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AN ACT
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IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
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To amend An Act To establish and provide for the maintenance of a free public library and
reading room in the District of Columbia to prohibit the District of Columbia Public
Library from entering into or renewing licensing agreements with publishers of electronic
literary materials that restrict District residents’ access to books.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this
act may be cited as the “Library E-Book Licensing Fairness Amendment Act of 2026”.
Sec. 2. An Act To establish and provide for the maintenance of a free public library and
reading room in the District of Columbia, approved June 3, 1896 (29 Stat. 244; D.C. Official
Code § 39-101 et seq.), is amended by adding a new section 18 to read as follows:
“Sec. 18. Restrictions on licensing agreements for electronic materials.
“(a) For purposes of this section, the term:
“(1) “Aggregator” means any person in the business of licensing access to
electronic literary material collections that include electronic literary material from multiple
publishers.
“(2) “All access collection” mean a pre-packaged selection of electronic literary
materials, including electronic books, digital audiobooks, magazines, comics, and graphic novels
available simultaneously for patron usage for one flat fee.
“(3) “Borrower” means a person or organization, including another library, to
whom the library loans media of any sort.
“(4) “Digital audiobook” means a sound recording of a reading of any literary
material that has been converted into or published in a digital audio file that may be listened to
on an electronic device.
“(5) “Electronic book” means a text document that has been converted into or
published in a digital format that may be read on an electronic device.
“(6) “Electronic literary material” means any digital audiobook or electronic
book.
“(7) “Library” means the District of Columbia Public Library.
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“(8) “Loan” means the creation and transmission by a library to a borrower of a
copy of any electronic literary material and the library’s removal of the borrower’s access to that
copy upon the expiration of the loan period.
“(9) “Loan period” means the time period commencing with the library’s creation
and transmission of a copy of any electronic literary material to a borrower and concluding with
the library’s deletion of that copy,
“(10) “Publisher” means any person in the business of the manufacture,
promulgation, license, or sale of books, audiobooks, journals, magazines, newspapers, or other
literary materials, including those in the form of electronic literary materials, and includes any
aggregator who enters into a contract with any library for the purpose of providing materials for
purchase or license.
“(11) “Subscription-based literary platform” means any platform which charges
users a recurring fee to gain ongoing access to a collection of literary content, including
educational materials, electronic books, digital audiobooks, and serialized stories.
“(12) “Technological protection measure” means any technology that enhances
the security of loaning or circulating electronic literary materials by a library.
“(b) Once per quarter, the Executive Director of the Library (“Director”) shall report to
the Board of Library Trustees (“Board”) whether any states have enacted laws substantially
similar to this section. If the Board determines that a law substantially similar to the provisions
of this section has been enacted in 10 or more states, not including the District of Columbia, and
the aggregate population of such states equals to at least 50 million people, as enumerated in the
most recent United States decennial census, the Board shall direct the Director to publish notice
of the Board’s determination in the District of Columbia Register (“Register”).
“(c) Not later than 30 days after the publication in the Register of the Board’s
determination under subsection (b) of this section, the Director shall electronically notify the
Council of such determination and the date the requirements of subsection (d) of this section are
projected to take effect.
“(d) Beginning on the 60th day after publication in the Register of the Board’s
determination under subsection (b) of this section, the Library shall not enter into or renew any
contract with a publisher that limits the Library’s loaning of digital materials to borrowers,
including any provision that:
“(1) Prohibits the Library from loaning any electronic literary material, including
through any interlibrary loan system;
“(2) Restricts the number of times the Library may loan any electronic literary
material over the course of the contract if such contract also restricts the library’s loan period for
electronic library material;
“(3) Limits the number of electronic literary material licenses the Library may
purchase on the same date such electronic literary material is made available for purchase by the
public;
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“(4) Requires the Library to acquire licenses for electronic literary materials at a
price the Board finds to be unconscionable due to the gross disparity between the price of the
electronic literary material sold or leased and the value of an electronic literary material
measured by the price at which a similar electronic literary material is readily obtainable in
transactions by like buyers;
“(5) Restricts the Library from disclosing the terms of the contract or license
agreement to any other library;
“(6) Restricts the duration of the contract or license agreement for electronic
literary material unless the library also has the option of a contract or license agreement on
commercially reasonable terms in consideration of the library’s mission that either:
“(A) Is based on a pay-per-use model; or
“(B) Provides for the perpetual public use of the electronic literary
material;
“(7) Provides that the contract is not severable from any provision within such
contract that is found to be prohibited by this subsection; or
“(8) Allows the enforcement of any of the provisions prohibited by this subsection
other than in a judicial forum.
“(e) Subsection (d) of this section shall not be construed to preclude the Library’s
entrance into a contract with a publisher that:
“(1) Contains:
“(A) A limitation on the number of borrowers the Library may allow to
have simultaneous access to any electronic literary material; or
“(B) A provision concerning the Library’s reasonable use of any
technological protection measure that prevents a borrower from:
“(i) Maintaining access to any electronic literary material beyond
the access period specified in the contract or license agreement; or
“(ii) Providing other borrowers with access to any electronic
literary material; or
“(2) Permits:
“(A) The Library or District to arrange or participate in a local, regional,
or nationwide event that requires simultaneous access by multiple patrons to the same electronic
literary material, provided that the contract does not restrict electronic literary material other than
the material that is the subject of the event under subsection (d) of this section;
“(B) The Library to provide patron access to a subscription-based literary
platform; or
“(C) The Library to provide electronic literary materials via an all-access
collection of materials; provided, that the contract does not restrict electronic literary material
outside of the all-access collection under subsection (d) of this section.”.
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Sec. 3. Fiscal impact statement.
The Council adopts the fiscal impact statement in the committee report as the fiscal
impact statement required by section 4a of the General Legislative Procedures Act of 1975,
approved October 16, 2006 (120 Stat. 2038; D.C. Official Code § 1-301.47a).
Sec. 4. Effective date.
This act shall take effect after approval by the Mayor (or in the event of veto by the
Mayor, action by the Council to override the veto) and a 30-day period of congressional review
as provided in section 602(c)(1) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, approved December
24, 1973 (87 Stat. 813; D.C. Official Code § 1-206.02(c)(1)).
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Chairman
Council of the District of Columbia
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Mayor
District of Columbia