WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Re:Create Coalition released the following statement as the U.S. House Judiciary Committee continued its national listening tour in Los Angeles, CA as part of the committee’s comprehensive copyright review that began in 2013.

“The House Judiciary Committee convened another important discussion on copyright issues yesterday in Los Angeles. We appreciate the committee’s effort to hear from more voices outside of the DC bubble. However, one group was not heard from in Los Angeles yesterday: the many creators who depend on fair use to produce new copyrighted works everyday in every medium, such as documentarians, transformative fine artists, and creators of all kinds in the fandom community.

“Despite the lack of these voices, those heard from in California made it clear that many changes in the Copyright Act are needed to enable creators to more often utilize fair use without fear of economic ruin. They called for reform of statutory damages and for major changes in Section 1201 of the Act to make it easier for fair use to be more broadly made of digitally protected copyrighted works, reforms that Re:Create wholeheartedly endorses,” said Tina Pelkey, spokeswoman for Re:Create.