Who Owns the House?

You learn something new everyday. Yesterday I learned that the PA State House of Representatives copyrights the rebroadcasts of its sessions that air on PCN. Democat Chris King, who is running against incumbent Republican Matt Wright for the 142nd state house district, used a snippet of video showing Wright speaking in the House. John Perzel, Speaker of the House, responded by having a lawyer write King threatening a lawsuit if the footage wasnt' removed. According to the Bucks County Courier Times ("Attorney: King’s TV ad violates copyright law," by Alison Hawkes)

The letter cited the House’s 1996 registration with the United State Copyright Office of “video of all sessions of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives” and noted a restricted use of such video for education and instructional purposes only.

later

The Pennsylvania Senate has a similar requirement barring floor footage in political ads.

The House and Senate also restrict media cameras, permitting credentialed still photographers and videographers to the floor on a limited basis.

According to the lawyer's letter each PCN broadcast of the House or Senate has a disclaimer on it stating how it can and cannot be used. I don't remember ever seeing that when I've watched PCN but if they say it's there, it's likely that I just missed it.

People who work in government should be able to have discussions without fear of someone using video of it for political or other purposes. Yet, I've seen enough political ads for incumbents with photos or footage of them on official business that it seems those lines are blurred.

It is a tricky line to walk, this tightrope between the public's right to know and a legislator's right to do their job without undue stress or interference. Perzel himself got into a little hotwater in August of 2003 when he mailed out over 20,000 copies of a DVD commemorating his swearing-in as Speaker, originally billed to the taxpayers, but the cost was later reimbursed and paid by his campaign. As noted by the Inquirer ("DVDs honoring Perzel are billed to taxpayers - It was a mistake, the speaker of the House's spokesman says. His campaign fund will reimburse the state for the mailing," by Mario F. Cattabiani, August 27, 2003)

The DVD allows viewers to pick from 20 chapters chronicling the April 15 swearing-in ceremony, from testimonials by Perzel's colleagues to the new speaker assuming the gavel. It ends with a disclaimer standard on House floor proceedings - that the footage cannot be used for political or campaign activities.

Someone forgot to tell the fund-raisers.

Perzel scheduled a campaign stop at the Philadelphia Ritz-Carlton for next week organized by his supporters to publicly debut the DVD.

"Please join us in viewing the Swearing-In Ceremony," reads the invitation, for which tickets range from $150 for a "friend" of the campaign, to $1,000 for "VIPs."

Told of the seeming contradiction, Miskin said that Perzel had authorized the fund-raiser but had no idea the DVD was the attraction. The event is still on, but the DVD "won't be shown," said Miskin, explaining Perzel's second corrective step on the DVD issue.

So you'd think Perzel would have a little more sympathy for Chris King, but that doesn't appear to be the case. I suppose it's all a matter of whether or not the official in question likes the footage....

The House and Senate Journals are available online now and I wonder what copyright restrictions are in place for those. I have excerpted them on this blog in previous posts. Generally speaking government documents are outside regular copyright rules, at least at the federal level, and I thought these transcripts were considered government documents. Guess I'll have to brush up on intellectual property law before one of those letters arrives on my doorstep.