Grassley, Feinstein, Leahy, Hatch Call for Quick Action in the Senate on Legislation to Provide Selection Process for Register of Copyrights
WASHINGTON
–
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Ranking Member
Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), and Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT.) and Orrin Hatch
(R-Utah) today introduced the Register of Copyrights Selection and
Accountability Act, which makes the Register of Copyrights a
presidentially-appointed, Senate-confirmed position. This legislation is the
Senate companion to H.R. 1695, which passed the House of Representatives last
week by an overwhelming vote of 378 to 48. It is the product of bicameral,
bipartisan discussions led by these Senators and House Judiciary Committee
Chairman Goodlatte and Ranking Member Conyers.
The
Register of Copyrights Selection and Accountability Act makes important
changes to the selection process for the head of the U.S. Copyright Office,
known as the Register of Copyrights. Specifically, the legislation requires the
Register to be nominated by the President of the United States and subject to
confirmation by the U.S. Senate. It would limit the Register to a ten-year term
that is renewable by another presidential nomination and Senate confirmation.
The legislation would establish a panel consisting of Members of Congress and
the Librarian of Congress to recommend at least three individuals to the
President for the position. It would require that the Register be capable of
identifying and supervising a Chief Information Officer or similar official
responsible for managing information technology systems. Finally, the
legislation clarifies that the mandatory deposit requirements for collection at
the Library of Congress will remain the same.
Grassley, Feinstein, Leahy and Hatch look forward to working
with the Senate Rules Committee on legislation to improve the selection process
for the position of Register, and they remain committed to further efforts
towards modernization of the Copyright Office.
Bill text is available HERE.
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