148 
‘‘(C) AUTHORITY
OF
COLLECTIVE.—This 
paragraph shall not be construed in such a 
manner so that the collective is not authorized 
to accept or act upon payment instructions in 
circumstances other than those to which this 
paragraph applies.’’. 
(b) ADDITIONAL
PROVISIONS
FOR
RECORDINGS 
FIXED BEFORE NOVEMBER 1, 1995.—Section 114(g) of 
title 17, United States Code, as amended by subsection 
(a), is further amended by adding at the end the following 
new paragraph: 
‘‘(6) SOUND RECORDINGS FIXED BEFORE NO-
VEMBER 1, 1995.— 
‘‘(A) PAYMENT
ABSENT
LETTER
OF
DI-
RECTION.—A nonprofit collective designated by 
the Copyright Royalty Judges to distribute re-
ceipts from the licensing of transmissions in ac-
cordance with subsection (f) (in this paragraph 
referred to as the ‘collective’) shall adopt and 
reasonably implement a policy that provides, in 
circumstances determined by the collective to be 
appropriate, for the deduction of 2 percent of 
all the receipts that are collected from the li-
censing of transmissions of a sound recording 
fixed before November 1, 1995, but which is 
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149 
withdrawn from the amount otherwise payable 
under paragraph (2)(D) to the recording artist 
or artists featured on the sound recording (or 
the persons conveying rights in the artists’ per-
formance in the sound recording), and the dis-
tribution of such amount to one or more per-
sons described in subparagraph (B), after de-
duction of costs described in paragraph (3) or 
(4), as applicable, if each of the following re-
quirements is met: 
‘‘(i) CERTIFICATION OF ATTEMPT TO 
OBTAIN
A
LETTER
OF
DIRECTION.—The 
person described in subparagraph (B) who 
is to receive the distribution has certified 
to the collective, under penalty of perjury, 
that— 
‘‘(I) for a period of at least 4 
months, that person made reasonable 
efforts to contact the artist payee for 
such sound recording to request and 
obtain a letter of direction instructing 
the collective to pay to that person a 
portion of the royalties payable to the 
featured recording artist or artists; 
and 
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‘‘(II) during the period beginning 
on the date that person began the rea-
sonable efforts described in subclause 
(I) and ending on the date of that 
person’s certification to the collective, 
the artist payee did not affirm or 
deny in writing the request for a let-
ter of direction. 
‘‘(ii) COLLECTIVE ATTEMPT TO CON-
TACT ARTIST.—After receipt of the certifi-
cation described in clause (i) and for a pe-
riod of at least 4 months before the collec-
tive’s first distribution to the person de-
scribed in subparagraph (B), the collective 
attempted, in a reasonable manner as de-
termined by the collective, to notify the 
artist payee of the certification made by 
the person described in subparagraph (B). 
‘‘(iii) NO OBJECTION RECEIVED.—The 
artist payee did not, as of the date that is 
10 business days before the date on which 
the first distribution is made, submit to 
the collective in writing an objection to the 
distribution. 
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151 
‘‘(B) ELIGIBILITY FOR PAYMENT.—A per-
son shall be eligible for payment under subpara-
graph (A) if the person— 
‘‘(i) is a producer, mixer, or sound en-
gineer of the sound recording; 
‘‘(ii) has entered into a written con-
tract with a record company involved in 
the creation or lawful exploitation of the 
sound recording, or with the recording art-
ist or artists featured on the sound record-
ing (or the persons conveying rights in the 
artists’ performance in the sound record-
ing), under which the person seeking pay-
ment is entitled to participate in royalty 
payments that are based on the exploi-
tation of the sound recording and are pay-
able from royalties otherwise payable to 
the recording artist or artists featured on 
the sound recording (or the persons con-
veying rights in the artists’ performance in 
the sound recording); 
‘‘(iii) made a creative contribution to 
the creation of the sound recording; and 
‘‘(iv) submits a written certification to 
the collective stating, under penalty of per-
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152 
jury, that the person meets the require-
ments in clauses (i) through (iii) and in-
cludes a true copy of the contract de-
scribed in clause (ii). 
‘‘(C) MULTIPLE
CERTIFICATIONS.—Sub-
ject to subparagraph (D), in a case in which 
more than one person described in subpara-
graph (B) has met the requirements for a dis-
tribution under subparagraph (A) with respect 
to a sound recording as of the date that is 10 
business days before the date on which a dis-
tribution is made, the collective shall divide the 
2 percent distribution equally among all such 
persons. 
‘‘(D) OBJECTION TO PAYMENT.—Not later 
than 10 business days after the date on which 
the collective receives from the artist payee a 
written objection to a distribution made pursu-
ant to subparagraph (A), the collective shall 
cease making any further payment relating to 
such distribution. In any case in which the col-
lective has made one or more distributions pur-
suant to subparagraph (A) to a person de-
scribed in subparagraph (B) before the date 
that is 10 business days after the date on which 
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153 
the collective receives from the artist payee an 
objection to such distribution, the objection 
shall not affect that person’s entitlement to any 
distribution made before the collective ceases 
such distribution under this subparagraph. 
‘‘(E) OWNERSHIP OF THE RIGHT TO RE-
CEIVE PAYMENTS.—To the extent that the col-
lective determines that a distribution will be 
made under subparagraph (A) to a person de-
scribed in subparagraph (B), such person shall, 
during the period covered by such distribution, 
be treated for all purposes as the owner of the 
right to receive such payments, and the artist 
payee to whom such payments would otherwise 
be payable shall be treated as having no inter-
est in such payments. 
‘‘(F) ARTIST
PAYEE
DEFINED.—In this 
paragraph, the term ‘artist payee’ means a per-
son, other than a person described in subpara-
graph (B), who owns the right to receive all or 
part of the receipts payable under paragraph 
(2)(D) with respect to a sound recording. In a 
case in which there are multiple artist payees 
with respect to a sound recording, an objection 
by one such payee shall apply only to that pay-
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154 
ee’s share of the receipts payable under para-
graph (2)(D), and does not preclude payment 
under subparagraph (A) from the share of an 
artist payee that does not so object.’’. 
(c) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 
Section 114(g) of title 17, United States Code, as amend-
ed by subsections (a) and (b), is further amended— 
(1) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘An agent 
designated’’ and inserting ‘‘Except as provided for in 
paragraph (6), a nonprofit collective designated by 
the Copyright Royalty Judges’’; 
(2) in paragraph (3)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘nonprofit agent des-
ignated’’ and inserting ‘‘nonprofit collective des-
ignated by the Copyright Royalty Judges’’; 
(B) by striking ‘‘another designated agent’’ 
and inserting ‘‘another designated nonprofit col-
lective’’; and 
(C) by striking ‘‘agent’’ and inserting ‘‘col-
lective’’ each subsequent place it appears; and 
(3) in paragraph (4)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘designated agent’’ and in-
serting ‘‘nonprofit collective’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘agent’’ and inserting ‘‘col-
lective’’ each subsequent place it appears. 
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155 
SEC. 303. EFFECTIVE DATE. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 
(b), this title and the amendments made by this title shall 
take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act. 
(b) DELAYED EFFECTIVE DATE.—The effective date 
for paragraphs (5)(B) and (6)(E) of section 114(g) of title 
17, United States Code, as added by section 302, shall 
be January 1, 2020. 
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Union Calendar No. 499 
115TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5447 
[Report No. 115–651] 
A BILL 
To modernize copyright law, and for other 
purposes. 
APRIL 25, 2018 
Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 
State of the Union and ordered to be printed 
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