A group of lawyers committed to keeping uniformity in state laws is having its annual meeting beginning this week, and the Open Source community wants to deliver this message to them: UCITA will kill Open Source. And they really need your help.

Carol Kunze, on behalf of Red Hat, has posted an open letter to the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws (or NCCUSL), asking that group to reverse the 1999 decision to adopt the Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act (UCITA).
The NCCUSL is gathering in Tucson, Arizona, from July 26 to August 2 to take care of standard committee business, consider amendments to several uniform acts, and be entertained. Red Hat is hoping that the commission will take time to consider its request to reverse UCITA, even though there's nothing on the official agenda about the act that, among other things, "provides a comprehensive set of rules for licensing computer information."

Red Hat is objecting to UCITA because, it says, UCITA was crafted for the proprietary software industry. And Open Source "has created its own set of practices and norms that differ widely from the commercial rules that UCITA adopts as the standard. UCITA does not reflect the Open Source community's development model, its distribution model, its license terms, nor its general expectations."

Red Hat is influential in the Open Source community, but in order to fully convince the commission that UCITA is not the answer for regulating software contracts, your help is needed. Find your state in the list below and email your NCCUSL commissioners to let them know you support the reversal of UCITA. It may be helpful to use the Red Hat letter as a guide.

NCCUSL Commissioner Email Addresses

Alaska
art@dillonfindley.com
Deborah_Behr@law.state.ak.us
lsjkj@aol.com
wgc@customcpu.com

Alabama
RepGaines@aol.com
rmccurle@law.ua.edu
tjones@law.ua.edu
bruce@hwnn.com

Arkansas
jpender@pmppa.com
larry@arkleg.state.ar.us
david@nixonlaw.com
pcarroll@roselawfirm.com
jdeacon@barrettdeacon.com

Arizona
henderson@nt.law.arizona.edu
l.lemon@azbar.org
tberg@fclaw.com

California
bion.gregory@ccusl.ca.gov
darlinghallrae@compuserve.com
elihu2000@aol.com
wburke@shearman.com
senator.sher@sen.ca.gov
nsterling@clrc.ca.gov
Pamela_Chin@parsons.com
Ronald.phillips@pepperdine.edu
williamsrc@aol.com

Colorado
charley.pike@state.co.us
russgeor@sni.net
lw2demuth@worldnet.att.net
tomg@grimshawharring.com
bkreplep@aol.com

Connecticut
bhawkins@goodwin.com
david.biklen@po.state.ct.us
john.langbein@yale.edu
pavetti@aol.com
lmorgan@rjmlawct.com
WBreetz@law.uconn.edu

District of Columbia
bkass@kass-skalet.com
cbrookinshudson@dccouncil.washington.dc.us
zeldonj@dcsc.gov
efdyke@venable.com
jamescmckay@yahoo.com

Delaware
mhoughton@mnat.com
ann.c.stilson@law.widener.edu
robinsonr@ce.net

Florida
lstagg@akerman.com
ecutl@carltonfields.com
ehrhardt@law.fsu.edu
hkittles@hklaw.com
jessen.linda@leg.state.fl.us
jmorse@law.fsu.edu

Georgia
mwmacy@aol.com
rwellman@arches.uga.edu
rgm@hbss.net

Hawaii
ekent@hawaii.edu
jachanin@hotmail.com
toyofuku@pixi.com
hiaglegis@yahoo.com
lewart@goodsill.com
takayama@capitol.hawaii.gov

Iowa
cdmahon@aol.com
Sheldon-kurtz@uiowa.edu
david.walker@drake.edu

Idaho
dghiger@stoel.com
pckm@marshallbatt.com

Illinois
ctabb@law.uiuc.edu
hjs@arnstein.com
mbgetty@aol.com
r-picker@uchicago.edu
richwards@legis.state.il.us
tryder@gtec.com
tjmccrackenjr@ameritech.net
jeremiah@hopsut.com
harry_leinenweber@ilnd.uscourts.gov
diane_ford@gov.state.il.us

Indiana
GBepko@iupui.edu
S40@ai.org
mts@starkey-law.com
hpatchel@iupui.edu

Kansas
elpom@networksplus.net
mroneal@southwind.net
zzconc@washburn.edu
temert@terraworld.net
hite@hitefanning.com

Kentucky
dcetrulo@email.msn.com
scawood@mmlk.com
johngillig@lrc.state.ky.us
john.spangler@lrc.state.ky.us
wswilborn@aol.com

