Thank you for contacting me regarding H.R. 3261, the Stop Online Piracy Act. I appreciate having the benefit of your thoughts.
On October 26, 2011, Representative Lamar Smith (R-TX) introduced H.R. 3261 to ensure that owners of copyrighted content and the Department of Justice (DOJ) have the ability to take action against "rogue" websites in other countries that allow the unauthorized distribution of intellectual property, especially movies and music, produced in the United States. Specifically, this bill would enable owners of copyrighted material and the DOJ to pressure "intermediaries" in this country — Internet service providers, search engines, advertising providers and payment services — that do business with them.
As introduced, the language of H.R. 3261 entitles the DOJ to seek court orders to require advertising services, search engines, Internet service providers, and payment services — such as Mastercard, Visa, and PayPal — to stop doing business with foreign sites seen as "infringing" on copyrights. The DOJ could also require Internet service providers to block access to sites seen as abetting copyright infringement, creating a Web blacklist. Additionally, H.R. 3261 seeks to protect manufacturers of pharmaceuticals and other goods and services who see knockoff versions of their products advertised on such sites.
Thus far, H.R, 3261 has been extremely controversial and has generated alarm on both sides of the political spectrum. Opponents of this bill believe that it is so loosely worded it could threaten many U.S. websites, especially social media sites such as Facebook and YouTube. To stay in business, opponents contend that such sites would have to more closely police content posted by millions of users every day. Moreover, they point out that H.R. 3261 gives the government overly broad power to punish Web-related companies and could potentially chill innovation among Internet-related start-ups. One large issue with H.R. 3261 is that the owners of the copyrighted material would not have to go to court first in order to shut down or block a "rogue" website. Rather, they could simply allege to payment and ad services that certain sites are "dedicated to theft of U.S. property," and the payment and ad services would have five days to cut off service to them.
However, proponents of H.R. 3261 say the bill is badly needed to address rampant copyright infringements, which are estimated to play a role in 25 percent of Internet traffic. In fact, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, copyright infringement costs the U.S. economy at least $135 billion a year. This loss has significantly hurt an already unstable and underperforming job market in the U.S. Overall, advocates contend that H.R. 3261 is simply intended to deal with potential copyright thieves on a case-by-case basis.
While I agree with the overarching goal of H.R. 3261, namely to stop online piracy, and believe that it is well-intentioned, I do acknowledge that it has some flaws. However, the legislative process, in both the House and Senate, allows for amendments to help correct and mitigate some of these flaws. Currently, H.R. 3261 has been referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary and preliminary hearings have been held. While I am not a member of this committee, please know that I will keep your thoughts and concerns in mind should this legislation reach the House floor for a vote.
Once again, thank you for expressing your views on this issue. If you haven't already, I would encourage you to sign up for my e-newsletter at http://donyoung.house.gov/IMA/issue_subscribe.htm and my YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=RepDonYoung. Doing so will allow me to provide you with updates on this and other important issues. If I can be of any assistance in the future, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,
Don Young
Congressman for All Alaska
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