Innovation Alliance issues statement calling for further changes to the bill.

Washington, D.C. – The Innovation Alliance issued the following statement in response to the February 15, 2008 release by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) of its analysis of the Patent Reform Act of 2007 (S. 1145).

More than six months after the Senate Judiciary Committee reported the Patent Reform Act of 2007 (S.1145), we’re still learning new and disturbing facts about this bill’s provisions.  In particular, the CBO’s estimates regarding the significant public and private costs of various bill provisions are indicative of the need for further cross-industry work on the bill.

While the reported costs associated with ending patent fee diversion are largely bookkeeping-related, there are many real and actual costs that warrant discussion. At a time when Congress is trying to stimulate the economy, it seems imprudent to pass legislation that CBO estimates will cost the federal government and U.S. taxpayers $1.4 billion and potentially penalize public universities and businesses tens of millions of dollars annually.

When one also considers that the lion’s share of concerns with the bill derive from its potential to reduce substantially venture capital investment in nascent technology and biotech companies; undermine the economic development efforts of state governments; and threaten American manufacturing jobs, it is clear, that much more work needs to be done to ready the measure for floor consideration.