Louisiana
guillotj@legis.state.la.us
henry.gabriel@sstar.com
wdh3770@aol.com

Massachusetts
smithee@bingham.com
stephen_chow@pscboston.com

Maryland
kingwebnet@aol.com

Maine
Bcoggeshall@PierceAtwood.com
rrobinson@rkmlegal.com
marsulu4@aol.com

Michigan
arichner@house.state.mi.us
ggulliver@lsb.state.mi.us
jjwhite@umich.edu
rwebster@clarkhill.com
sencdingell@senate.state.mi.us

Minnesota
HARRYMW@msn.com
robertstein@staff.abanet.org
mndavies@aol.com
harriet.lansing@courts.state.mn.us
hhaynsworth@wmitchell.edu
michele.timmons@revisor.leg.state.mn.us
Robert.Tennessen@gpmlaw.com

Missouri
jfarnold@lashlybaer.com
englishda@missouri.edu
mferry@gatewaylegal.org
fryp@missouri.edu
heinszt@missouri.edu
henningw@missouri.edu

Mississippi
tbeck@mail.lbo.state.ms.us
ncarlton@ltindall.com
navyjag@aol.com
iq.attys@usa.net
pwatson@mail.house.state.ms.us
hooper@olemiss.edu
smdavis@olemiss.edu

Montana
eck@selway.umt.edu
gpetesch@state.mt.us
Jcnelson@state.mt.us
jmazurek@state.mt.us

North Carolina
mbenfield@compuvision.net
flewis@mail.jus.state.nc.us
rbillings@law.wfu.edu
snichols@mail.jus.state.nc.us
wnj@coa.state.nc.us
russell.walker@ncisd.nc.us

North Dakota
oanderson@ou.edu
dhogue@ndak.net
jburingr@state.nd.us
mike.unhjem@bcbsnd.com
wstenehjem@aol.com
lklemin@state.nd.us

Nebraska
abeam@ce8.uscourts.gov
hsperlman@unl.edu
mgmlawnp@nponline.net
jpepperl@unicam.state.ne.us
ruth@nol.org

New Jersey
jdonegan@prsmo.com

New Mexico
ciscolaw@hotmail.com
desiderior@law.unm.edu
jpburton@rodey.com
pplarragoite@hotmail.com
paula.tackett@state.nm.us
mlo1@7cities.net

Nevada
fdaykin@lcb.state.nv.us
erdoes@lcb.state.nv.us
mjames@sen.state.nv.us
wasserman@lcb.state.nv.us

New York
jvigdor@boylanbrown.com
rlong@cglawllp.com
rsmith@dpw.com
SSternLaw@aol.com
normlg510@aol.com

Ohio
AttyBoris@aol.com
lee_mccorkle@wendys.com
rogers.23@osu.edu
sfisher@arterhadden.com
w-evans@onu.edu

Oklahoma
duchessb@swbell.net
lwhinery@ou.edu

Oregon
Gregory.A.Chaimov@state.or.us
jwillis@schwabe.com
mwalters@wrcdlaw.com

Pennsylvania
creitz@law.upenn.edu
jsheehan@state.pa.us
stuckey@state.pa.us
haf3@psu.edu
poulin@law.villanova.edu

Rhode Island
cmassouda@rilin.state.ri.us
judge_William_Hillman@mab.uscourts.gov

South Dakota
glebrun@lynnjackson.com
Law@DemJen.com
scott@jhmmj.com
dgregers@wfss.com

Tennessee
ctrost@wallerlaw.com
ellen.tewes@legislature.state.tn.us
rclark@armstrongallen.com

Texas
htindall@tindallfoster.com
leonard.reese@tlc.state.tx.us
rsatterwhite@stubbemanlawfirm.com
mmpc@texoma.com
p.guillot@airmail.net
marianne_auld@baylor.edu

Utah
RMartineau@SCMLAW.com

Virginia
emiller@leg.state.va.us
pamela_sargent@vawd.uscourts.gov
ccring@ober.com
jfrench@leg.state.va.us
ktaylor@t-mlaw.com

Virgin Islands
ytharpes@mail.senate.gov.vi
tbolt@vilaw.com

Vermont
cgravel@gravshea.com
clisman@lisman.com
lsmiddy@vermontlaw.edu
rcassidy@hoffcurtis.com
daglaw@sover.net

Washington
J_m.appelwick@courts.wa.gov
raron@u.washington.edu
usmjcimbr@hotmail.com
cooper_de@leg.wa.gov

Wisconsin
bruce.munson@legis.state.wi.us
ljbugge@itis.com
peter.dykman@legis.state.wi.us
Rep.Gundrum@legis.state.wi.us
Sen.George@legis.state.wi.us
Sen.Huelsman@legis.state.wi.us

West Virginia
fordlaw@inetone.net
jmcclaugherty@jacksonkelly.com
stamps4@aol.com

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