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January E-news for ARL Directors: Part Two, Federal Relations

Note: Members are encouraged to route these monthly briefings to interested staff within the library or the parent institution
The monthly Federal Relations E-News are written by Prue Adler (prue@arl.org) and edited by Bradley Houseton (bradley@arl.org). They will be posted in the Federal Relations Notebook Updates on the ARL Web site at: http://www.arl.org/info/frn/info.html

CONTENTS

1. Copyright and Intellectual Property Legislation Additional Analyses Available - FRN#1

2. Copyright Office Conducts Hearings on Distance Education - FRN#1

3. Database Legislation Introduced - FRN#1

4. Internet Stock Legislation Introduced - FRN #2

5. Rep. Brown Introduces legislation to overturn A-110 revision - FRN#2

6. Legislation to make CRS reports publicly available introduced - FRN#2

7. New Child Online Protection Act Successfully Challenged - FRN #3

8. New Filtering Bill Introduced - FRN#3

9. Selected Appropriations - FRN#4

   o LC and GPO FY 2000 - Wand and Kessler Testify
   o NEH FY 1999 Appropriations
   o I2 Program Proposed
   o TIIAP Increase Proposed

1. Copyright and Intellectual Property Legislation - Analyses Available - FRN#1

Several additional analyses of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) are available via ARL. The DMCA (PL 105-304), signed into law by the President on October 28, 1998 updates the Copyright Act to address selected digital issues. New ARL DMCA resources include a primer on the Act and on the Sony Bono Copyright Term Extension Act by Arnold Lutzker, the Shared Legal Capability representative. In addition, testimony by members of the library and higher education communities, regarding distance education are also on the Federal Relations ARL web page. Finally, two analyses concerning library preservation are also available. These can be found at: http://www.arl.org/info/frn/copy/dmca.html

2. Copyright Office Conducts Hearings on Distance Education - FRN#1

The Copyright Office conducted three hearings on how to promote distance education via digital technologies and whether a change in statute is needed to accomplish this goal. The hearings were in Washington, D.C, Chicago, Illinois, and in Los Angeles, CA. James Neal, Dean of University Libraries, Johns Hopkins University, testified on behalf of members of the Shared Legal Capability, ARL, AALL, ALA, MLA, and SLA. Laura Gasaway, Director, Law Library, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, testified on behalf of AAU, NASULGC, and ACE. The statements are available via the DMCA page under the distance education heading: http://www.arl.org/info/frn/copy/dmca.html

The proprietary community was well represented at the Washington hearing and members of this community testified that changes to the current statute are not needed. In addition, these witnesses echoed the theme that licensing agreements are sufficient and are working very well. Many in the library and education communities testified that licensing agreements were problematic and thwarting many distance education initiatives.

ARL will be filing reply comments to the Copyright Office which will be posted to the ARL Web Page on DMCA-distance education.

3. Database Legislation Introduced - FRN#1

On January 19, Rep. Coble, (Chair, Subcommittee on Courts and Intellectual Property and R-NC) introduced H.R. 354, the "Collections of Information Antipiracy Act," legislation which seeks to provide additional protections to collections of information and databases. With few substantive changes from the extremely controversial bill considered last year, H.R. 2652, the Subcommittee will conduct a hearing on H.R. 354 which will likely be on March 18 with markup anticipated, following the Easter congressional recess.

Also on January 19, Sen. Hatch (Chair, Senate Committee on the Judiciary and R-UT) placed a statement in the Congressional Record which included H.R. 354 and two other proposals for database legislation. Calling for additional protections for databases, Sen. Hatch stressed the need to balance selected interests of the information industries seeking additional protections and users of information and databases. The two other proposals include an alternative draft bill supported by the library, education, research and scientific sectors and many in commercial database and telecommunication industries. The second proposal includes provisions discussed at the close of the legislative session during negotiations sponsored by Sen. Hatch. Senator Hatch's full statement is available via the ARL website, http://www.arl.org/info/letters/index.html

4. Internet Stock Legislation Introduced - FRN #2

S. 95, a bill related to H.R. 354 and also introduced on January 19, would amend the Communications Act of 1934 to ensure the public availability of information concerning stocks traded on an established stock exchange continue to be freely available to the public. In introducing the legislation, Sen. McCain commented, "This kind of information is fact, and facts should not be proprietary. This bill will ensure that Americans continue to have access to those facts."

