SOPA and PIPA: Where Georgia's Representatives Stand

By Marianne English

Atlanta, GA –

Public outcry and protests from Internet companies including Wikipedia and Google pressured Congress to rethink its two anti-piracy bills. The "Stop Online Piracy Act" (SOPA) was pulled from the House today - only hours after the Senate postponed its vote next Tuesday on a similar bill, the "Protect IP Act " (PIPA).

Both bills would tighten enforcement of intellectual property laws online - a move that opponents say would censor expression and restrict the openness of the Web.

Online protests spurred a flurry of reactions from political representatives around the country. ProPublica, an non-profit newsroom, released a summary of legislators that support and oppose the bills.

But where do Georgia's legislators stand?

Republican senators Johnny Isakson and Saxby Chambliss both co-sponsored PIPA when it was introduced.

Johnny Isakson wrote on his website that he co-sponsors PIPA because " it is specifically aimed at foreign criminals who steal American goods and content, sap the economy and are a danger to consumers."

But Chambliss decided today to remove his sponsorship of the bill. His press office provided WABE News with the following statement:

"It was always clear that the PROTECT I.P. Act [PIPA] needed to be perfected, and that legitimate concerns needed to be addressed before this bill could move forward. Given this and my constituents' concerns, it was my intention to vote against cloture of this bill. With the majority leader's decision to postpone Tuesday's vote on the PROTECT I.P. Act, I am withdrawing my co-sponsorship to await the resolution of the outstanding issues. However, I still believe that online theft is a serious issue, and that Congress does need to make certain that our laws adequately protect the interests of rights holders. When $58 billion in economic output is lost to the U.S. economy annually due to copyright theft of movies, music, packaged software and video games, and about one-quarter of all Internet traffic is copyright infringing, there is a real problem that needs to be dealt with. I have complete faith that we will be able to work out a compromise in the future that addresses this problem, while still promoting free and open access to the Internet."

John Barrow (D, 12th District) is the only state co-sponsor of SOPA at this time.

Here is a list of representatives who have expressed opposition to the House bill:

Paul Broun (R, 10th District) released a statement in opposition to SOPA in its current form.

Tom Graves (R, 9th District) told WGST earlier this week: "In its current form, I'm opposed to it."

Hank Johnson (D, 4th District) tweeted he wouldn't vote for the current draft of SOPA.

Jack Kingston (R, 1st District) opposes the House bill, a communications officer told WABE News.

John Lewis (D, 5th District) also tweeted against SOPA.

Austin Scott (R, 8th District) updated his public Facebook page , stating he would not vote for SOPA in its current form.

David Scott (D, 13th District) does not support SOPA or PIPA. His press office told WABE News that he thinks there are other ways to limit online piracy.

Lynn Westmoreland (R, 3rd District) laid out his view in a blog post, stating that both SOPA and PIPA are too broadly written, and could bring about "unintended consequences."

Rob Woodall (R, 7th District) released a statement that SOPA is "not the right tool" to protect American innovation and creativity from theft.

The following representatives could not be reached before deadline. It's unclear whether they support or oppose SOPA:

Sanford Bishop (D, 2nd District)

Phil Gingrey (R, 11th District)

Tom Price (R, 6th District)