[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 182 (Thursday, September 19, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 59052-59054]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-23763]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE


Proposed Information Collection; Payment of Patent and Trademark 
Office Fees by Credit Card

ACTION: Proposed collection; comment request.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), as part 
of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, 
invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this 
opportunity to comment on the revision of a continuing information 
collection, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public 
Law 104-13 (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)).

DATES: Written comments must be submitted on or before November 18, 
2002.

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments to Susan K. Brown, Records 
Officer, Office of Data Architecture and Services, Data Administration 
Division, USPTO, Suite 310, 2231 Crystal Drive, Washington, DC 20231; 
by telephone at

[[Page 59053]]

(703) 308-7400; or by electronic mail at [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information 
should be directed to Michelle Picard, Director, Office of Finance, 
USPTO, Washington, DC 20231; by telephone at (703) 305-8360; or by 
electronic mail at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

I. Abstract

    Under 35 U.S.C. 41 and 15 U.S.C. 1113, the USPTO charges fees for 
processing and other services related to patents, trademarks, and 
information products. The provisions of 35 U.S.C. 41 and 15 U.S.C. 1113 
are implemented in 37 CFR 1.16-1.28, 1.492, 2.6, and 2.7.
    This information collection was previously submitted in November 
1999 in conjunction with a proposed rule that would allow customers to 
pay any patent or trademark fee by credit card. The Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) approved this collection in January 2000. 
The USPTO published the final rule notice entitled ``Changes to Permit 
Payment of Patent and Trademark Fees by Credit Card'' in the Federal 
Register on May 24, 2000 (Vol. 65, No. 101). This rule amended the 
rules of practice under 37 CFR 1.23(b) to provide for the payment of 
any patent or trademark fee by credit card. Previously, credit card 
payments were limited to fees required for information products or for 
an electronic submission related to a trademark application.
    Payments of fees made by credit card must specify the amount to be 
charged and other information that is necessary to process the charge, 
such as a billing address and an authorized signature. Persons 
submitting fee payments must also provide information concerning the 
purpose of the fee so that the USPTO is able to (1) apply the fee to 
the particular application, patent, trademark registration, or other 
proceeding, service, or product; and (2) determine whether the person 
has submitted the appropriate fee(s) required by law or regulation.
    This information collection includes the Credit Card Payment Form 
(PTO-2038), which provides the public with a convenient way to submit a 
credit card payment for fees related to a patent, trademark, or 
information product. The USPTO is adding the Electronic Credit Card 
Payment Form to this collection. Customers may use this electronic form 
to submit credit card payments when using online systems provided by 
the USPTO for paying fees related to patents, trademarks, or 
information products. These systems are accessible through the USPTO 
Web site.
    In order to protect the confidentiality of the credit card 
information, the USPTO will not include the Credit Card Payment Form or 
Electronic Credit Card Payment Form among the records open to public 
inspection for a patent, trademark registration, or other proceeding. 
The USPTO does not require customers to use the Credit Card Payment 
Form when paying fees by credit card, but using this form is strongly 
encouraged. If a customer provides credit card information on a form or 
document (e.g. in correspondence related to a patent or trademark) 
other than a credit card payment form provided by the USPTO, the credit 
card information may become part of a patent or trademark file that is 
open to public inspection. If credit card information is submitted on a 
form or document other than a credit card payment form provided by the 
USPTO, the USPTO will not be liable if the credit card information 
becomes public knowledge.

II. Method of Collection

    By mail, facsimile, or hand delivery to the USPTO. Payments using 
the Electronic Credit Card Payment Form may be submitted electronically 
over the Internet.

III. Data

    OMB Number: 0651-0043.
    Form Number(s): PTO-2038.
    Type of Review: Revision of a currently approved collection.
    Affected Public: Individuals or households; businesses or other 
for-profits; not-for-profit institutions; farms; the Federal 
Government; and state, local or tribal governments.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 269,580 responses per year.
    Estimated Time Per Response: The USPTO estimates that it will take 
the public approximately 12 minutes (0.2 hours) to gather the necessary 
information, prepare, and submit the Credit Card Payment Form or 10 
minutes (0.17 hours) to prepare and submit the Electronic Credit Card 
Payment Form.
    Estimated Total Annual Respondent Burden Hours: 48,154 hours per 
year.
    Estimated Total Annual Respondent Cost Burden: $1,444,620 per year.
    The USPTO expects that the information in this collection will be 
prepared by paraprofessionals or fee coordinators/administrators. Using 
the paraprofessional rate of $30 per hour, the USPTO estimates that the 
respondent cost burden for this collection will be $1,444,620 per year.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                             Estimated time
                           Item                               for response    Estimated annual  Estimated annual
                                                              (in minutes)        responses       burden hours
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Credit Card Payment Form..................................                12            77,500            15,500
Electronic Credit Card Payment Form.......................                10           192,080            32,654
                                                           -------------------
    Total.................................................  ................           269,580            48,154
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Estimated Total Annual Non-hour Respondent Cost Burden: $7,194. 
There are no capital start-up or maintenance costs or filing fees 
associated with this information collection. However, customers may 
incur postage costs when submitting the Credit Card Payment Form to the 
USPTO by mail or recordkeeping costs related to the Electronic Credit 
Card Payment Form.
    Customers generally send the Credit Card Payment Form to the USPTO 
along with other documents related to the fee or service being paid for 
by credit card, but some customers may submit just the Credit Card 
Payment Form without additional supporting documents. The USPTO 
estimates that roughly 5 percent of the Credit Card Payment Forms may 
be mailed in by themselves, for a total of 3,875 per year. The USPTO 
estimates that the first-class postage cost for a mailed Credit Card 
Payment Form will be 37 cents, for a total postage cost of $1,434 per 
year.
    Customers using the Electronic Credit Card Payment Form may incur 
recordkeeping costs from printing a copy of the screen or electronic 
mail message confirming their successful transaction. Currently, a 
confirmation message may not be available for all transactions, but the 
USPTO is planning to implement an electronic confirmation receipt for 
all Internet transactions in

[[Page 59054]]

FY 2003 or FY 2004. The USPTO estimates that it will take 5 seconds 
(0.001 hours) to print a copy of the confirmation receipt and that 
approximately 192,080 submissions per year will use the Electronic 
Credit Card Payment Form, for a total recordkeeping burden of 192 hours 
per year. Using the paraprofessional rate of $30 per hour, the USPTO 
estimates that the recordkeeping cost associated with this collection 
will be $5,760 per year. The total non-hour respondent cost burden for 
this collection in the form of postage costs and recordkeeping costs is 
$7,194 per year.

IV. Request for Comments

    Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the agency, including whether the information shall have practical 
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden 
(including hours and cost) of the proposed collection of information; 
(c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on respondents, e.g., the use of automated 
collection techniques or other forms of information technology.
    Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized or 
included in the request for OMB approval of this information 
collection; they also will become a matter of public record.

    Dated: September 13, 2002.
Susan K. Brown,
Records Officer, USPTO, Office of Data Architecture and Services, Data 
Administration Division.
[FR Doc. 02-23763 Filed 9-18-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-16-P