Senators Call For Action On Stalled Patent Bill
A bipartisan group of 25 senators urged Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., Wednesday to bring legislation that would overhaul the U.S. patent system to the Senate floor for a vote.
With the legislation stalled for months, the senators led by Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy, R-Vt., and ranking member Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., called on Reid in a letter to bring a compromise version of a patent overhaul bill the Judiciary Committee passed last year to the floor "as soon as possible." They note that the compromise measure, which would be offered as a manager's amendment on the Senate floor, enjoys broad support and would help spur economic activity.
"Strengthening our patent system and spurring innovation and investment is an action we should take now to stimulate our economy," the senators wrote. They added that, "Patent reform is bipartisan legislation, supported by the [Obama] administration, that will improve the economy and create jobs without adding to the deficit."
Leahy and Sessions unveiled a compromise version of the patent bill in March aimed at bringing some senators and stakeholders on board. Among those who have signed on in support of the compromise include major labor groups, biotech groups and the pharmaceutical industry's trade group as well as some tech firms such as IBM and Microsoft.
However, the changes prompted a key coalition of big tech companies that backed the measure when it came out of committee to withdraw their support. The Coalition for Patent Fairness, which includes such firms as Apple, Google, Intel and Oracle, says some of the changes included in the compromise are worse than the status quo.
Key members of the House Judiciary Committee who have been sympathetic to the coalition's concerns had been trying to negotiate changes to the compromise Senate measure but the effort has yet to yield an agreement.
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