[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 103 (Thursday, June 16, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3004-S3006]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

      By Ms. COLLINS (for herself and Ms. Cantwell):
  S. 4420. A bill to provide for advancements in carbon removal 
research, quantification, and commercialization, including by 
harnessing natural processes, and for other purposes; to the Committee 
on Energy and Natural Resources.
  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Carbon 
Removal and Emissions Storage Technologies Act, the CREST Act. I am 
pleased to be partnering with Senator Cantwell on this bill. Our 
bipartisan bill would direct the Department of Energy to research and 
evaluate the feasibility of innovative carbon removal and storage 
pathways. The name the CREST Act alludes to the fact that we have 
reached the ``crest'' of our emissions and we must work to bring them 
down.
  With more and more private and public sector commitments to reach 
net-zero emissions within certain timeframes, companies are scrambling 
to invest in quantifiable, durable, and verifiable carbon removal 
solutions. Microsoft, for example, has made a commitment to be carbon 
negative by 2030. Even though Microsoft plans to reduce its greenhouse 
gas emissions by more than half, it will need to remove the rest of its 
carbon emissions. In order to do this, Microsoft plans to invest $1 
billion in carbon removal technologies, such as direct air capture, 
forestation, and carbon mineralization.
  Despite the growing number of companies that are looking to offset 
their emissions, current cost estimates show that private sector 
investment alone will not be sufficient to research and deploy carbon 
removal pathways. I strongly supported the Energy Act of 2020, which 
authorized the first comprehensive Federal carbon removal research and 
development program, and the bipartisan infrastructure, which invested 
$3.6 billion in direct air capture. Although these investments have 
been significant, more work is needed in further research, increased 
testing, and enhanced public-private partnerships to help aid in 
scaling carbon removal technologies.
  The CREST Act would expand the Department of Energy's carbon removal 
research and development programs to include carbon removal pathways 
that can permanently sequester carbon dioxide or use carbon dioxide to 
produce biofuels or products. The key areas of focus for research and 
development in our legislation are biomass carbon removal and storage, 
geological removal, atmospheric and aquatic removal, carbon dioxide 
storage, and carbon dioxide removal quantification.

[[Page S3005]]

  Our legislation also aims to accelerate the commercialization of 
innovative carbon solutions through a pilot program at the Department 
of Energy. This pilot program would be charged with accelerating the 
deployment of affordable and proven carbon removal technologies. This 
reverse-auction style pilot program would position the government to 
purchase innovative and promising technologies, subject to certain 
criteria, and reduce the costs of those technologies. This would allow 
companies that may not have as much purchasing power as Microsoft to 
participate in carbon removal to help offset emissions.
  This pilot program would also support companies that are leading the 
way in carbon removal technology, like Running Tide in Maine, in 
bringing down the cost of its product. Running Tide captures carbon 
dioxide using kelp microforests, sun, ocean currents, and gravity. This 
new and exciting company grows floating kelp microforest attached to 
biodegradable buoys that sink as they break down. The carbon captured 
through the floating microforest is effectively removed for hundreds of 
years once it hits the ocean floor. Running Tide hopes to soon be 
selling ``kelp carbon credits'' to help offset private entities' 
emissions. They are currently working to commercialize quickly. These 
innovative solutions are the kinds that our new pilot program would 
seek to encourage.
  Mr. President, climate change is a significant environmental 
challenge that requires innovative and global solutions to reduce 
greenhouse gas pollution. While carbon removal and storage is only a 
small part of the solution, it is critical that we expand our country's 
work in this area. Our bipartisan bill has earned endorsements from 
Bipartisan Policy Center Action, ClearPath Action, Citizens for 
Responsible Energy Solutions, and many others. I urge my colleagues to 
join Senator Cantwell and me in supporting this legislation.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. PADILLA (for himself and Mrs. Feinstein):
  S. 4424. A bill to amend the Recreation and Public Purposes Act to 
authorize sales and leases of certain Federal land to federally 
recognized Indian Tribes, and for other purposes; to the Committee on 
Energy and Natural Resources.
  Mr. PADILLA. Mr. President, I rise to introduce the bipartisan 
Recreation and Public Purposes Tribal Parity Act to correct a long-
standing and unjust oversight that prevents Tribal governments from 
having the same opportunities as State and local governments do to buy 
and lease public lands for recreational purposes.
  Current law allows the Bureau of Land Management to lease or sell 
certain public lands to State and local governments or qualifying 
nonprofits if those lands will be used for explicit public and 
recreational purposes. These lands are used for a variety of public and 
recreational purposes, like historic monument sites, schools, 
firehouses, law enforcement facilities, courthouses, health facilities, 
hospitals, and parks. However, the law does not allow the BLM to sell 
or lease these lands to Tribal governments.
  Our bill would allow Tribal governments to participate in the program 
in the same way that State and local governments do. Doing so would 
help ensure Tribal nations enjoy the same opportunities for land 
acquisition as State and local governments and nonprofit organizations 
do.
  Tribal governments were not considered when the Recreation and Public 
Purposes Act became law in 1926. The omission leaves Tribes without the 
same opportunities as other governments to use public lands for these 
beneficial purposes. This disadvantage is clear, as the sale and lease 
of public lands is often at a discount compared to fair market value. 
This issue is part of the greater need to correct longstanding barriers 
that undermine the sovereignty of Tribal governments and our efforts to 
right historic wrongs.
  The Federal Government owns about 640 million acres of land, about 
28% of the total land in the United States. Public lands potentially 
available for disposal by the Bureau of Land Management alone are 
located across at least 18 States. The exclusion of Indian Tribes from 
qualifying for acquisition of these lands is not based on any clear 
policy rationale.
  As our Nation works to strengthen Tribal sovereignty and self-
determination, it is important that we ensure our laws treat Tribal 
governments in equal regard as State and local governments and ensure 
they have the opportunity for positive and productive land use 
activity.
  I thank Senator Feinstein for introducing this legislation with me in 
the Senate, and Congressman LaMalfa for championing this effort in the 
House of Representatives. I look forward to working with my colleagues 
to enact this commonsense bill as quickly as possible.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. DURBIN (for himself, Mr. Tillis, and Mr. Grassley):
  S. 4430. A bill to amend title 35, United States Code, to establish 
an interagency task force between the United States Patent and 
Trademark Office and the Food and Drug Administration for purposes of 
sharing information and providing technical assistance with respect to 
patents, and for other purposes; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of 
the bill be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                S. 4430

