DIVERSE GROUP OF STAKEHOLDERS OPPOSE S. 1010 AS A NEEDLESS POLITICIZATION OF THE COPYRIGHT OFFICE THAT WILL HARM ITS OPERATION

As members of the U.S. Senate consider S. 1010, the Register of Copyrights Selection and Accountability Act, Re:Create urges them to oppose this effort to make the Register of Copyrights a presidentially-appointed position. Below are key points to breakdown why these diverse individuals and organizations oppose the bill as well as additional resources that help detail their objections.

• S. 1010 would make the Register of Copyrights a presidential appointee. The position’s politicization will result in a Register who is more concerned with policy development than much-needed management and modernization of the Copyright Office.
• Copyright was intended by the Founding Fathers to advance the arts and sciences. A presidentially-appointed Register will be answerable to political interests instead of the public. 
• A 10-year term for the Register will lead to less accountability to Congress and the public. Content industry associations, such as MPAA and RIAA, are pushing for this legislation to increase their own lobbying influence over the U.S. Copyright Office and entrench their power, at the expense of the public interest. 
• The Library of Congress and Copyright Office are already making significant progress in modernization efforts and improving IT capabilities. These developments should not be needlessly disrupted. 
• Removing the appointment of the Register from the Librarian will needlessly take away the ability of the Librarian to oversee an important office under her management. Given that the Office has a history of poor management under past Registers, it is a key oversight tool to ensure proper management of the Office. 
• A similar bill passed the House in spring 2017 despite strong opposition from more than a dozen House members and a variety of right-of-center and left-of-center groups, public interest advocates and librarian associations, including the American Library Association, American Association of Law Libraries, Association of Research Libraries, Association of College & Research Libraries, R Street Institute, Electronic Frontier Foundation, Center for Democracy & Technology and Public Knowledge.

Additional Resources:

Senate Testimony of Jonathan Band, Library Copyright Alliance

The Verge: “Congress is trying to give even more power to Hollywood”

Publishers Weekly: “Critical Report Could Derail ‘Copyright Boss’ Bill”

The Library Copyright Alliance: “National Library Groups Oppose Bill To Make Register of Copyrights A Presidential Appointee”

Electronic Frontier Foundation: “With Register of Copyrights bill, big media seeks its own in-house lobbyist”

Center for Democracy & Technology: “Putting Problems at the Copyright Office in Perspective”