[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 122 (Wednesday, June 24, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37961-37962]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-13725]


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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

 Copyright Office

[Docket No. 2020-9]


Sovereign Immunity Study: Notice and Request for Public Comment

AGENCY: U.S. Copyright Office, Library of Congress.

ACTION: Notice of Inquiry; extension of comment period.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Copyright Office is extending the deadline for the 
submission of written comments in response to its June 3, 2020, notice 
of inquiry regarding its state sovereign immunity policy study. In 
addition, the Office is providing for a second round of written 
comments.

DATES: Initial written comments in response to the notice of inquiry 
published June 3, 2020, at 85 FR 34252, must be received no later than 
11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on September 2, 2020. Written reply comments 
and empirical research studies must be received no later than 11:59 
p.m. Eastern Time on October 2, 2020.

ADDRESSES: For reasons of government efficiency, the Copyright Office 
is using the regulations.gov system for the submission and posting of 
public comments in this proceeding. All comments are therefore to be 
submitted electronically through regulations.gov. Specific instructions 
for submitting comments are available on the Copyright Office website 
at http://www.copyright.gov/docs/sovereignimmunitystudy. If electronic 
submission of comments is not feasible due to lack of access to a 
computer and/or the internet, please contact the Office, using the 
contact information below, for special instructions.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kevin Amer, Deputy General Counsel,

[[Page 37962]]

[email protected]; Mark T. Gray, Attorney-Advisor, 
[email protected]; or Jalyce E. Mangum, Attorney-Advisor, 
[email protected]. They can be reached by telephone at 202-707-3000.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On June 3, 2020, the U.S. Copyright Office 
issued a notice of inquiry (``NOI'') commencing a policy study on state 
sovereign immunity from copyright infringement suits.\1\ Congress has 
requested that the Office ``research this issue to determine whether 
there is sufficient basis for federal legislation abrogating State 
sovereign immunity when States infringe copyrights.'' \2\ To assist 
Congress in making that assessment, the Office solicited public comment 
on several issues concerning the degree to which copyright owners face 
infringement from state actors today, whether such infringement is 
based on intentional or reckless conduct, and what remedies, if any, 
are available to copyright owners under state law.
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    \1\ 85 FR 34252 (June 3, 2020).
    \2\ Letter from Sens. Thom Tillis & Patrick Leahy to Maria 
Strong, Acting Register of Copyrights, U.S.
    Copyright Office at 1 (Apr. 28, 2020), https://www.copyright.gov/rulemaking/statesovereign-immunity/letter.pdf.
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    To ensure that members of the public have sufficient time to 
comment, and to ensure that the Office has the benefit of a complete 
record, the Office is extending the deadline for the submission of 
comments to 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on September 2, 2020.
    The Office has also determined that interested parties should be 
given an opportunity to address any comments submitted in response to 
the NOI. In addition, as noted in the NOI,\3\ the Office is seeking to 
provide sufficient time for parties engaged in empirical research in 
this area to complete and submit their findings. Accordingly, the 
Office is providing for a second round of written comments. Additional 
comments must be submitted no later than October 2, 2020. In general, 
these comments should be limited to issues or concerns presented in the 
initial comments. The Office will, however, consider any empirical 
research submitted by the October 2 deadline as part of the record in 
this proceeding.
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    \3\ See 85 FR at 34255.

    Dated: June 22, 2020.
Regan A. Smith,
General Counsel and Associate Register of Copyrights.
[FR Doc. 2020-13725 Filed 6-23-20; 8:45 am]
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