Sheila Jackson Lee: “The period is now a year--I'd indicated 18 months--because small businesses have to reach to others to help fund their…”

“The period is now a year--I'd indicated 18 months--because small businesses have to reach to others to help fund their inventions, and they let their secrets out of the bag. Eighteen months protects their disclosures for a period of time for them to be able to move forward. Lastly, I had a sunset provision that would help small businesses as well as relates to the sunset of the business method patents review. This could be a good bill. I hope that we can correct it, and I ask my colleagues to consider correcting this bill. Madam Chair, I rise in support of H.R. 1249, ``America Invents Act.'' However I am concerned over the drastic fee charges that were made in the new Manager's Amendment completely contrary to our agreement in the House Judiciary markup--it takes enormous amounts of money from the work of the PTO. As a Senior member of the Judiciary Committee and a member of the Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, Competition and the Internet, I am proud to support this legislation because in many ways the current patent system is flawed, outdated, and in need of modernization. The Judiciary Committee labored long and hard to produce legislation that reforms the American patent system so that it continues to foster innovation and be the jet fuel of the American economy and remains the envy of the world.…”