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Interagency Patent 
     Coordination and Improvement Act of 2022''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds the following:
       (1) Decisions by the United States Patent and Trademark 
     Office relating to patents may implicate, or have relevance 
     to, information housed at or involving other Federal 
     agencies.
       (2) Entities submitting patent applications to the United 
     States Patent and Trademark Office may also submit 
     information to, or share information with, other Federal 
     agencies, necessitating accuracy and consistency in those 
     representations.
       (3) Research has shown that patent examiners may benefit 
     from additional information that is housed at, or is 
     available to, Federal agencies other than the United States 
     Patent and Trademark Office in order to assess prior art and 
     the state of science and technology.
       (4) The Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual 
     Property and Director of the United States Patent and 
     Trademark Office is encouraged to work with other Federal 
     agencies.

     SEC. 3. REPORT BY UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE.

       Not later than 4 years after the date of enactment of this 
     Act, the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual 
     Property and Director of the United States Patent and 
     Trademark Office shall submit to the Committee on the 
     Judiciary of the Senate and the Committee on the Judiciary of 
     the House of Representatives a report that contains--
       (1) a description of the frequency with which--
       (A) information is provided by the Food and Drug 
     Administration to the United States Patent and Trademark 
     Office through the Interagency Task Force on Patents 
     established under section 15 of title 35, United States Code, 
     as added by section 4(a) of this Act, or under processes 
     established by that Task Force; and
       (B) the information described in subparagraph (A) is used 
     in patent examinations;
       (2) an identification of which methods of providing 
     information, as described in paragraph (1)(A), and types of 
     information so shared, are most useful to patent examiners;
       (3) any recommendations for changes to be made by Congress 
     to the mandate, funding, or operations of the Task Force 
     described in paragraph (1)(A); and
       (4) an identification of other Federal agencies with which 
     the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and 
     Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office 
     should explore opportunities for coordination that are 
     similar to those undertaken with the Food and Drug 
     Administration through the activities of the Task Force 
     described in paragraph (1)(A).

     SEC. 4. INTERAGENCY TASK FORCE ON PATENTS.

