Patent Paperwork Study

[Federal Register: February 25, 2010 (Volume 75, Number 37)]
[Notices][Page 8649]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr25fe10-47]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
United States Patent and Trademark Office
[Docket No.: PTO-P-2010-0001]

Request for Comments on Methodology for Conducting an Independent Study of the Burden of Patent-Related Paperwork

AGENCY: United States Patent and Trademark Office.

ACTION: Request for comments.

To view the complete text of this comment request see:
http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=2010_register&docid=fr25fe10-47
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SUMMARY: The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) retained ICF International (ICF) to perform an independent study of the burden of patent-related paperwork, beginning with a report describing the methodologies for performing such a study (Methodology Report). ICF has now provided the USPTO with its Methodology Report, in which ICF recommends methodologies for addressing various topics about estimating the patent-related burdens imposed on the public as reflected in information collection requests under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA). The USPTO is inviting public comment on ICF's Methodology Report.

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before April 12, 2010.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be sent by electronic mail message over the Internet addressed to pra_study_comments@uspto.gov. Comments may also be submitted by mail addressed to: Mail Stop Comments--Patents, Commissioner for Patents, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450, marked to the attention of Raul Tamayo. Although comments may be submitted by mail, the USPTO prefers to receive comments via the Internet.

The written comments will be available for public inspection at the Office of the Commissioner for Patents, located in Madison East, Tenth Floor, 600 Dulany Street, Alexandria, Virginia, and will be available via the USPTO Internet Web site (address: http://www.uspto.gov). Because comments will be made available for public inspection, information that is not desired to be made public, such as an address or phone number, should not be included in the comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Raul Tamayo, Legal Advisor, Office of Patent Legal Administration, Office of the Associate Commissioner for Patent Examination Policy, at (571) 272-7728.