Sponsors (2)
The bill modernizes and lowers the cost of registering many visual works—making mass and electronic registration easier and more affordable for creators—while introducing privacy, security, administrative, and revenue-adjustment risks that could shift costs or create implementation and regulatory uncertainty.
Photographers, small publishers, and individual creators can register large batches of images with a single application, tiered quantities, and subscription options, substantially lowering per-work registration costs and making it affordable to register many visual works.
Creators (especially photographers and small-business owners) can submit required deposits electronically—either by uploading one electronic copy to certified registries or by transmitting deposits directly from commonly used software—avoiding physical mail, saving time, and reducing paperwork.
Creators can secure an effective registration date on submission and may register unpublished and older works together, improving ability to enforce rights earlier while preserving filing dates and allowing later formal examination.
Certified registries and required interoperability/integration will collect and store owners' personal contact information and link systems, increasing privacy and data-security risks if databases or software integrations are breached.
Maintaining long-term storage, free searchable access, certification and interoperability, plus implementing new software integrations, will impose operational and maintenance costs that may limit registry participation or be passed to users or taxpayers.
Lower registration fees and subscription discounts will reduce Copyright Office fee revenue, potentially requiring offsets or higher fees for other applicants or services.
Based on analysis of 7 sections of legislative text.
Introduced December 17, 2025 by Marsha Blackburn · Last progress December 17, 2025
Makes it easier for photographers and other visual artists to register and deposit their works by allowing electronic single-copy deposits, certified third-party registries for photographs, group registrations for many photos at once, and a deferred registration option that sets the registration date when materials are submitted. It also requires the Copyright Office to build a modern, interoperable online interface, changes some retention and deposit rules, and creates reduced fees and subscription options for visual-work registrations.