       (a) In General.--Chapter 1 of title 35, United States Code, 
     is amended--
       (1) in section 2(c), by adding at the end the following:
       ``(6)(A) In exercising the Director's powers and duties 
     under this section relating to patents, and decisions or 
     actions involving patents, for human drugs and biological 
     products, the Director shall, through the Interagency Task 
     Force on Patents established under section 15, consult with 
     the Commissioner of Food and Drugs in the manner described in 
     that section.
       ``(B) For purposes of subparagraph (A), the term `decisions 
     or actions involving patents' means decisions or actions 
     taken with respect to patents under this title.''; and
       (2) by adding at the end the following:

[[Page S3006]]

  


     ``Sec. 15. Interagency Task Force on Patents

       ``(a) Establishment.--There is established an interagency 
     task force, to be known as the Interagency Task Force on 
     Patents (referred to in this section as the `task force'), to 
     coordinate efforts between the Director and the Commissioner 
     of Food and Drugs (referred to in this section as the 
     `Commissioner') regarding communication about, evaluation of, 
     and effective implementation of the activities of the Office 
     and the Food and Drug Administration with respect to patents, 
     and decisions or actions involving patents (as defined in 
     section 2(c)(6)(B)), for human drugs and biological products.
       ``(b) Memorandum of Understanding.--The Director and the 
     Commissioner shall enter into a memorandum of understanding, 
     or update an existing memorandum of understanding, for the 
     purposes of implementing and carrying out the duties of the 
     task force.
       ``(c) Membership.--The task force shall be comprised of 
     employees of the Office, who shall be appointed by the 
     Director, and employees of the Food and Drug Administration, 
     who shall be appointed by the Commissioner, who have 
     appropriate expertise and decision-making authority regarding 
     operational, administrative, technical, medical, 
     pharmacological, clinical, and scientific matters to carry 
     out the functions of the task force.
       ``(d) Activities.--The task force shall carry out the 
     following functions regarding interagency coordination to 
     promote reciprocal access of information:
       ``(1) Sharing information on the general processes of the 
     Office and the Food and Drug Administration, what each such 
     agency considers in its respective review of applications, 
     and how each such agency evaluates those applications, which 
     may be undertaken through routine and ongoing meetings, 
     workshops, and training sessions.
       ``(2) Sharing information on new approvals of patents, 
     human drugs and biological products, new technologies and 
     prior art (as appropriate on a case-by-case basis), and 
     scientific trends and developments.
       ``(3) Establishing a process that requires--
       ``(A) the Director to request from the Commissioner (and 
     the Commissioner to provide to the Director, upon receiving 
     such a request)--
       ``(i) appropriate information for use by employees of the 
     Office with responsibility to examine patent applications 
     under section 131 (referred to in this section as `patent 
     examiners') regarding when certain information relating to a 
     human drug or biological product approval, which may include 
     updates to a label or newly approved indications, is made 
     publicly available, including when such information is posted 
     online; and
       ``(ii) appropriate access for patent examiners to relevant 
     sources of product application, approval, patent, and 
     labeling information or communications between the Food and 
     Drug Administration and the prescription drug or biological 
     product sponsors that may not currently be subject to public 
     disclosure, as appropriate and only to the extent necessary 
     for the Office to carry out the responsibilities of the 
     Office, including ensuring accurate representations and the 
     enforcement of the limitation on granting a patent because 
     the claimed invention that would be the subject of the patent 
     was on sale before the effective filing date of the claimed 
     invention, as described in section 102(a)(1); and
       ``(B) the Office to assist the Food and Drug Administration 
     in its ministerial role of listing appropriate and accurate 
     descriptions of patents.
       ``(4) Establishing a process to ensure that, in appropriate 
     circumstances, at the request of the Director, the 
     Commissioner shall consult with or otherwise furnish 
     specific, available information to the Office with respect to 
     certain applications, responses, or affidavits after 
     rejections in order to assist patent examiners in carrying 
     out the duties of those patent examiners.
       ``(e) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in subsection 
     (d)(3)(B) shall be construed as--
       ``(1) directing the Office to interfere with or delay the 
     ministerial function of the Food and Drug Administration of 
     listing patents; or
       ``(2) indicating the position of the Office regarding the 
     ability to assert a patent in infringement litigation.
       ``(f) Confidentiality.--
       ``(1) In general.--The task force shall establish 
     appropriate protocols to safeguard confidentiality and 
     prevent the inappropriate disclosure of information when 
     sharing information between the Office and the Food and Drug 
     Administration.
       ``(2) Potential remedies.--In establishing protocols under 
     paragraph (1), the task force shall identify appropriate 
     remedies for any potential injury suffered when confidential 
     information is made available, including inadvertently, 
     through the sharing of information described in that 
     paragraph.''.
       (b) Technical and Conforming Amendment.--The table of 
     sections for chapter 1 of title 35, United States Code, is 
     amended by adding at the end the following:
``15. Interagency Task Force on Patents.''.
       (c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated to the Under Secretary of Commerce for 
     Intellectual Property and Director of the United States 
     Patent and Trademark Office and the Commissioner of Food and 
     Drugs such sums as may be necessary for the purposes of 
     carrying out the functions of the Interagency Task Force on 
     Patents established under section 15 of title 35, United 
     States Code, as added by subsection (a).

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