Political Quotes

“Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of S. 3960. This legislation makes a minor technical change to give the Patent and Trademark Office the flexibility to decide when to penalize patent applicants for false certifications of eligibility for fee reductions. When Congress passed the Unleashing American Innovators Act as part of the government funding package for fiscal year 2023, we did so with the intention of making patents no longer the sport of kings but an opportunity for inventors to make a decent living. Innovators should not have to work for a Big Tech company, major manufacturer, or any other powerhouse of industry to be able to file a patent, but that is exactly what often happens. Financial hurdles associated with obtaining and owning a patent, from hiring a lawyer to searching for prior art, to paying standard application fees, can prevent individuals from seeking patents for their inventions. Barriers to entry like these hurt everyone, but above all they hurt women, veterans, and minorities who often do not have the resources to go it alone. The result is that fewer ideas make it out there into the American innovation space. All of our talent becomes siloed in just a few companies and in just a few industries, and prospective creators shelve their ideas for another day.…”