[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 28 (Tuesday, March 7, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1829-S1830]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           PASSAGE OF H.R. 32

  Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, I rise today to compliment my friends in 
the House of Representatives for passing expeditiously H.R. 32--the 
Stop Counterfeiting in Manufactured Goods Act--as amended by the 
Senate.
  In addition to a few technical changes, I am pleased that the bill 
included the entirety of S. 1095, the Protecting American Goods and 
Services Act, introduced last year by myself and Senator Leahy.
  I am particularly pleased to work with the senior Senator from 
Vermont in our continued bipartisan effort to protect intellectual 
property rights as well as to work on other important issues. Last 
year, we worked together on a matter near and dear to my heart--good 
government legislation related to the Freedom of Information Act, and 
it indeed has been a pleasure to work with him again. His staff has

[[Page S1830]]

worked tirelessly with mine--especially Susan Davies, whose hard work 
and dedication to the goal of making good public policy is a testament 
to her, to Senator Leahy, and to good legislative process.
  The combined package passed today in the form of H.R. 32 represents 
important, bipartisan legislation designed to combat the trafficking of 
illegitimate goods throughout the world. The rampant distribution of 
illegitimate goods--be it counterfeited products, illegal copies of 
copyrighted works or any other form of piracy--undermines property 
rights, threatens American jobs, decreases consumer safety and, 
oftentimes, supports organized crime and terrorist activity.
  Amazingly, it is estimated that between 5 percent and 7 percent of 
worldwide trade is conducted with counterfeit goods and services. 
According FBI estimates, counterfeiting costs U.S. businesses as much 
as $200 to $250 billion annually--and that costs Americans their jobs--
more than 750,000 jobs according to U.S. Customs.
  In recent years, this plague on global trade has grown significantly. 
According to the World Customs Organization and Interpol, the global 
trade in illegitimate goods has increased from $5.5 billion in 1992 to 
more than $600 billion per year today. That is $600 billion per year 
illegally extracted from the global economy.
  But for me, as chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Immigration, 
Border Security and Citizenship, I find it most troubling that the 
counterfeit trade across our borders and throughout the world threatens 
our safety and our national security. Most frighteningly, evidence 
indicates that the counterfeit trade supports terrorist activities. 
Indeed, al-Qaida training manuals recommended the sale of fake goods to 
raise revenue.
  Further, counterfeit goods undermine our confidence in the 
reliability of goods and service. For example, the Federal Aviation 
Administration estimates that 2 percent of the 26 million airline parts 
installed each year are counterfeit. And the Federal Drug 
Administration estimates that as much as 10 percent of pharmaceuticals 
are counterfeit.

  And the reach of counterfeiting runs deep in my own home State of 
Texas. Data is difficult to collect, but a 1997 piece detailing 
Microsoft's efforts to combat counterfeiting and piracy--while dated--
pointed out that this type of activity costs Texas over 10,000 jobs and 
almost $1 billion. Today, we know those numbers are much higher.
  We must act to stop this illegal activity. The legislation we passed 
today will help us do just that. It is not complicated--nor is it long, 
but its global impact will be significant. The legislation is designed 
to provide law enforcement with additional tools to curb the flow of 
these illegitimate goods and it is perhaps even more critical for 
businesses, large and small, throughout America and for ensuring the 
safety of consumers around the globe.
  Those who traffic in counterfeit goods put Americans in danger, 
support terrorism and undermine the health of our Nation's economy. S. 
1095--or the ``PAGS Act''--as included in the legislation passed 
today--fills certain important gaps in current counterfeiting law by 
clarifying the term ``trafficking'' to ensure that it is illegal to:
  Possess counterfeit goods with the intention of selling them; give 
away counterfeit goods in exchange for some future benefit--in effect, 
the ``bartering'' of counterfeit goods in such a way that avoids 
criminality; import or export counterfeit goods or unauthorized copies 
of copyrighted works.
  This bill will protect property rights, protect consumer safety, 
preserve American jobs, and bolster the American economy by cracking 
down on the trade of illegal counterfeit goods and services.
  Each of these items was highlighted by the Department of Justice in 
its October, 2004 report on its Task Force on Intellectual Property. In 
it, the Department describes the significant limitation law enforcement 
oftentimes faces in pursuing counterfeiters and offers, among others, 
the principles embraced in the Protecting American Goods and Services 
Act, as possible solutions to these obstacles.
  This legislation, and other reforms, will help turn the tide of the 
growing counterfeit trade. The legislation is critically important to 
law enforcement--but it is even more critical for businesses, large and 
small, throughout America--including in my home State of Texas--as well 
as for ensuring the safety of consumers around the globe. Those who 
traffic in counterfeit goods put Americans in danger, support terrorism 
and undermine the health of our nation's economy. It is time to put an 
end to this scourge on society.
  I look forward to the President signing this legislation into law, 
and in so doing, protecting property rights, protecting consumer 
safety, preserving American jobs and bolstering the American economy.

                          ____________________