PUBLIC LAW 115–261—OCT. 9, 2018 132 STAT. 3667 

Public Law 115–261 

115th Congress 

An Act 

To amend title 17, United States Code, to implement the Marrakesh Treaty, and 

for other purposes. 

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 

the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Marrakesh Treaty Implementation Act’’. 

SEC. 2. IMPLEMENTATION AMENDMENTS. 

(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 1 of title 17, United States Code, 

is amended— 

(1) in section 121— 

(A) in subsection (a)— 

(i) by inserting ‘‘in the United States’’ after ‘‘distribute’’; 

(ii) by striking ‘‘, nondramatic’’; 

(iii) by inserting ‘‘or of a previously published 

musical work that has been fixed in the form of text 

or notation’’ after ‘‘literary work’’; 

(iv) by striking ‘‘specialized formats’’ and inserting 

‘‘accessible formats’’; and 

(v) by striking ‘‘blind or other persons with disabilities’’ and inserting ‘‘eligible persons’’; 

(B) in subsection (b)(1)— 

(i) in subparagraph (A)— 

(I) by inserting ‘‘in the United States’’ after 

‘‘distributed’’; 

(II) by striking ‘‘a specialized format’’ and 

inserting ‘‘an accessible format’’; and 

(III) by striking ‘‘blind or other persons with 

disabilities’’ and inserting ‘‘eligible persons’’; and 

(ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘a specialized 

format’’ and inserting ‘‘an accessible format’’; 

(C) in subsection (c)(3), by striking ‘‘specialized formats’’ and inserting ‘‘accessible formats’’; and 

(D) in subsection (d)— 

(i) by striking paragraphs (2) and (4); 

(ii) by redesignating paragraph (1) as paragraph 

(2); 

(iii) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph 

(4); 

(iv) by inserting before paragraph (2), as so 

redesignated, the following: 

Definitions. 

Marrakesh 

Treaty 

Implementation 

Act. 

17 USC 101 note. 

Oct. 9, 2018 

[S. 2559] 


dkrause on DSKBC28HB2PROD with PUBLAWS
132 STAT. 3668 PUBLIC LAW 115–261—OCT. 9, 2018 

‘‘(1) ‘accessible format’ means an alternative manner or 

form that gives an eligible person access to the work when 

the copy or phonorecord in the accessible format is used exclusively by the eligible person to permit him or her to have 

access as feasibly and comfortably as a person without such 

disability as described in paragraph (3);’’; 

(v) by inserting after paragraph (2), as so redesignated, the following: 

‘‘(3) ‘eligible person’ means an individual who, regardless 

of any other disability— 

‘‘(A) is blind; 

‘‘(B) has a visual impairment or perceptual or reading 

disability that cannot be improved to give visual function 

substantially equivalent to that of a person who has no 

such impairment or disability and so is unable to read 

printed works to substantially the same degree as a person 

without an impairment or disability; or 

‘‘(C) is otherwise unable, through physical disability, 

to hold or manipulate a book or to focus or move the 

eyes to the extent that would be normally acceptable for 

reading; and’’; and 

(vi) in paragraph (4), as so redesignated, by 

striking ‘‘; and’’ at the end and inserting a period; 

and 

(2) by inserting after section 121 the following: 

‘‘§ 121A. Limitations on exclusive rights: reproduction for 

blind or other people with disabilities in Marrakesh Treaty countries 

‘‘(a) Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 602, 

it is not an infringement of copyright for an authorized entity, 

acting pursuant to this section, to export copies or phonorecords 

of a previously published literary work or of a previously published 

musical work that has been fixed in the form of text or notation 

in accessible formats to another country when the exportation is 

made either to— 

‘‘(1) an authorized entity located in a country that is a 

Party to the Marrakesh Treaty; or 

‘‘(2) an eligible person in a country that is a Party to 

the Marrakesh Treaty, 

if prior to the exportation of such copies or phonorecords, the 

authorized entity engaged in the exportation did not know or have 

reasonable grounds to know that the copies or phonorecords would 

be used other than by eligible persons. 

‘‘(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 602, 

it is not an infringement of copyright for an authorized entity 

or an eligible person, or someone acting on behalf of an eligible 

person, acting pursuant to this section, to import copies or 

phonorecords of a previously published literary work or of a previously published musical work that has been fixed in the form 

of text or notation in accessible formats. 

‘‘(c) In conducting activities under subsection (a) or (b), an 

authorized entity shall establish and follow its own practices, in 

keeping with its particular circumstances, to— 

‘‘(1) establish that the persons the authorized entity serves 

are eligible persons; 

17 USC 121A. 


dkrause on DSKBC28HB2PROD with PUBLAWS
PUBLIC LAW 115–261—OCT. 9, 2018 132 STAT. 3669 

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY—S. 2559: 

SENATE REPORTS: No. 115–261 (Comm. on the Judiciary). 

CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 164 (2018): 

June 28, considered and passed Senate. 

Sept. 25, considered and passed House. 

Æ 

‘‘(2) limit to eligible persons and authorized entities the 

distribution of accessible format copies by the authorized entity; 

‘‘(3) discourage the reproduction and distribution of 

unauthorized copies; 

‘‘(4) maintain due care in, and records of, the handling 

of copies of works by the authorized entity, while respecting 

the privacy of eligible persons on an equal basis with others; 

and 

‘‘(5) facilitate effective cross-border exchange of accessible 

format copies by making publicly available— 

‘‘(A) the titles of works for which the authorized entity 

has accessible format copies or phonorecords and the specific accessible formats in which they are available; and 

‘‘(B) information on the policies, practices, and authorized entity partners of the authorized entity for the crossborder exchange of accessible format copies. 

‘‘(d) Nothing in this section shall be construed to establish— 

‘‘(1) a cause of action under this title; or 

‘‘(2) a basis for regulation by any Federal agency. 

‘‘(e) Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the 

ability to engage in any activity otherwise permitted under this 

title. 

‘‘(f) For purposes of this section— 

‘‘(1) the terms ‘accessible format’, ‘authorized entity’, and 

‘eligible person’ have the meanings given those terms in section 

121; and 

‘‘(2) the term ‘Marrakesh Treaty’ means the Marrakesh 

Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works by Visually 

Impaired Persons and Persons with Print Disabilities concluded 

at Marrakesh, Morocco, on June 28, 2013.’’. 

(b) TABLE OF SECTIONS AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

for chapter 1 of title 17, United States Code, is amended by inserting 

after the item relating to section 121 the following: 

‘‘121A. Limitations on exclusive rights: reproduction for blind or other people with 

disabilities in Marrakesh Treaty countries.’’. 

Approved October 9, 2018. 

17 USC 101 prec. 

Definitions. 

Public 

information. 


dkrause on DSKBC28HB2PROD with PUBLAWS