EFF Action Center

This is a prime example of arcane gorvernment rule-making, but it's important. Here's the elevator pitch:

- The vast majority of government documents are handled by the Government Printing Office (GPO), which then deposits copies in over 1,300 Federal depository libraries across the nation. The GPO also puts much of the content online in a searchable fashion.
- The Office of Management and Budget (OMB, Executive Branch) has ordered government printing to be opened to competition and thus decentralized.
- This is not the first time that the OMB has tried to harm the GPO; similar measures were proposed in 1987 and 1994. Congress issued strong warnings in both instances, saying that it was both not the OMB's place to make such a decision and that it would be bad policy.

The OMB doesn't seem to be backing down this time, despite the passage of a harshly worded resolution (HJ Res 124) warning against the move. If the OMB proposal takes effect, there will be less government material on the Internet and in our Libraries. Don't let them get away with it!

ALERT UPDATE: Urge Your Representative to Co-Sponsor the DMCRA!

As the legislative season ends, it is vitally important to gather support for legislation that will be center-stage in the next session. This is an opportunity to ask your representative to take a stand for your rights. Ask her/him to co-sponsor the DMCRA today!

Original Alert:
Representatives Rick Boucher and John Doolittle recently introduced the Digital Media Consumers' Rights Act (DMCRA, H.R. 5544), which would introduce labelling requirements for usage-impaired "copy-protected" compact discs, as well as several amendments to 1998's infamous Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).

Use your voice to protect your digital fair use rights! After several years on legislative defense, this is your opportunity to let Congress know that we want positive changes to the DMCA. Tell your friends, tell your family, but first TELL CONGRESS!

Representative Zoe Lofgren recently introduced the Digital Choice and Freedom Act (DCFA, H.R. 5522), which would reform the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), restrict shrink-wrap licenses that harm the public's rights, explicitly allow backups and format-shifting for copyrighted materials, and protect the public's rights in copyright on several fronts.

Use your voice to protect your rights! After several years on legislative defense, this is your opportunity to let Congress know that we want positive changes to our unbalanced copyright law. Tell your friends, tell your family, but first TELL CONGRESS!

Don't be fooled by Senator Biden's "Anticounterfeiting Amendments of 2002" (S. 2395, also known as "the Biden Bill"). It started as an attempt to stop organized crime from forging holograms and counterfeiting money, but its scope has been greatly expanded to include digital watermarks on copyrighted material. This is a sneaky power-grab that would greatly diminish the rights of the public in copyrighted works while expanding the power of copyright owners. It goes well beyond the scope of current copyright law and could:

~ Prevent universities, libraries, and consumers from enjoying the exceptions to the Copyright Act adopted by Congress. S. 2935 could prohibit the use of interface information essential for software interoperability and competition

~ Impose new responsibilities on Internet service providers and could also require consumer electronics and computer manufacturers to reconfigure their products.

~ Impose more severe criminal and civil penalties than permitted by the Copyright Act for identical behavior

Representative Howard Berman has introduced legislation that would grant copyright holders near-immunity from the law while attacking a citizen's computer. The bill protects copyright holders from legal action stemming from denial-of-service attacks on people whom they suspect of using material in an unauthorized way on a peer-to-peer (P2P) network. Exempting a single industry from civil and criminal penalties is unprecedented. This kind of vigilantism is explicitly prohibited by law; Rep. Berman wants to make sure that the law doesn't apply to copyright holders. Don't let him get away with it; make your voice heard!

The Children's Internet Protection Act of 2000 (CIPA) requires all public schools and libraries receiving certain federal funds or discounts to install controversial Internet blocking or "filtering" software. This software is supposed to prevent children from viewing material considered "harmful to minors." Unfortunately, no filter can identify these illegal materials or distinguish them from valuable web content of all kinds. Use your voice to protect students' right to learn on the Internet!

Senator Ernest Hollings and a powerful group of Hollywood entertainment interests are pushing Congress to pass an anti-consumer bill called the Consumer Broadband and Digital Television Promotion Act (CBDTPA) that may make it impossible to:

-Play your CDs on your desktop computer
-Create legal copies or mp3s of the music that you own to play in your car, or listen to while you exercise
-Create mix-CDs of music you've paid for

This is not the way copyright law is supposed to work. Tell your member of Congress that you value your fair use rights and don't want Hollywood to control technological innovation.

After you contact Congress, check out the Tinsel Town Club video!