KRISTEN WYATT, Associated Press

DENVER (AP) — Rampant teen sexting has left politicians and law enforcement authorities around the country struggling to find some kind of legal middle ground.

To many public officials, prosecuting students for child porn seems like overkill. But many aren’t ready to let students off the hook altogether.

Dozens of states have adopted or are considering new, more lenient laws that would apply in cases of teenagers sharing nude selfies among themselves.

The Kansas Senate has  passed a bill to lessen the penalties for sexting by middle and high school students in hopes that prosecutors will be willing to combat the practice.

The Kansas House has approved their own version of the legislation.

Both measures focus on 12- to 18-year-olds accused of transmitting images of a nude child. Under existing state law, prosecutors are restricted to filing a felony charge that carries a prison sentence up to 11 years and four months and lifetime registration as a sex offender.

Both chambers’ bills make a first offense by someone 18 or younger a misdemeanor, punishable by up to a year in jail.

The debate underway in Colorado revealed deep divisions about how to deal with the phenomenon.