H.Res.414 - Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that foreign governments should work diligently to legalize all computer software used by such foreign governments, and for other purposes.
110th Congress (2007-2008)
Expressing the sense of the House of
Representatives that foreign governments should work diligently to legalize all
computer software used by such foreign governments, and for other
purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 17, 2007
Mr. Goodlatte (for
himself and Mr. Schiff) submitted the
following resolution; which was referred to the
Committee on Foreign
Affairs
RESOLUTION
Expressing the sense of the House of
Representatives that foreign governments should work diligently to legalize all
computer software used by such foreign governments, and for other
purposes.
Whereas the United States copyright industries have
created millions of high-skill, high-paying United States jobs and pay billions
of dollars in annual United States tax revenues;
Whereas copyright piracy results in billions of dollars in
lost revenue for the United States copyright industries each year and even
greater losses to the United States economy in terms of reduced job growth and
exports;
Whereas the United States copyright industries face high
rates of piracy in many foreign countries, portions of which are attributable
to unauthorized software use by government agencies, as well as the use of
official government computers and networks to commit all types of copyright
infringement;
Whereas governments around the world are among the largest
users of computer software;
Whereas the public announcements and efforts of foreign
governments to use only authorized software, and to denounce the use of
software in ways that violate applicable copyright laws and treaties, can set
important examples for industries and citizens alike in those countries;
Whereas the public announcements and efforts of foreign
governments to enact policies designed to prohibit copyright infringement on
their computers and networks can set important examples for industries and
citizens alike in those countries;
Whereas official usage policies for computers and networks
can be effective tools to ensure that government computers and networks are not
used to facilitate infringement of copyrighted works, including software,
movies, music, games and other content;
Whereas the United States House of Representatives, the
United States Senate, and the Office of Management and Budget have all adopted
policies intended to prohibit government computers and networks from being used
to facilitate copyright infringement;
Whereas the United States Government, which is one of the
world’s largest purchasers of computer-related services and equipment, stated
in Executive Order 13103 (1998) that “[it] shall be the policy of the
United States Government that each executive agency shall work diligently to
prevent and combat computer software piracy in order to give effect to
copyrights associated with computer software”;
Whereas Executive Order 13103 also ordered that
“[e]ach agency shall establish procedures to ensure that the agency has
present on its computers and uses only computer software not in violation of
applicable copyright laws”;
Whereas the United States Government has previously
directed the United States Trade Representative to work with other governments
to reduce their unauthorized use of software and to reduce their overall rates
of copyright piracy in general;
Whereas most foreign countries and territories have not
yet undertaken measures mandating the authorized use of software by government
agencies, and those that do mandate the use of authorized software by
government agencies often fail to implement these commitments;
Whereas most foreign countries and territories have not
instituted usage policies to prohibit the use of government computers and
networks for facilitating copyright infringement;
Whereas proper software asset management is critical to
ensuring that government agencies receive the full benefits of computer
software and operate in compliance with relevant copyright laws and
international obligations; and
Whereas the International Organization for Standardization
recently issued a standard—ISO/IEC 19770–1—for software asset management that
can assist organizations in implementing software asset management procedures
that are commensurate with rigorous corporate governance and information
security requirements: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of
Representatives that—
(1) foreign
governments should work diligently to legalize all computer software used by
government agencies in order to give full effect to copyrights associated with
computer software, consistent with the applicable provisions of the World Trade
Organization Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property
Rights, the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works,
and the World Intellectual Property Organization Copyright Treaty;
(2) foreign
governments should require all government agencies to adopt and implement
appropriate procedures to ensure that such agencies have present on their
computers only computer software that does not violate applicable copyright
laws, and that they do not acquire, reproduce, distribute, or transmit computer
software in violation of applicable copyright laws;
(3) foreign
governments should require that contractors and other recipients of government
funds or financial assistance have appropriate systems and controls in place to
ensure that government funds are not used to acquire, operate, or maintain
computer software in violation of applicable copyright laws;
(4) foreign
governments should enact usage policies designed to ensure that government
computers and networks are not used to facilitate copyright infringement of any
kind, including infringement of software, movies, music, games, and other
content; and
(5) foreign
governments should lead by example and publicly denounce the use of software in
ways that violate applicable copyright laws and treaties, and should publicly
announce their efforts to only use authorized software, as well as their
efforts to prohibit copyright piracy of any kind on their computers and
networks.