ARTS Act

The ARTS Act (Artistic Recognition for Talented Students Act) was passed by the 117th Congress and signed into law on October 17, 2022. The bill amends Title 17 of the U.S. Code to require the Register of Copyrights to waive copyright registration fees for works that win certain art competitions, specifically the Congressional Institute's high school art competition and the competition established under House Resolution 77 (113th Congress). The fee waiver applies if the application is filed within one calendar year of the win, with discretion for late filings. The bill had bipartisan support, sponsored by Sen. Tillis (R-NC) with cosponsors including Sens. Leahy, Durbin, and Blackburn. It passed the Senate by unanimous consent and the House by voice vote. The bill involves no appropriations; it merely waives existing fees, so the government forgoes a small amount of revenue (estimated negligible). No publicly traded companies are affected because the waiver applies to individual student winners, not corporate entities. The Copyright Office is a government agency, and the fee waiver does not create any new market opportunities or regulatory burdens for companies. There is no convergence with other federal signals or procurement. The bill is purely procedural and symbolic, with zero market impact. Investors should ignore this legislation for any trading decisions.