Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 186 / Wednesday, September 25, 2024 / Notices 78289 

This notice allows for an additional 30 

days for public comment. 

Agency: United States Patent and 

Trademark Office, Department of 

Commerce. 

Title: Rules for Patent Maintenance 

Fees. 

OMB Control Number: 0651–0016. 

Needs and Uses: Under 35 U.S.C. 41 

and 37 CFR 1.20(e)–(h), 1.362, 1.363, 

1.366, 1.377, and 1.378, the USPTO 

charges fees for maintaining in force all 

patents based on applications filed on or 

after December 12, 1980, except for 

plant and design patents. Furthermore, 

maintenance fees are required for a 

reissue patent unless the patent being 

reissued did not require maintenance 

fees. Payment of these maintenance fees 

is due at 31⁄2, 71⁄2, and 111⁄2 years after 

the date the patent was granted. See 

section 2504 of the Manual of Patent 

Examining Procedure (MPEP) (9th 

Edition, Rev. 07.2022, February 2023) 

for more information. 

If the USPTO does not receive 

payment of the appropriate maintenance 

fee and any applicable surcharge within 

a grace period of six months following 

each of the above due dates (at 4, 8, or 

12 years after the date of grant), the 

patent will expire at that time. After a 

patent expires, it is no longer 

enforceable. Payments of maintenance 

fees that are submitted during the 6- 

month grace period before patent 

expiration must include the appropriate 

surcharge as indicated by 37 CFR 

1.20(h). Submissions of maintenance fee 

payments and surcharges must include 

the relevant patent number and the 

corresponding United States application 

number in order to identify the correct 

patent and ensure proper crediting of 

the fee being paid. See MPEP 2506, 

2510, and 2515 for more information. 

If the USPTO refuses to accept and 

record a maintenance fee payment that 

was submitted prior to the expiration of 

a patent, the patentee may petition the 

Director to accept and record the 

maintenance fee under 37 CFR 1.377. 

This petition must be accompanied by 

the fee indicated in 37 CFR 1.17(g), 

which may be refunded if it is 

determined that the refusal to accept the 

maintenance fee was due to an error by 

the USPTO. 

If a patent has expired due to 

nonpayment of a maintenance fee, the 

patentee may petition the Director to 

accept a delayed payment of the 

maintenance fee under 37 CFR 1.378(b). 

The Director may accept the payment of 

a maintenance fee after the expiration of 

the patent if the petitioner shows to the 

satisfaction of the Director that the delay 

in payment was unintentional. Petitions 

to accept unintentionally delayed 

payment must also be accompanied by 

the required maintenance fee and the 

petition fee as set forth in 37 CFR 

1.17(m). If the Director accepts the 

maintenance fee payment upon petition, 

then the patent is reinstated. If the 

USPTO denies a petition to accept 

delayed payment of a maintenance fee 

in an expired patent, the patentee may 

petition the Director to reconsider that 

decision under 37 CFR 1.378(d). 

This information collection covers 

maintenance fee petition information, 

including the electronic interface and 

form provided by the USPTO to assist 

the public with maintenance fee 

petitions. To pay a maintenance fee after 

patent expiration, the maintenance fee 

payment and the petition fee, as set 

forth in 37 CFR 1.17(m), must be filed 

together with a petition to accept an 

unintentionally delayed payment of the 

maintenance fee in an expired patent 

under 37 CFR 1.378(b). The USPTO 

offers two different versions of the form 

for petitions to accept unintentionally 

delayed payments of maintenance fees: 

a web-based ePetition and form PTO/ 

SB/66 (a fillable PDF). The USPTO 

recommends the use of the web-based 

ePetition. The USPTO does not offer 

forms for the petitions to review the 

refusal to accept the payment of a 

maintenance fee prior to the expiration 

of the patent under 37 CFR 1.377 or the 

petitions for the reconsideration of 

decisions on petitions refusing to accept 

the delayed payment of a maintenance 

fee in an expired patent under 37 CFR 

1.378(d). 

The fee address indication form (PTO/ 

AIA/47 and PTO/SB/47) available at 

www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/forms 

was previously associated with this 

information collection. This form 

permits applicants, patentees, assignees, 

or their representatives of record to 

specify a ‘‘fee address’’ for 

correspondence related to maintenance 

fees that is separate from the 

correspondence address associated with 

a patent or application. This item is 

considered by OMB to be exempt from 

the PRA and therefore, though this item 

remains available, it is no longer 

included in this information collection. 

