Administration Says Patent Law Change Will Spur U.S. Economy

[xchrom]

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-16/administration-says-patent-law-change-will-spur-u-s-economy.html

White House officials said the overhaul of the U.S. patent system that President Barack Obama will sign into law today amounts to the most significant jobs bill passed by Congress this year.

The measure, which the president has repeatedly cited in speeches promoting his economic policies, gives the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office more control over its funding and makes fundamental changes in how patents are processed and reviewed. It passed the House in June and won final approval Sept. 9 on an 89-9 vote in the Senate.

“By creating a faster process for the approval of patents and reducing the amount of uncertainty, it will increase investment in the economy today and start creating jobs today,” Jason Furman, deputy director of the National Economic Council said yesterday in a conference call with reporters.

The patent office, which is funded entirely by user fees, will be able to set its own fees, with any money in excess of the budgeted amount going to a fund that can only be used by the agency. The office plans to hire as many as 2,000 more examiners in the coming fiscal year, revamp an outdated information technology system that it has described as “beyond horrific,” and open satellite offices across the country to tap into local workforces.

[L0oniX]

1. How about we plant money tress and raise golden geese too?

[FarLeftFist]

2. It's worth a shot.

[mazzarro]

3. I guess this is clutching at straws and hoping for the best -- n/t