[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 29 (Tuesday, March 1, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1052-S1053]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  PATENT REFORM ACT OF 2011--Continued


                           Amendment No. 124

  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to set aside the 
pending business and I call up amendment No. 124, which is at the desk.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The clerk will report.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       The Senator from New Jersey [Mr. Menendez] proposes an 
     amendment numbered 124.

  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that reading of 
the amendment be dispensed with.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The amendment is as follows:

   (Purpose: To provide for prioritized examination for technologies 
                 important to American competitiveness)

       On page 104, strike line 23, and insert the following:

     SEC. 18. PRIORITY EXAMINATION FOR TECHNOLOGIES IMPORTANT TO 
                   AMERICAN COMPETITIVENESS.

       Section 2(b)(2) of title 35, United States Code, is 
     amended--
       (1) in subparagraph (E), by striking ``; and'' and 
     inserting a semicolon;
       (2) in subparagraph (F), by striking the semicolon and 
     inserting ``; and''; and
       (3) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(G) may, subject to any conditions prescribed by the 
     Director and at the request of the patent applicant, provide 
     for prioritization of examination of applications for 
     products, processes, or technologies that are important to 
     the national economy or national competitiveness, such as 
     green technologies designed to foster renewable energy, clean 
     energy, biofuels or bio-based products, agricultural 
     sustainability, environmental quality, energy conservation, 
     or energy efficiency, without recovering the aggregate extra 
     cost of providing such prioritization, notwithstanding 
     section 41 or any other provision of law;''.

     SEC. 19. EFFECTIVE DATE.

  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. President, the goal of the patent reform 
legislation is to incentivize investment in the American economy, to 
create jobs, and allow this great country to continue to win in the 
global marketplace.
  The amendment I am offering here today would do just that. It would 
incentivize innovation and investment by prioritizing patents that are 
vital to the American economy and American competitiveness. It will 
enable us, in essence, to incentivize that innovation by creating that 
prioritizing.
  My amendment would allow the Patent Office to prioritize patent 
applications that are vital to our national interests.
  Specifically, the amendment says the Patent Office Director may 
prioritize the examination of applications for technologies that are 
important to the national economy or national competitiveness, such as 
green technologies designed to foster renewable energy, clean energy, 
biofuels, agricultural sustainability, environmental quality, 
conservation, or energy efficiency.
  Currently, the Patent Office runs a green technology pilot program. 
An application for green technologies may be fast-tracked, leading to 
an expedited decision. This fast-track process is reserved for a small 
number of applications that are vitally important, so it has little to 
no adverse impact on other patent applications.
  Currently, the patent process is rather lengthy. Patent decisions 
regularly take 2 to 3 years for a final decision. Our country is at 
risk of having vital new technologies buried in a sea of paperwork at 
the Patent Office. We want to make sure patents that are important to 
our national economy are fast-tracked rather than sidelined.
  The goal here is to create jobs at home. We have to make sure the 
Patent Office has the resources and ability to prioritize patents that 
do just that--create jobs, incentivize investment, and support 
innovation. The Patent Office supports this amendment because they need 
the tools to make sure this bill reaches its intended goal of improving 
America's economy.
  This amendment will create green jobs and support America's 
transformation to a self-sustaining economy that, among other things, 
is not reliant on foreign oil.
  It is vitally important we do our best to ensure that all Americans 
have good-paying jobs and that we secure our Nation's economic future.
  I ask my colleagues to support this amendment. It codifies an 
existing, successful program at the Patent Office. It is good 
commonsense policy that can help America propel forward in the 21st 
century.
  Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Mr. President, I rise today to speak about the 
America Invents Act of 2011. As we all know, innovation, hard work, and 
ingenuity long have been the fuel of the American dream. This bill will 
make much needed improvements to our patent system to unleash the full 
power of American innovation once again. I am proud to be a cosponsor.
  Before I speak in more detail about the importance of this bill, I 
would like to recognize the hard work of Senator Leahy, the chairman of 
the Judiciary Committee. He long has sought to change our patent system 
from a drag on innovation into a driver of innovation. Chairman Leahy 
has led bipartisan negotiations on this bill, seeking input from all 
segments of the American intellectual property community. I applaud his 
work with Senator Grassley, Senator Hatch, and others of our colleagues 
in bringing this much needed legislation to the floor.
  I take particular interest in this bill because of Rhode Island's 
long and proud history of innovation, from the birth of the American 
industrial revolution to the high-tech entrepreneurs leading our State 
forward today. An area has developed in Providence, for example, that 
is rightfully known by the nickname ``the Knowledge District'' for its 
remarkable innovation. We need to take every opportunity to support 
such work across our Nation.
  Make no mistake, this legislation will drive innovation and create 
high-quality jobs. It will secure the foundations of new small 
businesses, encourage the discoveries made every day in our 
universities, and allow American companies to continue to lead the 
world in technology, medicine, and mechanical science.
  Patent reform may be complicated, but these are not abstract issues. 
In my conversations with innovators in Rhode Island, it has become 
clear to me that the problems in our patent system are real and need to 
be fixed. Fail to do so and we will pay the price in jobs and 
international competitiveness.
  Perhaps the most consistent concern I have heard back home has 
related to delays in the issuance of patents. Massive backlogs of 
patent applications persist at the Patent and Trademark Office, causing 
years of uncertainty over whether an innovator in fact has secured 
intellectual property rights in his or her invention. We have to fix 
this problem. Innovators in Rhode Island and elsewhere in this country 
must be able to gain patent protection for their inventions within a 
reasonable timeframe. Uncertainty and delay in patent protection will 
dampen and frustrate innovation.
  The America Invents Act takes on this problem by allowing the Patent 
and Trademark Office discretion to set its own fees. Coupled with 
exceptions that will ensure low fees for small businesses, this 
provision will enable the Patent and Trademark Office to better manage 
its resources and reduce examination times.
  I also support Senator Coburn's amendment to restrict fee-diversion 
and enable the Patent and Trademark Office, which does not depend at 
all on taxpayer funding, to be properly resourced with examiners who 
can work through the patent application backlog. This provision raises 
issues

