[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 13 (Thursday, January 22, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E125]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        TRIBUTE TO JON W. DUDAS

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. JOHN CONYERS, JR.

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, January 22, 2009

  Mr. CONYERS. Madam Speaker, I rise today on behalf of myself, Mr. 
Smith of Texas, Mr. Coble, Mr. Sensenbrenner, Mr. Berman, and Mr. Wolf 
to honor Jon W. Dudas, a distinguished public servant who is leaving 
the helm of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (``USPTO'') 
on January 20, 2009. Jon has served as Under Secretary of Commerce for 
Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO since July 2004. He 
previously served as acting Under Secretary and Director, and Deputy 
Under Secretary and Deputy Director from 2002 to 2004.
  As head of the world's leading intellectual property (``IP'') office, 
Jon developed and articulated administration positions on patent, 
copyright, and trademark issues, both domestic and foreign and 
effectively steered the operations of the USPTO, an organization of 
approximately 9,000 employees dedicated to providing and maintaining 
the intellectual property protections that promote innovation and 
technological advancement.
  Under Jon's leadership, the USPTO's university-style examiner 
training academy, peer review pilot, electronic filing and processing, 
and accelerated examination programs were developed and implemented. 
Additionally, the USPTO's hoteling programs for its patent and 
trademark examiners serve as a gold standard for other Federal agencies 
and the USPTO continued to be recognized as the leader in Federal 
Government telework initiatives.
  In the critical area of appropriations for the USPTO's vital 
operations, Jon worked tirelessly with the Congress and the 
administration to ensure USPTO's full access to all collected fees over 
the last 4 years, breaking a streak of fee diversion. His assistance 
and counsel were also greatly valued and appreciated during the House's 
development of patent reform and other pieces of important IP 
legislation.
  Prior to joining the Bush administration, Jon served 6 years as 
Counsel to the U.S. House Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts and 
Intellectual Property, and Staff Director and Deputy General Counsel 
for the House Judiciary Committee. He guided enactment of major patent, 
trademark, and copyright legislation, including the 1999 American 
Inventors Protection Act and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. He 
was also instrumental in the passage of the 1996 Trademark Anti-
Counterfeiting Consumer Protection Act, a law making it more difficult 
for seized counterfeit merchandise to re-enter the consumer 
marketplace.
  I know that our colleagues and the intellectual property community 
join Mr. Smith of Texas, Mr. Coble, Mr. Sensenbrenner, Mr. Berman, Mr. 
Wolf and me in commending Jon for the USPTO's substantive achievements 
during his tenure.
  We are honored to have this opportunity to publicly commend a truly 
dedicated public servant. We wish Jon all the best in his future 
endeavors.

                          ____________________