H.R. 4072: Protecting and Enhancing Public Access to Codes Act of 2025

This bill, known as the Protecting and Enhancing Public Access to Codes Act of 2025, aims to amend copyright law to enhance access to technical standards that are incorporated by reference into laws and regulations. Here are the main points of the bill:

Purpose and Importance

The bill emphasizes the role of private standards development organizations in creating technical and voluntary consensus standards that support public health, safety, and innovation. It recognizes that these organizations often provide their standards for free online access without disrupting their ability to generate revenue through other means, such as subscriptions or sales.

Key Provisions

• Access Requirement: The bill requires standards incorporated by reference in federal, state, or local laws to be made publicly accessible online at no cost to users. This includes ensuring that materials are easily searchable and meet specific accessibility standards.
• Copyright Protection: Standards that are protected by copyright will retain that protection even if they are incorporated by reference into law. However, to keep this protection, the standards development organization must make the standard publicly available online within a reasonable timeframe.
• Definitions: The bill defines several key terms, such as "standard," "incorporated by reference," and "standards development organization," ensuring clarity about what is covered under this legislation.
• Burden of Proof: In any legal dispute regarding compliance with the access requirements, the burden of proof rests with the party claiming that a standards development organization has failed to meet the requirements.

Goals

The primary goals of the bill are to:

• Ensure public accessibility to critical technical standards without imposing financial burdens on users.
• Support ongoing innovation and development in technical standards by maintaining a revenue model for standards organizations.
• Facilitate timely updates of standards in response to changes in technology or public needs.

Implications for Stakeholders

The bill attempts to strike a balance between protecting the copyright interests of standards development organizations and ensuring that the public has access to important technical information that influences laws and regulations.

Relevant Companies

• ANSI (American National Standards Institute) - ANSI could be directly impacted as a standards development organization, required to comply with new access provisions while maintaining its revenue streams.
• IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission) - IEC may need to adjust its practices to ensure compliance with the new online accessibility requirements for its technical standards.