Music Licensing for Towns, Counties, Municipalities, and other Local Governmental Entities

The International Municipal Lawyers Association (IMLA) is a non-profit, professional organization that has been an advocate and resource for local government attorneys since 1935. It champions the development of fair and realistic legal solutions and provides its members with information about, and solutions to, the profusion of legal issues facing its membership today.

IMLA and BMI, both interested parties in seeking resolve to compliance issues, negotiated this agreement so that local governments would benefit from one license covering all local government entities’ music uses rather than signing separate licenses for each use of music. BMI also gives you the option to license on any of BMI’s single use licenses that are specific to your type of music use.

You may choose one of the two options below to license music for your municipality:

1. License multiple types of music usage under the BMI/IMLA Music License. For example, if your municipality uses music at a festival, a skating rink, in an airport, and at trade shows, you could cover all these different types of music usage with one BMI/IMLA Music License;

2. License single uses of music under a BMI license for that specific type of music use. For example, if your municipality uses music at a festival and a skating rink you could cover this type of music use with BMI’s Festival Music License and BMI’s Skating Rink Music License.

The locations covered in this license include any buildings, hospitals, airports, zoos, museums, athletic facilities, and recreational facilities, (like community centers, parks, swimming pools, and skating rinks) owned and/or operated by the local government entity. It also includes any other location that the local government has arranged to use.

Events and Functions covered under this license include aerobics and exercise classes, athletic events, dances and other social events, concerts, festivals, arts and crafts fairs, and parades held under the auspices of, or sponsored or promoted by, the local government at one of its locations. Fees for these types of events are based on the community’s population.

A Special Event includes musical events, concerts, shows, pageants, sporting events, festivals, competitions, and other events of limited duration that are presented by the local government where the gross revenues for the event exceed $25,000. For purposes of the BMI Local Governmental Entities License, gross revenue includes all monies received by the local government or on its behalf from the sale of tickets. If there are no monies from the sale of tickets, gross revenue shall include contributions from the sponsors or other payments received by the local government for the Special Event.

Trade shows, expositions, conventions, conferences, industrial shows or similar activities are covered provided that the event is presented or sponsored solely by and under the auspices of the local government. The event must also be presented entirely at one of its locations and it must not be open to the general public.

This license does not authorize performances of BMI music:

• By or at colleges and universities;
• At any professional sports events or game played on the premises;
• At any permanently situated theme or amusement park owned or operated by the local government;
• By any symphony or community orchestra;
• Or by means of a coin operated jukebox.

It is important to note that licensing for performances of BMI music which are not covered under this license can be obtained from BMI under licenses specifically designed for these other purposes

If your organization qualifies under any of these descriptions, you would license under the Agreement for Local Governmental Entities using the fees identified in Schedule C of the BMI/IMLA License.

Starting in 2003, all fees (except the $500 add-on for populations of 500,001 or more) will be adjusted by the percentage increase or decrease in the Consumer Price Index (CPI). For specific information, please review Paragraph 14 of the BMI/IMLA License.

Upon execution of your license, you will need to report your population based on the most recent published U.S. Census data. This figure will be used to calculate your Base License Fee. You may also need to report information regarding Special Events upon execution of the license. For a detailed explanation of the reporting requirements during the term of the license, please review Paragraph 13 of the BMI/IMLA License.