To improve copyright protections for the intellectual property of visual artists, the American Royalties, Too Act was introduced by Sens. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., and Ed Markey, D-Mass., and House IP Subcommittee ranking member Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., said a Nadler news release Wednesday (http://1.usa.gov/1fUCZDj). The ART Act provides a “competitive resale royalty” of 5 percent of the sales price -- up to $35,000 -- for all visual art work “sold at auction for $5,000 or more,” it said.

Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., is an “original co-sponsor” of the Songwriter Equity Act, (H.R. 4079) legislation that was announced Tuesday (CD Feb 26 p13) by sponsor Rep. Doug Collins, R-Ga., said a Jeffries press release Wednesday (http://1.usa.gov/1pupoun). Jeffries initially withdrew his support for the bill at the “11th hour,” but reaffirmed his commitment by close of business Tuesday, said his spokeswoman. “The Songwriter Equity Act endeavors to modernize the music licensing system by updating provisions in the Copyright Act of 1976 to ensure songwriters are fairly compensated for their creative work,” said Jeffries in the release.

Advertising tax deductibility is again at issue, among many other provisions, in a House proposal to revamp U.S. tax code. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp, R-Mich., issued the discussion draft Wednesday. “Under the provision, 50 percent of certain advertising expenses would be currently deductible and 50 percent would be amortized ratably over a ten-year period,” said the Ways and Means explanatory analysis of the draft (http://1.usa.gov/1hpq8wG). “This rule would phase in for tax years beginning before 2018 as follows: for tax years beginning in 2015, 80 percent of advertising costs would be deductible and 20 percent amortized; in 2016, 70 percent of advertising costs would be deductible and 30 percent amortized; and in 2017, 60 percent of advertising costs would be deductible and 40 percent amortized.” Advertising expenses are treated as business expenses now, it said. In November, NAB issued a statement saying it was strongly opposes “limits that would be placed on the ability of businesses to annually deduct costs for advertising.” The Camp analysis said the provision would “increase revenues by $169.0 billion over 2014-2023.” NAB slammed the provision in Camp’s draft. “NAB strongly opposes any job-killing proposal that would limit the ability of thousands of large and small businesses from fully deducting their annual advertising expenses,” NAB Executive Vice President Dennis Wharton said in a statement. “Advertising on local radio and television stations is a key driver of the American economy -- indeed, a recent study found local broadcast advertising generates $1.05 trillion in GDP and supports 1.48 million jobs.” The association will lobby “to ensure the advertising tax deduction continues to create economic prosperity and well-paying jobs,” Wharton said. USTelecom President Walter McCormick called the overall draft “a critical first step” and mentioned that it included “lowering the corporate tax rate to make U.S. companies more competitive in the world economy.”

The House Communications Subcommittee scheduled a hearing on the Satellite Television Extension and Localism Act for Wednesday at 10 a.m. in 2123 Rayburn, it said in a notice. The current law will expire at the end of 2014. “We remain on track to release a draft of the legislation by the end of March,” said Subcommittee Chairman Greg Walden, R-Ore., in a statement. The subcommittee did not announce witnesses. Meanwhile, Senate Commerce Committee leaders sought input from industry on STELA in a letter released Tuesday night (http://1.usa.gov/1c8CZ7y). “The pending STELA reauthorization offers the Committee a chance to consider whether present law appropriately protects and promotes a video market that is responsive to consumer demands and expectations,” said the letter, signed by Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., ranking member John Thune, R-S.D., Communications Subcommittee Chairman Mark Pryor, D-Ark., and subcommittee ranking member Roger Wicker, R-Miss. “Various stakeholders already have identified a number of issues that the Committee could consider as part of the reauthorization of the Communications Act elements of STELA. These issues implicate both traditional entities that provide video services, as well as possible future entrants into the video marketplace.” They ask a wide range of questions, some specific to STELA and some on video policy broadly. Under the STELA questions, they asked, “Should the Congress modify this obligation or otherwise clarify what it means to negotiate retransmission consent in good faith? If so, how?” Walden has stressed STELA should not address retrans. The senators sent the letter to “a diverse array of stakeholders, including satellite TV, broadcasters, cable television, online video, broadband, public interest groups, and free market think tanks,” said a press release. The letter mentions Rockefeller’s video bill introduced last fall. “The Consumer Choice in Online Video Act, S.1680, is one approach to fostering a consumer-centric online video marketplace,” it said. “Are there elements of that bill that should be considered in conjunction with the STELA reauthorization?"

The House passed HR-1123, the Unlocking Consumer Choice and Wireless Competition Act, by a vote of 295-114, despite last-minute revolt from a few members. The latest version of the bill was different from the one passed by committee, and it no longer addressed bulk unlocking, prompting active resistance from some members and the loss of support from Public Knowledge and the Electronic Frontier Foundation. The bill “protects consumer choice by allowing consumers flexibility when it comes to choosing a wireless carrier,” said bill author House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., in a statement following the bill’s passage. “This is something that Americans have been asking for and I am pleased that the House of Representatives acted to restore the exemption that will allow consumers to unlock their cell phones.” Public Knowledge is happy consumers would be able to unlock their phones but “language recently added to the bill could be interpreted to make future unlocking efforts more difficult,” said Vice President-Legal Affairs Sherwin Siy, saying the group is “hopeful” the legislation can be changed in the Senate. Of the 295 members voting for the bill, 200 were Republicans and 95 were Democrats, and of those voting against it, 20 were Republicans and 94 were Democrats.

