Current Issues

The Nashville Songwriters Association (NSAI) was in Washington, D.C. last week for an important hearing held by the House Judiciary Committee (Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property and the Internet) on music licensing.  NSAI President Lee Thomas Miller testified on behalf of American songwriters.  He covered the devastation brought by Internet music piracy and the micro-penny rates paid by certain streaming music services including Pandora.

The Nashville Songwriters Association was in Washington D.C. this week seeking support for THE SONGWRITER EQUITY ACT.

The bill has been introduced in both the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate. THE SONGWRITER EQUITY ACT will change the way mechanical and performance rates are set for songwriters.

State Senator Jack Johnson and Representative Gerald McCormick

Tennessee State Senator Jack Johnson and Representative Gerald McCormick are recognized by NSAI President Lee Thomas Miller and Recording Industry Assn. of America President Cary Sherman for their work on legislation that requires information from companies that produce Compact Discs to make it easier to fight illegal distribution of pirated CD's.

Pictured L to R: NSAI President Lee Thomas Miller, Senator Jack Johnson, State Representative Gerald McCormick, and RIAA President Cary Sherman.

The U.S. Dept. of Justice is reviewing the ASCAP and BMI Consent Decrees.   Around since 1941, the consent decrees are antiquated and need to be eliminated or drastically changed.

NSAI recently submitted the changes we would recommend on behalf of songwriters.  More than 250 organizations and individuals filed comments with the U.S. Dept. of Justice regarding the consent decrees. 

DOJ is expected to make recommendations regarding the consent decrees sometime in 2015.