House approves bill that could fast-track $30,000 copyright penalties

Enlarge / The United States Capitol Building, the seat of Congress, on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. (credit: Omar Chatriwala | Getty Images)

In a change of pace for the modern era, the House of Representatives yesterday agreed on a bill and passed it by an overwhelming majority. Unfortunately, the bill in question, known as the CASE Act, is a controversial measure that critics argue could penalize ordinary Americans as much as $30,000 for something as simple as photo sharing, while also emboldening copyright trolls.

The House voted 410-6 on Monday to adopt the measure, fully named the Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement Act of 2019. The bill aims in part to create a new "small claims" Copyright Claims Board within the US Copyright Office. That, proponents argue, would give content creators and rights holders a better, more efficient way to pursue infringement claims, instead of having to spend the time and money on filing a federal court case.

As Schoolhouse Rock taught us, a bill needs approval from both the House and Senate before it can become law. (Though the reality is somewhat more complex). CASE went through committee in both the House and Senate earlier this year, and so the version of the bill the House voted to accept on Monday is ready to go to the Senate floor for a vote.

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