CDT joined with 20 other organizations in a letter to the House Rules Committee, opposing an effort to add a bill to the National Defense Authorization Act that would extend copyright coverage to standards even after they are incorporated by reference into a regulation and thus become enforceable law. The bill would also permit standards development organizations to require users to create an account and provide personal information as a condition for accessing the standard; we are concerned that the bill does not provide sufficient protection against potential misuse of that personal information.  

Our organizations call for hearings and a more deliberative process to assess the adverse consequences of extending copyright coverage in this manner and to explore more appropriate ways to address the concerns of standards development organizations about incorporation of standards into law by reference.

Read the full letter here.