Forms: (SB = Specimen Book). 

• PTO/SB/66 (Petition to Accept 

Unintentionally Delayed Payment of 

Maintenance Fee in an Expired Patent 

(37 CFR 1.378(b)) 

Type of Review: Extension and 

revision of a currently approved 

information collection. 

Affected Public: Private sector. 

Respondent’s Obligation: Required to 

obtain or retain benefits. 

Frequency: On occasion. 

Estimated Number of Annual 

Respondents: 2,616 respondents. 

Estimated Number of Annual 

Responses: 2,616 responses. 

Estimated Time per Response: The 

USPTO estimates that the responses in 

this information collection will take the 

public approximately between 1 hour 

and 8 hours to complete. This includes 

the time to gather the necessary 

information, create the document, and 

submit the completed item to the 

USPTO. 

Estimated Total Annual Respondent 

Burden Hours: 3,424 hours. 

Estimated Total Annual Respondent 

Non-Hourly Cost Burden: $2,577,316. 

This information collection request 

may be viewed at www.reginfo.gov. 

Follow the instructions to view 

Department of Commerce, USPTO 

information collections currently under 

review by OMB. 

Written comments and 

recommendations for this information 

collection should be submitted within 

30 days of the publication of this notice 

on the following website, 

www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. 

Find this particular information 

collection by selecting ‘‘Currently under 

30-day Review–Open for Public 

Comments’’ or by using the search 

function and entering either the title of 

the information collection or the OMB 

Control Number, 0651–0016. 

Further information can be obtained 

by: 

• Email: InformationCollection@

uspto.gov. Include ‘‘0651–0016 

information request’’ in the subject line 

of the message. 

• Mail: Justin Isaac, Office of the 

Chief Administrative Officer, United 

States Patent and Trademark Office, 

P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313– 

1450. 

Justin Isaac, 

Information Collections Officer, Office of the 

Chief Administrative Officer, United States 

Patent and Trademark Office. 

[FR Doc. 2024–21931 Filed 9–24–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–16–P 

CORPORATION FOR NATIONAL AND 

COMMUNITY SERVICE 

Agency Information Collection 

Activities; Submission to the Office of 

Management and Budget for Review 

and Approval; Comment Request; 

Employers of National Service Form 

and Survey 

AGENCY: Corporation for National and 

Community Service. 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
78290 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 186 / Wednesday, September 25, 2024 / Notices 

ACTION: Notice of information collection; 

request for comment. 

SUMMARY: The Corporation for National 

and Community Service, operating as 

AmeriCorps, has submitted a public 

information collection request (ICR) 

entitled Employees of National Service 

Form and Survey for review and 

approval in accordance with the 

Paperwork Reduction Act. 

DATES: Written comments must be 

submitted to the individual and office 

listed in the ADDRESSES section by 

October 25, 2024. 

ADDRESSES: Written comments and 

recommendations for the proposed 

information collection should be sent 

within 30 days of publication of this 

notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/ 

PRAMain. Find this particular 

information collection by selecting 

‘‘Currently under 30-day Review—Open 

for Public Comments’’ or by using the 

search function. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Copies of this ICR, with applicable 

supporting documentation, may be 

obtained by calling AmeriCorps, Emily 

Smith, at (202) 391–1393 or by email to 

emsmith@americorps.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The OMB 

is particularly interested in comments 

which: 

• Evaluate whether the proposed 

collection of information is necessary 

for the proper performance of the 

functions of CNCS, including whether 

the information will have practical 

utility; 

• Evaluate the accuracy of the 

agency’s estimate of the burden of the 

proposed collection of information, 

including the validity of the 

methodology and assumptions; 

• Propose ways to enhance the 

quality, utility, and clarity of the 

information to be collected; and 

• Propose ways to minimize the 

burden of the collection of information 

on those who are to respond, including 

through the use of appropriate 

automated, electronic, mechanical, or 

other technological collection 

techniques or other forms of information 

technology. 

Comments 

A 60-day Notice requesting public 

comment was published in the Federal 

Register on June 12, 2024, at 89 FR 

49863, with a comment period ending 

August 12, 2024. No public comments 

were received in response to the notice. 

Title of Collection: Employers of 

National Service Enrollment Form and 

Survey. 

OMB Control Number: 3045–0175. 

Type of Review: Renewal. 

Respondents/Affected Public: 

Businesses and organizations. 

