Protect Working Musicians Act of 2026
Sponsored By: Representative Ross, Deborah K. [D-NC-2]
Introduced
Summary
collective negotiation safe harbor for Independent Music Creator Owners (IMCOs). This bill would let qualifying creators negotiate together with dominant online music platforms and developers of generative artificial intelligence about licensing and use terms.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
2 provisions identified: 2 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.
Safe Harbor for Small Creators
If enacted, qualifying independent music copyright owners would be able to negotiate together with big music platforms or AI companies without antitrust risk. You would qualify if you own one or more sound recordings or musical works and earned less than $1,000,000 in licensing revenue last year or meet NAICS 512250 or 512230. The protection would let qualifying creators jointly negotiate or refuse to license only when talks are not only about price, treat similar creators the same, and include only qualifying creators and the platform. The bill would also specify which antitrust laws the safe harbor covers.
Which Platforms and AI Are Covered
If enacted, a "Dominant Online Music Distribution Platform" would mean a listening app or website that gets more than $100 million a year from distributing music and is not eligible for the license in 17 U.S.C. §114(d)(2). The bill would define "generative artificial intelligence" as AI that can create new text, images, audio, video, or other media from prompts or data. These definitions would decide which platforms and AI companies creators can negotiate with under the safe harbor.
Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Ross, Deborah K. [D-NC-2]
NC • D
Cosponsors
Rep. Cohen, Steve [D-TN-9]
TN • D
Sponsored 6/10/2026
Rep. Doggett, Lloyd [D-TX-37]
TX • D
Sponsored 6/10/2026
Rep. Goldman, Daniel S. [D-NY-10]
NY • D
Sponsored 6/10/2026
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
View on Congress.gov