76TH CONGRESS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 1st Session PROVIDING AUTHORITY FOR SHORTENING OF TIMES FOR REPLY TO PATENT OFFICE ACTIONS JUNE 27, 1939.-Referred to the House Calendar and ordered to be printed Mr. VAN ZANDT, from the Committee on Patents, submitted the following REPORT To accompany H. R. 6878) The Committee on Patents, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 6878) to amend section 4894 of the Revised Statutes (U. S. C., title 35, sec. 37), having considered the same, report favorably thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass. This is a bill to give the Commissioner of Patents authority to set times within which replies to communications from the Patent Office must be made by applicants for patents. Under the present law, an applicant for patent is allowed 6 months within which to reply to any action taken by the Patent Office. This 6 months is regardless of the nature of the action or of the condition of the application, and is beyond the control of the Patent Office. If the Patent Office writes a letter requiring, for example, a simple correction to the drawing or some other small correction, the applicant need not reply for 6 months. The response by the applicant may introduce other matters requiring another letter, and another 6 months for reply, and so on. The work of the Patent Office could be expedited considerably, to the benefit of the public, if the Commissioner of Patents had the power to fix a period of less than 6 months in cases requiring a shorter time; for example, in cases which have been pending a long time, in cases which interfere with each other, in cases requiring only minor corrections, and the like. Under the proposed change, the time could be left at 6 months for the normal case, but for certain classes of cases requiring such action, the Commissioner could establish shorter times for reply, not to be less than 30 days. It is deemed preferable to make the statute flexible by giving the Commissioner power to set the times, not to exceed the present period of 6 months, rather than to enact a rigid provision for a shorter period in all cases. The bill has the approval of the Commissioner of Patents, and is in substance one of the recommendations made by him when he was called upon by the Temporary National Economic Committee for suggestions to improve the patent laws. It also has the approval of the Department of Commerce and the Patent Office Advisory Committee to the Secretary of Commerce. Various patent-law organizations have endorsed it and it has likewise been approved by the National Advisory Council to the House Committee on Patents. This council has a membership of 24, selected from inventors, scientists, engineers, industrialists, economists, labor people, lawyers (both general- and patent-law specialists), judges and others, to give a representative cross section of the country. CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW In compliance with paragraph 2a of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, section 4894 of the Revised Statutes is set forth below with the proposed amendment shown in italics: SEC. 4894 (U. S. C., title 35, sec. 37). All applications for patents shall be completed and prepared for examination within six months after the filing of the application, and in default thereof, or upon failure of the applicant to prosecute the same within six months or such shorter time, not less than thirty days, as shall be fixed by the Commissioner of Patents in writing to the applicant, after any action therein, of which notice shall have been given to the applicant, they shall be regarded as abandoned by the parties thereto, unless it be shown to the satisfaction of the Commissioner of Patents that such delay was unavoidable: Provided, however, That no application shall be regarded as abandoned which has become the property of the Government of the United States and with respect to which the head of any department of the Government shall have certified to the Commissioner of Patents, within a period of three years, that the invention disclosed therein is important to the armament or defense of the United States: Provided, further, That within ninety days, and not less than thirty days, before the expiration of any such three-year period the Commissioner of Patents shall, in writing, notify the head of the department interested in any pending application for patent, of the approaching expiration of the three-year period within which any application for patent shall have been pending. LABOR DEPARTMENT APPROPRIATION BILL, 1940 JUNE 27. 1939.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union and ordered to be printed Mr. TARVER, from the committee of conference, submitted the following CONFERENCE REPORT To accompany H. R. 5427 CONFERENCE REPORT The committee of conference on the disagreeing votes of the two Houses on certain amendments of the Senate to the bill (H. R. 5427) making appropriations for the Labor Department for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1940, and for other purposes, having met, after full and free conference, have agreed to recommend and do recommend to their respective Houses as follows: That the Senate recede from its amendments numbered 14 and 15. The committee of conference report in disagreement amendment numbered 1. M. C. TARVER, LOUIS C. RABAUT, Managers on the part of the House. KENNETH MCKELLAR, RICHARD B. RUSSELL, J. H. BANKHEAD, PAT MCCARRAN, Managers on the part of the Senate. STATEMENT OF THE MANAGERS ON THE PART OF THE HOUSE The managers on the part of the House at the conference on the disagreeing votes of the two Houses on the amendments of the Senate to the bill (H. R. 5427) making appropriations for the Labor Department for the fiscal year ending June 20, 1940, and for other purposes, submit the following statement in explanation of the effect of the action agreed upon and recommended in the accompanying conference report as to each of such amendments, namely: Amendment No. 14: Appropriates $2,339,000 for salaries for the Wage and Hour Division, as proposed by the House, instead of $2,439,000, as provided by the Senate. Amendment No. 15: Eliminates language proposed by the Senate intending to make $100,000 of the appropriation for salaries in the Wage and Hour Division available immediately. The committee of conference report in disagreement amendment No. 1. 2 M. C. TARVER, LOUIS C. RABAUT, O DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA APPROPRIATION BILL, 1940 JUNE 27, 1939.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union and ordered to be printed Mr. COLLINS, from the committee of conference, submitted the following CONFERENCE REPORT To accompany H. R. 5610] The committee of conference on the disagreeing votes of the two Houses on the amendments of the Senate to the bill (H. R. 5610) making appropriations for the government of the District of Columbia and other activities chargeable in whole or in part against the revenues of such District, for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1940, and for other purposes, having met, after full and free conference, have agreed to recommend and do recommend to their respective Houses as follows: That the Senate recede from its amendments numbered 6, 11, 12, 13, 19, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 33, 35, 36, 38, 40, 42, 51, 56, 72, 73 85, 86, 97, 98, 99, 100, 107, 114, 115, 119, 128, and 137. That the House recede from its disagreement to the amendments of the Senate numbered 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 14, 16, 22, 37, 43, 44, 45, 47, 48, 52, 53, 79, 82, 83, 84, 91, 92, 103, 104, 105, 106, 108, 109, 112, 113, 116, 118, 120, 121, 123, 124, 125, 126, 130, 131, 132, 134, 135, and 136, and agree to the same. Amendment numbered 3: That the House recede from its disagreement to the amendment of the Senate numbered 3, and agree to the same with an amendment, as follows: In lieu of the sum proposed insert $249,960; and the Senate agree to the same. Amendment numbered 17: That the House recede from its disagreement to the amendment of the Senate numbered 17, and agree to the same with an amendment, as follows: Restore the matter stricken out by said amendment amended to read as follows: purchase (including exchange) of passenger-carrying automobiles, $10,000; and for purchase (including exchange) of three passenger-carrying automobiles for the executive office, $5,400; and the Senate agree to the same. H. Repts., 76-1, vol. 5-20 |