Today, Congressman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Administrative State, Regulatory Reform, and Antitrust, introduced the American Royalties Too (ART) Act, H.R. 4017. The ART Act amends the Copyright Act to provide creators of visual art with a 5% royalty of the price paid for their art when it is resold by an art market professional. Congressman Nadler was joined by Rep. Judy Chu (D-CA) as an original cosponsor. 

Current U.S. copyright law uniquely fails to properly reward visual artists as they are primarily compensated based on the first sale of their work. They thus lose out on any increase in value of their creation in the future with the benefit going to those who buy and sell their art instead. For example, a young artist may sell an early work for $1000, and it is later sold for $50,000. No portion of that sale goes to the artist. This bill would seek to address this issue and provide some compensation for the original visual artist.

Many visual artists live on limited incomes, even as their work increases in value for others. Musicians earn royalties when their songs are played. Authors are paid for each book sold. Visual artists ought to receive a resale royalty when their works are sold. Resale rights would finally bring fairness—and financial support—to those who create the art we continue to celebrate. More than 105 countries have a resale royalty right -- including all members of the European Union.

“I firmly believe that the time has come for us to establish a resale royalty right here in the United States.  By adopting a resale royalty, the United States would join the rest of the world in recognizing this important right and ensuring visual artists and creators share in the proceeds from the sale of their works. The ART act would ensure that American artists benefit whenever and wherever their works are sold, whether in New York, London, or Paris,” said Rep. Nadler.

The ART Act is supported by a broad coalition of organizations dedicated to the rights of creators, including the Artists Rights Society, the Association of Medical Illustrators, the International Authors Forum, the Authors Guild, the Songwriters Guild of America, Society of Composers & Lyricists, and the American Society of Collective Rights Licensing Inc.Their support underscores the urgent need to bring equity to visual artists in the United States.

Full text of the bill can be found here.

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