[[Page S1053]]

beyond the jurisdiction of the Judiciary Committee and as a result was 
not considered previously, but I trust it will win the support of our 
colleagues on the floor. I am glad that this provision has been 
included in the managers' amendment, of which I am a cosponsor.
  My conversations with Rhode Island inventors also made clear that the 
fear of protracted litigation also dampens innovation. Unfortunately, 
numerous poor-quality patents have issued in recent years, resulting in 
seemingly endless litigation that casts a cloud over patent ownership. 
Administrative processes that should serve as an alternative to 
litigation also have broken down, resulting in further delay, cost, and 
confusion.
  The America Invents Act will take on these problems by ensuring that 
higher quality patents issue in the future. This will produce less 
litigation and create greater incentives for innovators to commit the 
effort and resources to create the next big idea. Similarly, the bill 
will improve administrative processes so that disputes over patents can 
be resolved quickly and cheaply without patents being tied up for years 
in expensive litigation.
  This body must not pass up this chance to enhance innovation and 
energize our economy. We must see this bill through the Senate, and we 
must work with the House to see it passed promptly into law. It is true 
that the bill is a compromise and may not reflect all of everyone's 
priorities. Improvements to the bill may still be possible. To that 
end, I expect a productive debate on the floor and a constructive 
dialog with the House. I look forward to continuing to work with the 
chairman, my colleagues, and all interested parties to craft a bill 
that generates the broadest consensus possible.
  But we must not lose sight of the need for action. Our patent system 
has gone 60 years without improvements. It needs repair. Now is the 
time to energize our innovation economy, to create jobs, and to secure 
continuing American leadership in the fields of medicine, science, and 
technology. Hard work and ingenuity long have been the backbone of this 
country. Let's not get in their way.
  Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Bennet). Without objection, it is so 
ordered.

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