House Judiciary Passes Royalty Bill
After nearly four hours of debate, the House Judiciary Committee approved a bill, 21-9, that would end a long-standing copyright royalty exemption for AM and FM radio stations, with significant concessions aimed at protecting small and minority-owned broadcasters. The action was a big win for the Recording Industry Association of America, American Federation of Musicians, the Recording Academy and others who have been pressing lawmakers to force terrestrial radio to pay performers for songs carried on their airwaves. It was a blow to the National Association of Broadcasters, which has lobbied fiercely against the bill they believe to be a "tax" on local radio.
Moments after the committee's vote, NAB issued a press release giving a nod to those who voted against the bill: Judiciary ranking member Lamar Smith; Maxine Waters, D-Calif.; Howard Coble, R-N.C.; Dan Lungren, D-Calif.; Louie Gohmert, R-Texas; Jim Jordan, R-Ohio; Ted Poe, R-Texas; Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah; and Gregg Harper, R-Miss. "We were pleasantly surprised by the considerable bipartisan opposition to a performance tax, even in a committee where support for the record labels is strongest," NAB spokesman Dennis Wharton said, noting that outside of the committee, a group of 192 House lawmakers have signed onto a resolution sponsored by Rep. Gene Green, D-Texas, opposing the bill.
The MusicFirst Coaltion, which has championed the royalty bill, cheered its committee passage. "Our continued momentum in Congress is proof that it's well past time to recognize the importance of fairly compensating the artists and musicians whose talent and hard work allows radio to generate billions of dollars in ad revenue each year," the group said. "Corporate radio's days of hiding behind a loophole in the copyright law are over," MusicFirst continued. "All other music platforms... pay artists, musicians and rights holders for the use of their music. It's only fair that AM and FM radio be held to the same standards." Read CongressDaily's PM Edition story here and the lengthier mark up report here (subscription required).
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