Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 41.
This bill amends title 35 to create an Interagency Task Force on Patents between the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) focused on patents for human drugs and biological products.
It requires a memorandum of understanding, staff appointments from both agencies, processes for sharing technical and non-public information (with confidentiality protocols and 30-day sponsor notice), USPTO assistance in FDA patent listing, and a report to Congress within four years on information-sharing frequency, usefulness, and recommended changes.
A narrow, administrative coordination bill with built‑in safeguards and limited fiscal impact has a reasonable chance, though pharma confidentiality and legal pushback add uncertainty.
Relative to its intended legislative type, this bill is a reasonably well-constructed commission/reporting measure: it establishes an interagency Task Force with specified functions and a required 4‑year report, integrates with existing patent law, and includes confidentiality safeguards.
Progressives emphasize public-health and preventing weak patents; conservatives emphasize USPTO independence risks.
Progressives emphasize public-health and preventing weak patents; conservatives emphasize USPTO independence risks.
Likely broadly supportive because the Task Force aims to improve patent-examination accuracy for drugs and biologics, potentially reducing weak or abusive patents that raise drug prices.
They will welcome interagency data sharing, but watch carefully for adequate public-interest safeguards and remedies for confidentiality breaches.
Generally favorable but pragmatic; sees potential for improved patent quality and fewer litigated errors if implemented sensibly.
Concerned about administrative burden, costs, and legal/confidentiality risks; would seek clear protocols, pilot implementation and measurable outcomes.
Skeptical: views the bill as expanding interagency bureaucracy and creating avenues for regulatory entanglement in patent determinations.
Concerned that USPTO independence could be undermined and that sharing non-public sponsor communications may chill investment and innovation.
Reached or meaningfully advanced
Reached or meaningfully advanced
Still ahead
Still ahead
Still ahead
A narrow, administrative coordination bill with built‑in safeguards and limited fiscal impact has a reasonable chance, though pharma confidentiality and legal pushback add uncertainty.
The bill has not accumulated any surfaced votes yet.
Progressives emphasize public-health and preventing weak patents; conservatives emphasize USPTO independence risks.
A narrow, administrative coordination bill with built‑in safeguards and limited fiscal impact has a reasonable chance, though pharma confid…
Relative to its intended legislative type, this bill is a reasonably well-constructed commission/reporting measure: it establishes an interagency Task Force with specified functions and a required 4‑year report, integra…
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