✦ Plain-English Summary

Public and Educational Lending Rights (Better Income for Authors) Bill 2026

What it does

This bill creates a new payment system to give Australian authors and publishers money when their books are borrowed from public libraries and school libraries. The government will set up a scheme and a committee to figure out how much to pay and distribute the funds fairly.

Why it matters

Authors and publishers currently earn nothing when libraries lend out their books—even though libraries buy those books and people read them. This scheme aims to put some money back in creators' pockets, similar to systems that already exist in countries like the UK and Germany.

Key details

• A new committee will be established to run the scheme and decide payment amounts (made up of appointed members with set terms)
• The Minister for the Arts will create the actual rules for how the scheme works—the bill sets the framework but leaves details to be decided later
• Who benefits: Australian authors and publishers whose books are in Australian public libraries and school libraries (the full bill would specify exactly which libraries count and what types of books qualify)

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