These days, the Recording Industry Association of America is arguably best known for its legal campaign against P2P users—filing over 25,000 copyright infringement lawsuits in a few short years will do that, I guess. But as a music industry trade group, the group has several other responsibilities. One of those is lobbying Congress for tougher copyright laws, an endeavor that the group spent nearly $2.1 million on in 2007.

Each year, groups that lobby Congress are required to report on how much they spent convincing lawmakers to pass legislation. During 2007, the RIAA spent $2.08 million lobbing Congress on three pieces of legislation near and dear to its heart: The PRO-IP Act, the Intellectual Property Enforcement Act, college funding bill The College Opportunity and Affordability Act, and legislation relating to royalties paid by terrestrial and Internet broadcasters.

The far-reaching PRO-IP Act was introduced to the House in December 2007. The bill would create a new executive office, the Office of the US Intellectual Property Enforcement Representative, which would be charged with coordinating IP enforcement at the national and international levels. IP agents would be sent to other countries to assist in investigation and crackdowns in much the same way as they do drug-trafficking investigations.

The PRO-IP Act would also increase penalties for copyright and trademark infringement, allowing for the seizure of equipment used for copyright infringement. Originally, the bill included penalties of up to $1.5 million for illegally copying 10-song compilation CDs, but that provision was later pulled by a House subcommittee. The legislation has yet to emerge from committee, and the last action was a December 2007 subcommittee hearing.

Over in the Senate, the Intellectual Property Enforcement Act is the latest incarnation of the PIRATE Act. The RIAA loves this bill because it would outsource the thousands of copyright infringement lawsuits filed each year to the Department of Justice, saving the group millions of dollars in legal fees. The IPEA would also increase funding for the FBI's investigations of crimes "related to the theft of intellectual property." The IPEA has also yet to emerge from committee.

The RIAA's interest in the College Opportunity and Affordability Act comes from a very controversial provision that requires schools to make plans to implement copyright filters on their networks and offer legal alternatives to file-sharing. Colleges and universities across the country opposed the IP enforcement provision of the financial aid funding bill out of fears that it would ultimately lead to financial aid being cut off. House staffers have told Ars that is not the case, saying that failure to plan for filters and legal music services would have no consequences.

The RIAA's lobbying efforts aren't just limited to Congress. The group is part of the Copyright Alliance, which also counts the MPAA as a member. The Copyright Alliance claims to speak "on behalf of the 11 million Americans employed in the creative industries," and has lobbied the current presidential candidates for tougher copyright laws.

CEO Mitch Bainwol, president Cary Sherman, and director of strategic communications Paige Ralston Fromer were among those working the halls of the Capitol on behalf of the RIAA during 2007.

As a private trade group funded by the record labels, the RIAA's budget is an unknown quantity, and it's impossible to say what percentage of its budget the RIAA spends on lobbying (or P2P litigation, for that matter). The group's $2.08 million expenditure is a mere fraction of the $2.8 billion spent lobbying Congress and the executive branch last year, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. $2.08 million isn't even enough to crack the top 20 list, which was headed up by the US Chamber of Commerce with $52.75 million. Lockheed Martin brought up the rear of that list with $10.41 million spent.

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