Exemptions To Permit Circumvention of Access Controls on Copyrighted Works

What it does

The United States Copyright Office is initiating the tenth triennial rulemaking proceeding under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act ("DMCA") to determine whether to recommend temporary exemptions to the DMCA's prohibition against circumvention of technological measures that control access to copyrighted works. The Office is accepting petitions for renewal of current exemptions and petitions for new exemptions, and will subsequently accept comments in response to renewal petitions.

The Copyright Office, Library of Congress's summary, as published in the Federal Register.

What it would change

1 part of Title 37 of the Code of Federal Regulations:

37 CFR 201

Wording on eCFR: the day before it took effect and from the day it took effect (first part listed).

What happens next and when

Written petitions for new exemptions and written petitions for renewal of current exemptions must be received no later than 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on August 24, 2026. Written comments in response to petitions for renewal must be received no later than 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on September 28, 2026.

The agency's dates, word for word.

Check it yourself

• The document in the Federal Register
• Docket COLC-2026-0100 on Regulations.gov
• Title 37 on eCFR

The record as published

Source: the Federal Register (public domain). The document in the Federal Register