In case you missed it, Re:Create’s opposition statement to the American Copyright Protection Act (ACPA) of 2026 (H.R. 10364) is driving the national tech policy conversation. Executive Director Brandon Butler warned that the bill models flawed “European site-blocking laws,” threatening American due process, First Amendment rights, and user privacy.
Illustrating these dangers, Re:Create released a one-pager highlighting the disastrous fallout from European site-blocking regimes, which have wrongfully blacklisted benign sites (like telehealth platforms and Catholic convents) for hundreds of days and mistakenly blocked major domains like Harvard University and Greenpeace.
In addition, recently, Butler further argued against site-blocking and copyright censorship in a Washington Examiner op-ed. He urged Congress to reject proposed site-blocking legislation like FADPA and the Block BEARD Act, stating that these bills would only expand this easily exploitable censorship infrastructure and threaten the open web.
Check out the coverage summary below. To schedule an interview with Re:Create Executive Director Brandon Butler, contact press@recreatecoaltion.com.
Groups Slam Issa Bill to Expedite Site Blocking Orders
Eileen McDermott | September 16, 2026
IPWatchdog covered the joint backlash from groups like Re:Create and Public Knowledge. Public Knowledge echoed Re:Create’s concerns, warning that Congress is building a “sweeping infrastructure for censorship” rather than directly pursuing overseas piracy operators in court.
““By codifying a one-sided legal process modeled on European site-blocking laws…this bill violates American due process, First Amendment rights, and American ingenuity.” – Brandon Butler , Re:Create”
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“But groups including Re:Create and Public Knowledge have spoken out against the bill this week. Re:Create Executive Director Brandon Butler called the legislation “anything but American,” and said that it promotes censorship. “By codifying a one-sided legal process modeled on European site-blocking laws, which have been shown to cause widespread censorship, this bill violates American due process, First Amendment rights, and American ingenuity,” Butler said.”
[…]
“According to a Re:Create one-pager, innocent websites remained blocked for an average of 320 days in Italy and 5.8% of the popular internet was blocked by Spain’s system during LaLiga matches, including Harvard University and Greenpeace.”
Republican bill would order ISPs, DNS providers, and VPNs to block piracy sites
Jon Brodkin | September 17, 2026
Ars Technica highlighted Re:Create’s opposition, focusing on Butler’s warning that compelling ISPs, DNS resolvers, and VPNs to act as traffic filters invites widespread copyright abuse and threatens to severely disrupt small businesses and non-profits globally.
“The Re:Create coalition said Issa’s bill would codify “a one-sided legal process modeled on European site-blocking laws, which have been shown to cause widespread censorship.”
“Forcing infrastructure providers, DNS resolvers, and VPNs to filter internet traffic threatens user privacy and risks catastrophic collateral damage to the open web,” Re:Create Executive Director Brandon Butler said. “This fast-track site-blocking scheme bypasses effective legal channels, undermines the digital ecosystem, invites copyright abuse—disrupting small businesses, nonprofit and Internet users across the globe.””
U.S. Site Blocking Bill Adds VPNs to the List of Blocking Intermediaries
Ernesto Van der Sar | September 22, 2026
TorrentFreak recognized Re:Create as a leading voice speaking out against the legislation, and linked to the statement in its report on the American Copyright Protection Act (ACPA). The article highlighted the bill’s expanded scope that now explicitly covers VPN providers in addition to ISPs and DNS resolvers. It also noted the complexities of requiring global VPNs to filter access “from the United States,” raising technical questions about how these blocking orders would be implemented.
“For now, most commentary on the bill has come from opponents, including Public Knowledge and Re:Create. Rightsholders have been quiet so far and the MPA informed TorrentFreak that it will share a statement once Issa’s office issues its press release.”
First Utah, Now Congress: A New US Bill Would Force VPNs to Block Piracy Sites
September 18, 2026
Gizmodo highlighted how the bill turns VPNs from privacy tunnels into “filtered exit ramps” via fast-tracked court orders. To emphasize the danger of this approach, the outlet cited Re:Create’s analysis showing how similar site-blocking regimes in Europe have led to massive collateral damage.
“A VPN’s basic promise is that your traffic goes through a tunnel your ISP cannot inspect. A blocking obligation attached to that tunnel changes the product. If a US-based provider is legally required to enforce judicial blocklists, the service starts to look less like a privacy tool and more like a filtered exit ramp.
The precedents outside the US are not reassuring. According to a Re:Create analysis, innocent websites remained blocked for an average of 320 days in Italy, and 5.8% of the popular internet was blocked by Spain’s system during LaLiga matches alone. Blocking regimes tend to overreach, and the remedies for the wrongly blocked tend to be slow.”
Congressional Bill to Block ‘Foreign Piracy Sites’ Introduced
Ashley King | September 18, 2026
Digital Music News covered Re:Create’s sharp pushback against the bill, featuring Butler’s warning that codifying a European-style site-blocking model directly violates First Amendment rights, due process, and American ingenuity.
“The official text of Issa’s bill has not yet been publicly revealed, but groups who have spoken out in opposition—including Re:Create and Public Knowledge—have reviewed a draft of the bill that was circulated to stakeholders in May 2025.”
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“To that end, Re:Create Executive Director Brandon Butler cautioned that the bill in its current iteration actually promotes censorship and is “anything but American.”
“By codifying a one-sided legal process modeled on European site-blocking laws, which have been shown to cause widespread censorship, this bill violates American due process, First Amendment rights, and American ingenuity,” said Butler.”
[…]
Data from Re:Create reveals that “innocent” websites remained blocked for an average of 320 days in Italy, while 5.8% of the “popular internet,” including Harvard University and Greenpeace, was blocked by Spain’s system during crucial sports matches.
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