I 112th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 1056 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES March 14, 2011 Mr. Issa (for himself, Mr. Conyers, Mr. Gowdy, Mr. Johnson of Georgia, and Mr. Coble) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary A BILL To amend title 35, United States Code, with respect to false marking.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Patent Continuing Disclosure Act.

2.

False marking

Section 292 of title 35, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: (c)(1)Any person who makes, uses, offers for sale, or sells within the United States, or imports into the United States, an item that is affixed with the word patent and is accompanied by a number for a patent that has been granted by the Patent and Trademark Office to that person for that item shall not be fined under this section after the patent expires if— (A)no change in the manufacturing or production process of the item occurs after the expiration of the patent; or (B)in a case in which a change in the manufacturing or production process of the item occurs after the expiration of the patent, the word expired is placed before the word patent or the patent number. (2)For purposes of this subsection, the term change in the manufacturing or production process of an item means an intentional expansion, enhancement, improvement, or repair, that suspends, for a period of at least 24 hours, the normal operating procedures through which the item is assembled, made, crafted, manufactured, built, or fabricated from individual components or raw materials, or both. .

3.

Applicability

The amendment made by section 2 shall apply to any case pending on the date of the enactment of this Act and to any case commenced on or after such date of enactment.