5. A-110 Revision Update - FRN#2

On February 4, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released a proposed revision to OMB Circular A-110 (Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Agreements with Institutions of Higher Education, Hospitals, and Other Non-Profit Organizations). OMB responded to a provision included in the Omnibus Appropriations bill that directed OMB to require federal awarding agencies to ensure that data produced under a federal award be made publicly available via the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).

The OMB proposed revision states: "The Federal Government has the right to 1) obtain, reproduce, publish and otherwise use the data first produced by the award, and 2) authorize others to receive, reproduce, publish, or otherwise use such data for Federal purposes. In addition, in response to a FOIA request for data relating to published research findings produced under an award that were used by the Federal Government in developing policy or rules, the Federal awarding agency shall, within a reasonable time, obtain the requested data through the procedures established under FOIA. If the Federal awarding agency obtains the data solely in response to a FOIA request, the agency may charge the requester a reasonable fee equaling the full incremental cost of obtaining the data. This fee should reflect costs incurred by the agency, the recipient, and applicable sub-recipients. This fee is in addition to any fees the agency may access under FOIA."

Many in the higher education, research, and scientific community have expressed serious reservations with the original legislation mandating the OMB revision. Comments on the proposed revision must be received by April 1, 1999. Comments may be sent to James Charney at fcharney@omb.eop.gov. A full text of the OMB proposed revision is available via: http://www.whitehouse.gov/WH/EOP/OMB/html/fedreg/a-110rev.html.

Rep. George Brown (D-CA) introduced legislation, H.R. 88 to repeal the provision including in the Omnibus Appropriations bill. There is bipartisan support for the Brown legislation.

6. Legislation To Make CRS Reports Publicly Available Introduced - FRN#2

On February 9, Sen. McCain (Chair, Committee on Commerce and R-AZ) introduced S. 393, a bill to provide Internet access to Congressional documents including selected Congressional Research Service publications. Cong. Shays (R-CT) introduced companion legislation in the House of Representatives, H.R. 654.

The bills, similar to legislation introduced last year, would make CRS reports available 30 days following their release to Members of Congress. In addition, the CRS publications would be publicly available via web pages of Members of Congress and Congressional Committees, not through the Research Service. The director of CRS will have the authority to remove confidential, copyrighted, or personal information included in the CRS reports. Last year, ARL with others in the library community supported similar legislation to make CRS reports publicly available.

7. New Child Online Protection Act Challenged - FRN #3

Civil liberties groups and commercial organizations successfully challenged the recently passed Child Online Protection Act. A federal judge of the District Court of Philadelphia issued a preliminary injunction and stated that, "such a chilling effect could result in the censoring of constitutionally protected speech, which constitutes an irreparable harm to the plaintiffs."

Viewed by many as the successor to the Communications Decency Act - the legislation struck down by the Supreme Court - the Child Online Protection Act makes it a federal crime to "knowingly" communicate "for commercial purposes" material considered harmful to minors. The measure was included in the omnibus appropriation bill at the close of the legislative session.

8. New Filtering Bill Introduced - FRN #3

Sen. McCain (Chair, Committee on Commerce and R-AZ) and Sen. Hollings (D-SC) introduced S. 97, the Children's Internet Protection Act. Similar to legislation considered last year, the bill would require libraries to use a filtering system on one or more of their computers so that a computer would be available for "appropriate use by minors." There would be no mandate concerning which filtering package would be chosen; that would be a local community decision. In addition, those schools that receive universal service discounts would have to certify to the Federal Communications Commission that the institution was utilizing filtering software on all of the institution's computers.

Rep. Franks (R-NJ) introduced two filtering bills, H.R. 368 and H.R. 543. H.R. 368, the Safe Schools Internet Act of 1999 would provide no universal service assistance to a school or library that fails to provide certification of filtering or blocking of material considered inappropriate to minors. H.R. 543, the Children's Internet Protection Act is a companion bill to S. 97.

