No one was in the room, but progress was made.
My bill to protect the instructional, creative, or scholarly work product of professors was first on the list for the Government Operations subcommittee.
Before it was taken up, however, there was a request to leave the room from the lobbyist for the University System of Maryland, my chief of staff, counsel for the Washington Post, and a lawyer for the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.
Email does wonders, but this face-to-face meeting resulted in a better understanding of what I was trying to accomplish than the many messages that had preceded it.
No agreement yet, but we’re now discussing a revised amendment online, instead of a request for summer study.
—
My legislation to require businesses to make their websites accessible for the blind was also introduced in the State Senate.
The Senate sponsor is a member of the committee that will vote on the bill. I am not.
I discussed the legislation with the lawyer who asked me to introduce it.
“Let’s try to move the Senate bill first,” I suggested. “The sponsor will be in the room when decisions are made.”
If the Senate bill gets favorable action, the same is also likely for mine.
