[United States Statutes at Large, Volume 133, 116th Congress, 1st Session]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

 
Proclamation 9865 of April 25, 2019

World Intellectual Property Day, 2019

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

On World Intellectual Property Day, we celebrate the essential role of
innovation in the strength and expansion of our economy. Our free market
continues to unleash the imagination of our Nation's talented creators,
inventors, and entrepreneurs, enabling them to develop products that
improve and elevate lives across our country and around the world. To
maintain and reinforce our economic competitiveness, we must protect
intellectual property and related technologies so that new industries
and innovations can flourish.
Since the founding, our Nation's incredible intellectual property system
has empowered Americans to make discoveries that have helped us live
healthy, prosperous, and enjoyable lives. My Administration is
determined to build on our country's strong tradition of protecting
intellectual property. Last year, I signed the Orrin G. Hatch-Bob
Goodlatte Music Modernization Act, which will improve our protection of
the creative genius of America's extraordinary musicians. This
groundbreaking legislation modernizes our outdated copyright laws so

[[Page 3347]]

that artists and songwriters are justly compensated for the online use
of their music. Additionally, my Administration negotiated the new
United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), modernizing the North
American Free Trade Agreement into a 21st century, high-standard
agreement. The USMCA includes the strongest and most comprehensive
intellectual property standards of any prior free trade agreement. Once
approved by the Congress, the USMCA will deliver comprehensive
protections against misappropriation of trade secrets, robust border
enforcement, and enhanced trademark, copyright, and patent provisions
that are critical to driving innovation, creating economic growth, and
supporting American jobs. Earlier this month, I also issued a memorandum
directing my Cabinet to combat trafficking in counterfeit and pirated
goods in online marketplaces.
We must stop those actors who engage in unfair and unscrupulous
practices, including nation states that sponsor the theft of American
intellectual property. To protect our economic and national security, my
Administration is taking aggressive action to enforce both our laws and
a fair and reciprocal trade policy. For example, a critical part of our
ongoing negotiations with China includes putting an end to the hundreds
of billions of dollars of intellectual property we lose to China each
year. Protecting the innovations, creations, and inventions that power
our country are vital to our economic prosperity and national security.
The theme of this year's World Intellectual Property Day is intellectual
property in sports. Intellectual property is critical to advancing the
ability of our athletes to compete and increasing the enjoyment of
sports for fans. We celebrate the innovations of those working behind
the scenes to create new sports equipment, enhance safety, improve
branding, and broadcast sporting events. From new materials that
preserve athlete health and promote performance to game-changing
technological advances in robotics and artificial intelligence,
intellectual property underpins the sports industry.
Today, we recognize that the success of nearly every industry, from
entertainment and sports to agriculture and technology, depends on a
framework that protects intellectual property. A brighter and more
hopeful future is dawning because of the increased attention nations are
paying to innovation, creativity, and intellectual property. As the
human mind continues to transcend limitations, we will work to empower
the creative spirit of today's innovators by protecting their hard work.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of
America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and
the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim April 26, 2019, as
World Intellectual Property Day. I encourage Americans to observe this
day with events and educational programs that celebrate the benefits of
intellectual property to our economy and our country.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-fifth day of
April, in the year of our Lord two thousand nineteen, and of the
Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-
third.
DONALD J. TRUMP