WASHINGTON, D.C. — The House of Representatives passed a bill on Monday to alter the appointment process for the librarian of Congress. The legislation also aims to prevent executive branch interference in agencies of the legislative branch.
Under the bill, the president's authority to appoint the heads of the Library of Congress and the Government Publishing Office would be removed. Instead, the bill authorizes House and Senate leaders to appoint these officials. Conversely, the legislation grants the president new appointment authority for the register of copyrights, an office that has historically operated as part of the Library of Congress.
U.S. Representative Morgan Griffith, the lead sponsor of the bill, said, "At its core, this bill is about ensuring that agencies of the legislative branch are governed in a manner consistent with our constitutional system, improving continuity in leadership and strengthening congressional oversight." Griffith said, "I feel like doing that disclaimer at the end of a movie: This has nothing to do with any current or former librarians of Congress, or any current or former members of the White House." The bill passed the House by a voice vote and now moves to the Senate, where it requires bipartisan support.
The legislation follows prior events, including President Donald Trump's firing of the librarian of Congress in May 2025. Additionally, President Trump moved to fire Register of Copyrights Shira Perlmutter shortly after her office published a draft report on artificial intelligence models trained on copyrighted materials. Perlmutter is currently challenging her removal in court. The draft report from the Copyright Office warned about the effects of artificial intelligence training on fair use law.
Lawmakers revised the bill text to gain Democratic support. The bill was originally scheduled for markup in March before being postponed to May. U.S. Representative Joseph D. Morelle said the revised bill establishes a transition period and allows the Copyright Office to continue using library support services. Griffith said he remains open to revisiting the Copyright Office in the future but intends to finalize the current legislation.