Comcast’s plan to buy Time Warner Cable may provide a way to “start the endowment” for public broadcasting, depending on how the deal proceeds, Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore., told members of the Association of Public Television Stations. “A crazy idea? Perhaps. But we need to be aware of opportunities like that.” Blumenauer founded the Public Broadcasting Caucus in 1999 and co-chairs it. He mentioned a “lot of concerns” about the proposed cable acquisition. “How are we going to establish a permanent endowment for public broadcasting?” Blumenauer asked, slamming the annual “circus” that surrounds funding it. He praised association members for “a magnificent outpouring of support,” which has helped buy them “breathing room,” he said Tuesday at the Library of Congress. But “the point for me is ‘can we build on this moment?'” he asked. “I hope we can.” He urged public broadcasters to take a look at the congressional recess calendar and encourage members of Congress to visit their stations when back in their home districts. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, said funding for public broadcasting “has just kept pace with inflation” and “we can use a lot more.” There’s also a need for more than just money -- there’s a need to fight the “broader assault on our public institutions” and ideological attacks on public broadcasting, Harkin said. It’s “complete nonsense” to say public broadcasting advocates are “elitist” or “snobby,” Harkin insisted. He recalled former FCC Chairman Newton Minnow’s quote about TV being “a vast wasteland” and then Harkin derided Jersey Shore and Honey Boo Boo, which he said he hadn’t watched but his staff told him about. “That can’t be true,” Harkin had told his staff about the latter program, he said. “Duck Dynasty? Is that really a show?” He said there should be space for at least one public network. “I may be retiring from the Senate, but I'm not retiring from the fight,” said Harkin.

Several key committees of Congress are gearing up for satellite reauthorization. The House Communications Subcommittee scheduled a hearing next week on the reauthorization of the Satellite Television Extension and Localism Act (STELA), it said in a tweet (http://bit.ly/MYMsTp). STELA expires at the end of 2014 and is under the jurisdiction of both Commerce and Judiciary committees. House Communications Subcommittee Chairman Greg Walden, R-Ore., has pledged a STELA draft by the end of Q1 and indicated a desire not to address retransmission consent in the reauthorization process. Witnesses and other details haven’t been announced. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., told the NAB State Leadership Conference Tuesday that retrans is an issue “almost every member of Congress has heard about” and that House Judiciary will consider during more hearings on STELA: “These hearings will help inform the committee members on the issues as we move forward.” Following the speech, Goodlatte told reporters “we have made no decision” on whether to address retrans issues in STELA but promised hearings “soon,” with decisions later. During his speech, Goodlatte said “clearly, broadcasting has changed in ways that make our existing laws seem outdated” and indicated current consumer expectations can “clash” with copyright law written before the advent of the Internet. Goodlatte pointed to the Aereo case as one issue that “could reshape” how the broadcast industry reaches consumers. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., spoke to the Leadership Conference earlier, emphasizing STELA reauthorization. “I just talked about how we needed to get it done by the end of the year,” Klobuchar, a member of both Commerce and Judiciary, told us after the speech.

The Telecom Act of 1996 “ushered in several major advancements in communications,” FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn told the NAB State Leadership Conference Tuesday when mentioning a possible overhaul of the act. Congress should tweak the act if needed “without destroying the fabric of the law,” she said, emphasizing the importance of the nine pillars enshrined in the law. Clyburn also touched on the broadcast incentive auction and suggested perhaps the FCC should offer bidding credits so that spectrum acquired in auction could be used to supply fixed wireless to schools or anchor institutions. The FCC should “be more creative” in lowering barriers for small businesses, she said. “When the market does not operate fairly or efficiently, those in government should not hesitate to step in judiciously,” Clyburn said, saying she favors not only an even playing field but also one in which all potential participants are able to play. NAB President Gordon Smith praised Clyburn as both a commissioner and acting chairwoman, saying she spoke truly in promising an open door to broadcasters and “is open to the other side.” Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., spoke to the conference earlier Tuesday. “The major substantive focus was on getting the incentive auction right, the importance of the auction for public safety,” Klobuchar told us after her speech. She also mentioned the need to get the repacking process handled properly and cited important spectrum coordination considerations along the borders with Canada and Mexico. “We need to get the incentive auction right.”

The FCC should defer to Congress in developing its net neutrality rules, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., said at the NAB State Leadership Conference Tuesday. “I've introduced legislation in the past to ensure there is open access on the Internet,” Goodlatte added. But the agency should always “be looking back at the laws,” because it’s full of “unelected bureaucrats,” and shouldn’t be forging the path, he said. “That, to me, is the better way to legislate,” Goodlatte said, saying if the FCC were to advance net neutrality without looking to legislation approved by Congress, it would be a “very bad harbinger for the future of freedom and democracy in the United States.” Goodlatte said he’s not familiar with the “details of the agenda” that FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler outlined earlier this month.

House Communications Subcommittee Chairman Greg Walden, R-Ore., wants a bill to end any possibility of the FCC resuming its Critical Information Needs study, he said in a press release Tuesday (http://1.usa.gov/MrukAA). House Republicans had for weeks questioned the design of the study, which originally included questioning of media organizations, saying they feared it would be a revival of the Fairness Doctrine. The FCC suspended the study last week and said it would no longer question any journalists. “It took nearly 25 years to get the Fairness Doctrine off the books once it had been ‘eliminated’ in 1987, and we will do whatever it takes to ensure this study or any other effort by the government to control the output of America’s newsrooms never sees the light of day,” Walden said. The subcommittee plans a hearing on the issue in addition to developing legislation, he said.