We will now move to S. 487, the Hatch-Leahy Technology, Education And Copyright Harmonization Act, or the TEACH Act. I will be offering a substitute that represents substantial consensus among the affected parties.

       But first I want to thank the Ranking Member for his work and partnership on this legislation. We have done it in a bipartisan, consensus-building manner.

       I would also like to thank the various representatives of the copyright owner and education communities who have worked so hard with us to achieve this consensus and move this legislation forward. Let me thank the software industry, the publishers, the educators and librarians, the motion picture studios, the recording and music industries, the information technology and communications companies. They have worked with us in a spirit of cooperation toward the shared goal of helping our students learn better through technology and media. I would also like to thank the Register of Copyrights, and her staff at the Copyright Office, for their help and technical assistance. They have all done an admirable job for the past several months, literally around the clock, in helping us to move forward the deployment of the Internet and digital transmissions systems in education. Because of their work, I am confident we have an important education reform that can be sent to, and signed by, the President with broad, bipartisan support in the coming month.

       Because online education and the use of high technology tools like the Internet hold such great promise for students throughout the nation, I cannot imagine a comprehensive education reform that would not include provisions that help deploy the latest digital technologies to give our students the very best educational experience we can offer. The legislation we are considering is an important element in education reform. With the advent of the Internet and other communication technologies, classrooms need no longer be tied to a specific location or time. Students who live in remote areas, or those who cannot travel to school, no longer need be limited in their educational opportunities. For many this means having access to courses or being able to see virtual demonstrations of principles that until now they have only been able to read about. And the benefits of online or distance education extends far beyond the traditional student making expanded opportunities available for working parents, senior citizens, and anyone else with a desire to learn.

       As exciting as distance education is, online education will only thrive if teachers and students have affordable and convenient access to the highest quality educational materials. The goal of the TEACH Act is to update the educational use provisions of the copyright law for the 21st century, allowing students and teachers to benefit from deployment of advanced digital technologies like the Internet and bring media-rich learning experiences wherever students are located.

       This legislation will make it easier for the teacher who connects with her students online to enhance the learning process by illustrating music appreciation principles with appropriately limited sound recordings or illustrate visual techniques with pertinent movie clips. Or she might create wholly new experiences such as making a hypertext poem that links significant words to commentary, similar uses in other contexts, or other sources for deeper understanding. These entirely new interactive educational experiences or more traditional ones now made available around the students’ schedule will be made more easily and inexpensively by this legislation. Beyond the legislative safe harbor provided by this legislation, opportunities for students and lifetime learners of all kinds, in all locations, are limited only by human imagination and the cooperative creativity of the creators and users of copyrighted works.

       Finally, I am aware that there was some controversy generated in some quarters over an earlier draft of the TEACH Act that directed the Undersecretary for Intellectual Property to provide the Judiciary Committee with information about technological protection measures for copyrighted works online.

       I must confess, I still do not entirely understand the precise objections to that formulation. One lobbyist, I believe from the Digital Media Association, was arguing that the study would lead to a rash of class action lawsuits. I have been trying to parse the language to see if this informational report might have also provided for attorneys fees.

       But, fortunately, such imaginative readings of the language are no longer necessary because we were able to come to some agreement late last night on language that will allow the Committee to receive useful information for our own use and for the information of our constituents without causing interest rates to increase or the Potomac to run backwards.

       In all seriousness, I thank those who worked with us late into the night to forge an agreement that allows us to move forward on this last issue as part of this consensus legislation. I believe we have a bill that will be good for students, teachers, copyright owners, and information technologists.

       I am glad that we are able to move forward on this legislation, and I welcome my colleagues’ support for the consensus substitute amendment.

Note: S. 487 was voted out of the Senate Judiciary Committee today by unanimous consent.