Patent and Trademark Public Advisory Committees

Citation86 FR 28084
Record Number2021-11047
Published date25 May 2021
SectionNotices
CourtPatent And Trademark Office
Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 99 (Tuesday, May 25, 2021)
[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 99 (Tuesday, May 25, 2021)]
                [Notices]
                [Pages 28084-28085]
                From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
                [FR Doc No: 2021-11047]
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                DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
                Patent and Trademark Office
                [Docket No. PTO-C-2021-0031]
                Patent and Trademark Public Advisory Committees
                AGENCY: United States Patent and Trademark Office, Commerce.
                ACTION: Request for nominations for the Patent and Trademark Public
                Advisory Committees.
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                SUMMARY: On November 29, 1999, the President signed into law the Patent
                and Trademark Office Efficiency Act (1999 Act), which, among other
                things, established two Public Advisory Committees to review the
                policies, goals, performance, budget, and user fees of the United
                States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) with respect to patents, in
                the case of the Patent Public Advisory Committee (PPAC), and
                trademarks, in the case of the Trademark Public Advisory Committee
                (TPAC), and to advise the Director of the USPTO on these matters (now
                codified in the United States Code). The America Invents Act Technical
                Corrections Act made several amendments to the 1999 Act, including the
                requirement that the terms of the USPTO Public Advisory Committee
                members be realigned by 2014, so that December 1 will be used as the
                start and end date, with terms staggered so that each year, three
                existing terms expire and three new terms begin on December 1. With
                this current notice, the USPTO is requesting nominations for up to
                three members of the PPAC and up to three members of the TPAC, for
                terms of three years that will begin on December 1, 2021.
                DATES: Nominations must be electronically transmitted on or before July
                9, 2021.
                ADDRESSES: Persons wishing to submit nominations will be required to
                electronically complete the appropriate Public Advisory Committee
                application
                [[Page 28085]]
                form by entering detailed information and qualifications at: https://tinyurl.com/ynae4a67 for the Patent Public Advisory Committee, or
                https://tinyurl.com/hcux6462 for the Trademark Public Advisory
                Committee.
                FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cordelia Zecher, Acting Chief of
                Staff, Office of the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual
                Property and Director of the USPTO, at 571-272-8600.
                SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The PPAC and TPAC members shall:
                 Advise the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual
                Property and Director of the USPTO on matters relating to policies,
                goals, performance, budget, and user fees of the USPTO relating to
                patents and trademarks, respectively (35 U.S.C. 5); and
                 Within 60 days after the end of each fiscal year: (1)
                Prepare an annual report on matters listed above; (2) transmit the
                report to the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary), the President, and the
                Committees on the Judiciary of the Senate and the House of
                Representatives; and (3) publish the report in the Official Gazette of
                the USPTO. Id.
                Public Advisory Committees
                 The Public Advisory Committees are each composed of nine voting
                members who are appointed by the Secretary and serve at the pleasure of
                the Secretary for three-year terms. Members are eligible for
                reappointment for a second consecutive three-year term. The Public
                Advisory Committee members must be citizens of the United States and
                are chosen to represent the interests of diverse users of the USPTO
                with respect to patents, in the case of the PPAC, and trademarks, in
                the case of the TPAC. Members must represent small and large entity
                applicants located in the United States in proportion to the number of
                applications filed by such applicants. The Committees must include
                individuals with a ``substantial background and achievement in finance,
                management, labor relations, science, technology, and office
                automation.'' 35 U.S.C. 5(b)(3). Each of the Public Advisory Committees
                also includes three non-voting members representing each labor
                organization recognized by the USPTO. Administration policy discourages
                the appointment of federally registered lobbyists to agency advisory
                boards and commissions (Lobbyists on Agency Boards and Commissions,
                https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/blog/2009/09/23/lobbyists-agency-boards-and-commissions (Sept. 23, 2009); cf. E.O. 13490, 74 FR 4673
                (Jan. 21, 2009) (While Executive Order 13490 does not specifically
                apply to federally registered lobbyists appointed by agency or
                department heads, it sets forth the administration's general policy of
                decreasing the influence of special interests in the Federal
                Government.)
                Procedures and Guidelines of the PPAC and TPAC
                 Each newly appointed member of the PPAC and TPAC will serve for a
                three-year term that begins on December 1, 2021, and ends on December
                1, 2024. As required by the 1999 Act, members of the PPAC and TPAC will
                receive compensation for each day (including travel time) they attend
                meetings or engage in the business of their Advisory Committee. The
                enabling statute states that members are to be compensated at the daily
                equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay in effect for level III of
                the Executive Schedule under 5 U.S.C. 5314. Committee members are
                compensated on an hourly basis, calculated at the daily rate. While
                away from home or their regular place of business, each member shall be
                allowed travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, as
                authorized by 5 U.S.C. 5703.
                Applicability of Certain Ethics Laws
                 Public Advisory Committee members are Special Government Employees
                within the meaning of 18 U.S.C. 202. The following additional
                information includes several, but not all, of the ethics rules that
                apply to members, and assumes that members are not engaged in Public
                Advisory Committee business more than 60 days during any period of 365
                consecutive days.
                 Each member will be required to file a confidential
                financial disclosure form within 30 days of appointment. 5 CFR
                2634.202(c), 2634.204, 2634.903, and 2634.904(b).
                 Each member will be subject to many of the public
                integrity laws, including criminal bars against representing a party in
                a particular matter that comes before the member's committee and that
                involves at least one specific party. 18 U.S.C. 205(c); see also 18
                U.S.C. 207 for post-membership bars. Also, a member must not act on a
                matter in which the member (or any of certain closely related entities)
                has a financial interest. 18 U.S.C. 208.
                 Representation of foreign interests may also raise issues.
                35 U.S.C. 5(a)(1) and 18 U.S.C. 219.
                Meetings of the PPAC and TPAC
                 Meetings of each Public Advisory Committee will take place at the
                call of the respective Committee Chair to consider an agenda set by
                that Chair. Meetings may be conducted in person, telephonically,
                online, or by other appropriate means. The meetings of each Public
                Advisory Committee will be open to the public, except each Public
                Advisory Committee may, by majority vote, meet in an executive session
                when considering personnel, privileged, or other confidential
                information. Nominees must have the ability to participate in Public
                Advisory Committee business through the internet.
                Andrew Hirshfeld,
                Commissioner for Patents, Performing the Functions and Duties of the
                Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of
                the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
                [FR Doc. 2021-11047 Filed 5-24-21; 8:45 am]
                BILLING CODE 3510-16-P
                

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