9. Selected Appropriations - FRN#4

Statements in Support of LC and GPO FY2000 Appropriations - FRN #4
-Library of Congress FY2000
          The Library of Congress appropriations request for FY 2000 is $383.7 million including the authority to spend receipts of $33.1 million. This represents a 5.5% increase in the Library's budget though it is important to note that a significant share of this increase is slated for mandatory costs. New funds will support key infrastructure projects including automation, security, and a staff succession program.
          Patricia Wand, University Librarian at American University testified before the House Subcommittee on Legislative, Committee on Appropriations, on behalf of the library community in support of the Library of Congress Fiscal Year 2000 (LC FY2000) Budget Request. Key points Wand covered in her testimony included the library community's support for LC programs such as: services for the blind and physically handicapped, technology initiatives, the law library, security measures, and staff succession. Additionally, Wand illustrated how the Library of Congress and other Libraries throughout the country are dedicated to investing in new and developing technologies to facilitate access to information resources. The Library of Congress celebrates 200 years of service to the nation and will collaborate with libraries throughout the nation in highlighting local legacies.
The library community statement in support of the LC FY2000 budget request can be found at: http://www.arl.org/info/letters/lcfy00.html
-Government Printing Office FY2000
          The Government Printing Office's Superintendent of Documents FY 2000 appropriations request is $31.2 million. This amount includes an increase of $1.9 million to support the continued operation of the Federal Depository Library Program, its electronic transition plan, and the future development of GPO Access.
          Ridley Kessler, Jr., Regional Documents Librarian, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, testified on behalf of the library community in support of the Government Printing Office Fiscal Year 2000 (GPO FY2000) budget request. Citing the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP) as a successful partnership between the Federal Government and the American people, Kessler stressed the library community's support to maintain current access to Federal government information and the increased personnel costs related to managing the ever-expanding electronic collection of government documents. This includes additional production personnel and the reallocation of existing staff time. In addition to support for the FDLP, the library community also noted the growth of GPO Access, both in terms of content and usage. Kessler concluded his remarks by expressing the support of the library community for the GPO FY2000 budget request to continue the equitable, ready, efficient, and no-fee access to government information in both print and electronic formats.
The library community statement in support of the GPO's Superintendent of Documents budget request can be found at: http://www.arl.org/info/letters/gpo00.html
Significant Increase Proposed for NEH and NEA in FY 2000 - FRN #4
          The FY 2000 budget request for the National Endowment for the Humanities is $150 million, a 36% increase over the current FY 1999 appropriation of $110.7 million. The Administration has requested $150 million for the National Endowment for the Arts.
          The FY 2000 appropriations request for the Preservation and Access Division is $22.945 million, up from $18 million in FY 1999. This is an increase of $4.945 million. These funds, if approved, would support a major new initiative to digitize collections in libraries, museums, and archives.
          The new $30 million initiative will support the development of a national library of text, images, sound recordings, and other materials of unique cultural, historical, and scientific value. There are several elements of the proposal that span several federal agencies:
- America's Treasures Online: $5 million each, Smithsonian Institution and the National Park Service;
- Digitizing the classics and putting museums online: $10 million, Institute for Museum and Library Services;
- Digital Library for Math and Science Education: $10 million, National Science Foundation
New Technology Initiative Proposed - FRN#4
The Clinton Administration has proposed a significant increase in funding of information technology research and development that would span six federal agencies. The Information Technology for the Twenty-first Century, or IT2, would provide $366 million or a $28% increase in support for federal information technology programs.
With the National Science Foundation in the lead, the initiative will focus on three areas:
- long-term information technology research leading to fundamental breakthroughs in computing and communications, $228 million
- advanced computing for science, engineering, and the Nation including software, networks, supercomputers, and research teams needed to support it, $123 million
- research on the economic and social implications of the Information Revolution and efforts to help train additional information technology workers at universities, $15 million
In addition to the proposed $146 million for NSF, other participating agencies include: DOD, $100 million, DOE, $70 million, NASA, $38 million, NIH, $ 6 million, and NOAA, $ 6 million.
Increase in Information Infrastructure Grants Proposed FRN#4
The Clinton Administration has proposed an increase for the Telecommunications Information Infrastructure Program (TIIAP) to $20,102 million for FY 2000. This highly successful and competitive program provides limited seed funding to projects which utilize telecommunications and information technology. TIIAP has provided over $118 million in matching grants since 1994 with a recent focus on inaccessible, rural, and under-served urban communities.