While critics and supporters debate the more technical aspects of the PROTECT IP bill, one topic has gone largely ignored: its price tag. As it turns out, sweeping changes to Internet security and how websites operate don't come cheap. The Congressional Budget Office released a cost estimate analysis last week that found $47 million would need to be allocated through 2016 to get the legislation off the ground.
The $47 million figure (.pdf) would cover the creation of 48 new positions within the Department of Justice, said the CBO.
"DOJ anticipates that it would need to hire 22 special agents and 26 support staff to execute its new investigative responsibilities under the bill," reads the report. "Once fully phased in, CBO estimates the costs of the additional employees under the bill would reach about $10 million annually, including salaries, benefits, training, equipment, and support costs."
The CBO declined to attach a number to the cost to the private sector, but that doesn't mean taxpayers are off the hook:
By authorizing DOJ to take legal action against Internet service providers, credit card companies, online advertisers, and search engines that engage in activities that infringe on the copyrights of others, the bill would impose a mandate. The companies identified in a DOJ legal action would be required either to block access to the Internet site or stop doing business with the site. The bill also would allow copyright holders to take legal action to prohibit credit card companies and online advertisers from doing business with Internet sites that infringe on copyrights. Because of uncertainty about how often and against whom the Department of Justice or copyright holders would use the authority to prohibit the actions outlined in the bill, CBO cannot determine the cost of the mandate to the private sector.
Despite the analysis (or because of it), the MPAA, a key backer of PROTECT IP, has come forward with its own cost estimate analysis: $0.
"The bill doesn't call for any spending in itself; you will find no dollar signs in PROTECT IP," wrote Cybele Daley, MPAA spokesperson. "CBO's statements that the bill 'would not affect direct spending or revenues' and 'would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal governments' reflect that same fact. The bill does not direct the government to spend money, which is enormously important."
However, Daley noted that the MPAA would certainly appreciate whatever "resources" Congress could deliver to help fight piracy. "Any money we spend on PROTECT IP is likely to produce a healthy return on investment for taxpayers - which, in the end, is the best outcome of all," Daley explained.
The PROTECT IP bill, which was passed by the Senate Judiciary Committee in May, is currently on hold; no date has been set for a full Senate vote.
