The Senate and the House have approved DOJ spending via The 21st Century Department of Justice Appropriations Authorization Act that now awaits the President’s signature. Bundled into this authorization is a revision to Section 110(2) of the U.S. Copyright Act, called the Educational Use Copyright Exemption. The title of the Senate version is “Technology, Education and Copyright Harmonization Act,” or the “TEACH Act.” This law now permits the fair use, wihtout permission, of portions of copyrighted images, text and sound during the course of instructional programs only by “accredited nonprofit educational institution(s).”
For additional information on the background and implications of this law, please see the American Library Association’s (ALA) resource, The Technology, Education and Copyright Harmonization (TEACH) Act. See also this related article from the Chronicle of Higher Education, Congress Eases Copyright Restrictions on Distance Education.