[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 160 (Thursday, September 27, 2018)] [Extensions of Remarks] [Pages E1319-E1320] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] H.R. 1551, THE ORRIN G. HATCH-BOB GOODLATTE MUSIC MODERNIZATION ACT OF 2018 ______ HON. BOB GOODLATTE of virginia in the house of representatives Thursday, September 27, 2018 Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, earlier this week, the House of Representatives voted to send legislation to the President to bring early 20th Century music laws for the analog era into the 21st Century digital era. This legislation is the culmination of years of effort by industry stakeholders, Members of the House and Senate, public interest groups, and others. Several years ago, I launched a comprehensive review of our nation's copyright laws. The House Judiciary Committee held dozens of hearings, heard from over a hundred witnesses, and traveled to multiple cities across the country to hear directly from stakeholders who use these laws. This review provided the foundation upon which several bills to reform our copyrights laws were constructed. During the course of this review, we learned that our music licensing laws were broken. The laws were no longer working as intended for songwriters, artists and creators, or for the companies that deliver the music in innovative ways to consumers. After this review, I challenged the industry to put their differences aside and to come together to create a unified reform bill, and to their credit, they delivered. This legislation has the support of songwriters, musical works copyright owners, digital music providers, individual artists, sound recording copyright owners, artist guilds, and performing rights organizations. The reasons for such widespread support are clear. This legislation boosts payments for copyright owners and artists while reducing litigation costs for all parties; streamlines rights clearance for music delivery services; allows songwriters to help determine how their royalties are collected and allocated; protects the works of recording artists who created pre-1972 recordings; ensures sound engineers, mixers, and producers get paid; and gives the public more access to more music. This legislation will truly usher in a new era for music creators, distributors and consumers. However, today, I want to take a minute to thank and highlight the work of several of my colleagues who were indispensable leaders in making this new era possible. Big pieces of [[Page E1320]] legislation can come together only through the efforts of many who are willing to invest their time to make change happen. First, I want to thank Representatives Doug Collins and Hakeem Jeffries. They were the leaders who took a very fractured music community, got their hands dirty, and forged the consensus and framework for reforming the Section 115 mechanical license for musical works. For a hundred years, our mechanical licensing laws were based on the technology of the piano roll. Through the diligent work of these Members, it will now reflect the digital realities of the 21st Century. In addition, I would like to thank IP Subcommittee Chairman Darrell Issa and Full Committee Ranking Member Jerry Nadler for their leadership on behalf of sound recording artists to secure protection for artists who recorded works before 1972. For decades, some artists could receive compensation for their recordings while others could not, based solely on an arbitrary date. That was not fair. We have now fixed that thanks to the leadership of these Members. I would also like to thank Representatives Joe Crowley and Tom Rooney for their leadership on behalf of producers, mixers, and sound engineers. Thanks to their hard work, these technical artists will also receive compensation for their contributions to musical works. I would like to thank Ranking Member Conyers for his leadership on these issues over many years, and for his willingness to partner with me in orchestrating the Committee's multi-year Copyright Review. And I want to thank Ranking Member Nadler for his work on all of these issues and for his willingness to partner with me in combining all of these important pieces--and others--together into a comprehensive and consensus music licensing reform package that is now awaiting the President's signature. Additionally, I would like to thank Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, Ranking Member Dianne Feinstein, and Senator Orrin Hatch for shepherding the legislation through the Senate. I appreciate their leadership and willingness to work across chambers and across party lines. Of course, I, and all the Members who led this effort, owe a debt of gratitude to our staffs. The staff of the House Judiciary Committee, both Majority and Minority, and the personal staffs of the Members, worked overtime for days, weeks, months and years to help us achieve this victory. We could not have done this without them. The result of all this work by Members, staff, and stakeholders from every corner is nothing less than a new era for music. One that continues our nation's long commitment to incentivize creators and distributors to bring us the sound tracks of our lives. ____________________