[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 145 (Tuesday, October 13, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2141]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    DIGITAL MILLENNIUM COPYRIGHT ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                       HON. CONSTANCE A. MORELLA

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, October 12, 1998

  Mrs. MORELLA. Madam Speaker, I am pleased to see that the disparate 
parties could come together and work out a compromise on the Digital 
Millennium Copyright Act. I believe that it is critical that we ensure 
that there is a balance between the compensation received by developers 
of copyrighted works and the public's fair use of those copyrighted 
works.
  However, as I stated when this bill was being considered on the House 
floor, I am deeply troubled that H.R. 2281 did not update the copyright 
law concerning distance education. Although the Conference Report 
authorizes the Register of Copyrights to submit to Congress 
recommendations on how to promote distance education through digital 
technologies, I believe the amendment that I was planning to offer 
struck the appropriate balance between the copyright owners and the 
educational community.
  As we enter the 21st Century, distance education will play an even 
more pivotal role in educating our children, as well as those 
individuals interested in life long learning. Distance education will 
fill an important gap for individuals who, because of family 
obligations, work obligations, or other barriers, are prevented from 
attending traditional classes. It will also allow educational 
institutions, from outlying rural towns to the heart of America's inner 
cities, to access a full range of academic subjects that would 
otherwise not be available to them.
  Recently, Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) received a $9 
million federal grant to help the school system develop more effective 
ways of incorporating technology into the classroom. One of the most 
promising uses of technology in the classroom is the incorporation of 
distance education into the everyday lives of educators and students. I 
believe it will be an injustice if the public schools in my District 
are unable to fulfill the promise of distance education because we have 
an outdated copyright law that does not allow for the effective use of 
distance education in a digital world.
  Due to the exceptional talent of our teachers and administrators, 
Montgomery County's educational system has always been in the forefront 
of educational innovation. I believe it is critical that we provide our 
teachers with all the available tools to allow them to continue to find 
new and exciting ways of educating students. Thus, we must update the 
copyright law regarding distance education to meet the new challenges 
and allow for new and exciting technologies that will improve the 
education of our citizens as we prepare them to compete in this more 
competitive global economy. I intend to monitor the conduct of the 
distance education study and work closely with the Register of 
Copyrights, the educational community, the copyright owners and the 
relevant House committees over the next several months to develop 
legislation that will promote distance education in the digital age.




                          ____________________