House Judiciary Committee Approves Music Copyright Bill
The House Judiciary Committee unanimously passed a compromise version of the Music Modernization Act (MMA) (HR-5447) Wednesday without amendments (see 1804100051). Before the 32-0 vote, Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., criticized the bill for not permitting legacy artists to renegotiate unfair contracts, an issue Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, also hopes Congress will address.
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The bill incorporates revised language from the earlier version, (HR-4706), plus text from the Compensating Legacy Artists for their Songs, Service, and Important Contributions to Society Act (HR-3301) and the Allocation for Music Producers Act (HR-881). Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., said widespread support for the bill shifts reasonable costs of mechanical music licensing onto digital streaming services, which will have lower litigation expenses as a result. The bill fixes a broken system with bad music statutes that didn't keep pace with the digital era, he said.
Lofgren argued the bill should have given pre-1972 legacy artists the ability to terminate and renegotiate contracts with publishers because many artists were “pulled into abusive contracts” when they were young. “This is not an issue of war and peace, but it is important to the country,” Lofgren said of the bill.
Passage was applauded by NAB, RIAA, the National Music Publishers’ Association, the Digital Media Association, the Copyright Alliance and the MIC Coalition, though the coalition wants solutions to performance rights challenges faced by restaurants, bars and other venues. It's “a critical step towards finally fixing the system to pay songwriters what they deserve," NMPA CEO David Israelite said. DiMA CEO Chris Harrison applauded Congress Tuesday for “looking to the streaming future, and moving away from the music mess of the past.” Copyright Alliance CEO Keith Kupferschmid said the bill will “make it easier for creators across the music industry to earn a more equitable living through their creativity."
With all the intrigue about the compromise, this legislation is about “doing what is right” and allowing artists to get paid doing what they love, said lead sponsor for HR-4706, Rep. Doug Collins, R-Ga. Various stakeholders couldn't meet in the same room when discussions began, but now there's unprecedented consensus, he noted. “Hope is still alive when we come together and listen to each other,” Collins said.
Lead minority sponsor Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said this “coalition of unusual suspects” proves things can get done “under this Capitol dome.” Ranking member Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., said the bill solves long-standing inequities. It establishes a mechanical licensing collective, which will create a database that increases royalty payment transparency, he said. Nadler cited support for the legislation from the Internet Association, the NAACP and more than 300 musical artists, calling the law a major improvement.
Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., said this kind of legislation comes along only once in a couple of decades. Rep. David Cicilline, D-R.I., said it's another example of music bringing together people with very different views to recognize “common humanity.”