Total Estimated Number of Annual 

Responses: 1,180. 

Total Estimated Number of Annual 

Burden Hours: 492. 

Abstract: AmeriCorps is seeking to 

renew its Employers of National Service 

Enrollment Form and Survey. 

Organizations from all sectors either 

seeking to become, or already 

established as, Employers of National 

Service will be filling out these forms. 

This includes businesses, nonprofits, 

institutions of higher education, school 

districts, state and local governments, 

and Federal agencies. The purpose of 

the enrollment form is to document 

what the organization is committing to 

doing as an Employer of National 

Service and provide its contact 

information to AmeriCorps. The 

information gathered on the enrollment 

form will also allow AmeriCorps to 

display the organization’s information 

accurately online, as a resource for job 

seekers. It will also enable AmeriCorps 

to speak to the diversity within the 

program’s membership, both for internal 

planning and external audience use. 

The purpose of the survey form is to 

track the actions an employer has taken 

in the past year, gather stories of success 

or impact, collect quantitative hiring 

data relating to AmeriCorps and Peace 

Corps alumni, and provide 

organizations with an opportunity to 

update their contact and location data. 

AmeriCorps also seeks to continue using 

the currently approved information 

collection until the new information 

collection is approved by OMB. The 

currently approved information 

collection is due to expire on September 

30, 2024. 

Rhonda Taylor, 

Director, Partnerships and Program 

Engagement. 

[FR Doc. 2024–21919 Filed 9–24–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6050–28–P 

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

Office of the Secretary 

Strategic Environmental Research and 

Development Program Scientific 

Advisory Board; Notice of Federal 

Advisory Committee Meeting 

AGENCY: Under Secretary of Defense for 

Acquisition and Sustainment 

(USD(A&S)), Department of Defense 

(DoD). 

ACTION: Notice of Federal advisory 

committee meeting. 

SUMMARY: The DoD is publishing this 

notice to announce that the following 

Federal advisory committee meeting of 

the Strategic Environmental Research 

and Development Program (SERDP) 

Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) will 

take place. 

DATES: SERDP SAB will hold a meeting 

open to the public. Day 1—Tuesday, 

October 15, 2024, from 10 a.m. to 4:05 

p.m. EDT. Day 2—Wednesday, October 

16, 2024, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. EDT. 

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be 

accessible by videoconference. 

Information for accessing the 

videoconference is provided in 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION, ‘‘Meeting 

Accessibility.’’ 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

Kimberly Spangler, Designated Federal 

Officer (DFO) 703–571–2477 (voice), 

kimberly.y.spangler.civ@mail.mil 

(email). Mailing address is SERDP 

Office, 3500 Defense Pentagon, Rm. 

5C646, Washington, DC 20301–3500. 

Website: https://serdp-estcp.org/about. 

The most up-to-date changes to the 

meeting agenda can be found on the 

website. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This 

meeting is being held under the 

provisions of chapter 10 of title 5, 

United States Code (U.S.C.) (commonly 

known as the ‘‘Federal Advisory 

Committee Act’’ or ‘‘FACA’’) and 41 

CFR 102–3.140 and 102–3.150. 

Availability of Materials for the 

Meeting: Additional information, 

including the agenda or any updates to 

the agenda, is available on https://serdpestcp.mil/about/programs?Id=b7ba8fa2- 

c6b0-4ae3-bdcd-50a3461ef4d9. Purpose 

of the Meeting: The purpose of the 

meeting is for the SERDP SAB to make 

recommendations regarding 

technologies, research, projects, 

programs, activities, and, if appropriate, 

funding within the scope of SERDP 

Fiscal Year (FY) 2025. 

Agenda: Tuesday, October 15, 2024, 

from 10:00 a.m. to 4:05 p.m.—Convene, 

SAB Business, Weapons Systems and 

Platforms Statement of Need Overview 

and Proposals, Resource Conservation 

and Resilience Statement of Need 

Overview and Proposals, Voting on 

Fiscal Year 2026 Recommendations, 

Public Comment Period, and Adjourn. 

Wednesday, October 16, 2024, from 

10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.—Convene, 

Resource Conservation and Resilience 

Statement of Need Overview and 

Proposals, Voting on Fiscal Year 2026 

Recommendations, SAB Business, 

Public Comment Period, and Adjourn. 

Meeting Accessibility: Pursuant to 5 

U.S.C. 1009(a) and 41 CFR 102–3.140 


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