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105TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 3723
To authorize funds for the payment of salaries and expenses of the Patent
and Trademark Office, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
APRIL 23, 1998
Mr. COBLE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee
on the Judiciary
A BILL
To authorize funds for the payment of salaries and expenses
of the Patent and Trademark Office, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘United States Patent
and Trademark Office Reauthorization Act, Fiscal Year
1999’’.
SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be made available for the
payment of salaries and necessary expenses of the Patent
and Trademark Office in fiscal year 1999, $66,000,000
from fees collected in fiscal year 1998 and such fees as
are collected in fiscal year 1999, pursuant to title 35,
United States Code, and the Trademark Act of 1946 (15
U.S.C. 1051 et seq.). Amounts made available pursuant
to this section shall remain available until expended.
SEC. 3. LEVEL OF FEES FOR PATENT SERVICES.
(a) GENERAL PATENT FEES.—Section 41 of title 35,
United States Code, is amended by striking subsection (a)
and inserting the following:
‘‘(a) The Commissioner shall charge the following
fees:
‘‘(1)(A) On filing each application for an origi-
nal patent, except in design or plant cases, $760.
‘‘(B) In addition, on filing or on presentation at
any other time, $78 for each claim in independent
form which is in excess of 3, $18 for each claim
(whether independent or dependent) which is in ex-
cess of 20, and $260 for each application containing
a multiple dependent claim.
‘‘(C) On filing each provisional application for
an original patent, $150.
‘‘(2) For issuing each original or reissue patent,
except in design or plant cases, $1,210.
‘‘(3) In design and plant cases—
‘‘(A) on filing each design application,
$310;
‘‘(B) on filing each plant application,
$480;
‘‘(C) on issuing each design patent, $430;
and
‘‘(D) on issuing each plant patent, $580.
‘‘(4)(A) On filing each application for the re-
issue of a patent, $760.
‘‘(B) In addition, on filing or on presentation at
any other time, $78 for each claim in independent
form which is in excess of the number of independ-
ent claims of the original patent, and $18 for each
claim (whether independent or dependent) which is
in excess of 20 and also in excess of the number of
claims of the original patent.
‘‘(5) On filing each disclaimer, $110.
‘‘(6)(A) On filing an appeal from the examiner
to the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences,
$300.
‘‘(B) In addition, on filing a brief in support of
the appeal, $300, and on requesting an oral hearing
in the appeal before the Board of Patent Appeals
and Interferences, $260.
‘‘(7) On filing each petition for the revival of an
unintentionally abandoned application for a patent
or for the unintentionally delayed payment of the fee
for issuing each patent, $1,210, unless the petition
is filed under section 133 or 151 of this title, in
which case the fee shall be $110.
‘‘(8) For petitions for 1-month extensions of
time to take actions required by the Commissioner
in an application—
‘‘(A) on filing a first petition, $110;
‘‘(B) on filing a second petition, $270; and
‘‘(C) on filing a third petition or subse-
quent petition, $490.
‘‘(9) Basic national fee for an international ap-
plication where the Patent and Trademark Office
was the International Preliminary Examining Au-
thority and the International Searching Authority,
$670.
‘‘(10) Basic national fee for an international
application where the Patent and Trademark Office
was the International Searching Authority but not
the International Preliminary Examining Authority,
$760.
‘‘(11) Basic national fee for an international
application where the Patent and Trademark Office
was neither the International Searching Authority
nor the International Preliminary Examining Au-
thority, $970.
‘‘(12) Basic national fee for an international
application where the international preliminary ex-
amination fee has been paid to the Patent and
Trademark Office, and the international preliminary
examination report states that the provisions of Arti-
cle 33 (2), (3), and (4) of the Patent Cooperation
Treaty have been satisfied for all claims in the appli-
cation entering the national stage, $96.
‘‘(13) For filing or later presentation of each
independent claim in the national stage of an inter-
national application in excess of 3, $78.
‘‘(14) For filing or later presentation of each
claim (whether independent or dependent) in a na-
tional stage of an international application in excess
of 20, $18.
‘‘(15) For each national stage of an inter-
national application containing a multiple dependent
claim, $260.
For the purpose of computing fees, a multiple dependent
claim referred to in section 112 of this title or any claim
depending therefrom shall be considered as separate de-
pendent claims in accordance with the number of claims
to which reference is made. Errors in payment of the addi-
tional fees may be rectified in accordance with regulations
of the Commissioner.’’.
(b) PATENT MAINTENANCE FEES.—Section 41 of
title 35, United States Code, is amended by striking sub-
section (b) and inserting the following:
‘‘(b) The Commissioner shall charge the following
fees for maintaining in force all patents based on applica-
tions filed on or after December 12, 1980:
‘‘(1) 3 years and 6 months after grant, $940.
‘‘(2) 7 years and 6 months after grant, $1,900.
‘‘(3) 11 years and 6 months after grant,
$2,910.
Unless payment of the applicable maintenance fee is re-
ceived in the Patent and Trademark Office on or before
the date the fee is due or within a grace period of 6
months thereafter, the patent will expire as of the end of
such grace period. The Commissioner may require the
payment of a surcharge as a condition of accepting within
such 6-month grace period the payment of an applicable
maintenance fee. No fee may be established for maintain-
ing a design or plant patent in force.’’.
SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF COLLECTION AND EXPENDI-
TURE.
Section 42(c) of title 35, United States Code, is
amended by striking the first sentence and inserting the
following: ‘‘To the extent and in the amounts provided in
advance in appropriations Acts, fees authorized in this
title or any other Act to be charged or established by the
Commissioner shall be collected and shall be available to
the Commissioner to carry out the activities of the Patent
and Trademark Office.’’.
SEC. 5. EFFECTIVE DATE.
This Act and the amendments made by this Act shall
take effect on October 1, 1998.
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