owens said he did not veto the bill because it closes some loopholes, but he urged the legislature to find a way to assist rural legislators who have significant expenses during the session.

Colorado Springs Detective Adam Romine, who works in the sex-crimes unit, said the legislature still has to cover predators who will use products such as cellphones or MP3 players that have Internet connections to entice children.

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