Intellectual Property Rights Enforcement Act - Amends the Treasury and General Government Appropriations Act, 2000 to repeal provisions establishing the National Intellectual Property Law Enforcement Coordination Council.
Establishes the Intellectual Property Enforcement Network (IPEN), consisting of specified representatives of various government agencies, to: (1) establish policies, objectives, and priorities concerning international intellectual property protection and law enforcement; (2) coordinate and facilitate implementation of such policies, objectives, and priorities; and (3) protect U.S. intellectual property rights overseas, including by creating an international task force.
Requires the agencies in IPEN to: (1) share the information they collect; (2) coordinate civil and criminal actions related to intellectual property rights; (3) establish formal processes for consulting and working with state and local government agencies and consulting with companies, writers, artists, labor unions, and other interested persons and groups; and (4) consult with the Register of Copyrights on law enforcement matters.
Urges the President and relevant agency officers, when meeting with certain foreign countries, to stress the importance of establishing and participating in the international task force.
Requires the Director of the Office of Mangement and Budget and the Coordinator of IPEN to submit to the President and the relevant congressional committees a strategic plan, which includes the goals, objectives, and priorities of IPEN.
Calls for other government intellectual property initiatives to be consolidated into the work of IPEN to prevent duplication.
[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 522 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
110th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 522
To safeguard the economic health of the United States and the health
and safety of United States citizens by improving the management,
coordination, and effectiveness of domestic and international
intellectual property rights enforcement, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 7, 2007
Mr. Bayh (for himself and Mr. Voinovich) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To safeguard the economic health of the United States and the health
and safety of United States citizens by improving the management,
coordination, and effectiveness of domestic and international
intellectual property rights enforcement, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Intellectual Property Rights
Enforcement Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress makes the following findings:
(1) The greatest economic assets of the United States are
its innovators, entrepreneurs, and workers.
(2) Counterfeiting and piracy cost United States
businesses, authors, and artists hundreds of billions of
dollars annually.
(3) Counterfeiting and piracy have resulted in the loss of
hundreds of thousands of jobs in the United States.
(4) Counterfeit medicines and automobile and aviation parts
may result in serious health problems and death.
(5) The World Customs Organization estimates that up to 7
percent of global trade is in counterfeit goods.
(6) The World Customs Organization estimates that global
trade in counterfeit and pirated goods has increased from
$5,500,000,000 to more than $600,000,000,000 annually.
(7) Small- and medium-sized businesses are particularly
vulnerable to intellectual property theft because they often
lack the resources to pursue recourse overseas or absorb the
financial losses stemming from counterfeiting and piracy.
(8) Terrorist groups have used the sale of counterfeit
goods to finance their activities.
(9) Funds generated from intellectual property theft have
financed acts of terrorism.
(10) The domestic and international efforts of the United
States to curb intellectual property rights violations would be
enhanced through hands-on leadership by the President,
increased coordination among agencies, and a strategic
partnership with like-minded countries.
(11) Congress finds that no less than 9 United States
Government agencies bear responsibility for supporting
intellectual property rights, including the Department of the
Treasury.
(12) The efforts to enforce intellectual property rights
should be elevated across agencies due to the increasing cost
to the economy and the threat to the health and safety of
United States citizens.
(13) The success of intellectual property enforcement
requires that a network of Government agencies work closely
with Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies.
(14) The domestic and international efforts of the United
States to combat money laundering serves as a useful model for
strengthening domestic and international intellectual property
rights enforcement.
(15) The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN)
represents a key effort by the United States to combat money
laundering and other financial crimes.
(16) FinCEN has effectively enhanced the exchange of
information relating to money laundering and terrorist
financing, both domestically and internationally.
(17) FinCEN combats money laundering internationally by
partnering with other enforcement-minded countries through the
Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
(18) FATF members have established effective standards that
they collectively agree to implement and against which they
agree to be assessed through peer review.
(19) The success of intellectual property rights
enforcement requires that United States Government agencies
form an effective network to take advantage of their diverse
capabilities and to share information for the purpose of
enhancing the enforcement capabilities of each agency and the
United States Government-wide intellectual property rights
enforcement effort.
(20) The Department of the Treasury's Office of Terrorism
and Financial Intelligence would be an effective tool in
combating intellectual property theft.
(21) The success of international intellectual property
rights enforcement requires that the United States partner with
other countries that also suffer from extensive intellectual
property theft.
(22) The success of international intellectual property
rights enforcement requires that the United States share
information within an effective international task force of
countries that are dedicated to achieving results in the fight
against intellectual property theft.
(23) The success of international intellectual property
rights enforcement will be enhanced if the United States and
other reliable international partners engage in joint
enforcement operations and work to strengthen the intellectual
property rights enforcement capacity of countries with a poor
record of intellectual property rights enforcement.
(24) An effective exchange of information domestically and
internationally will enhance the ability of the United States
Trade Representative to enforce violations of trade agreements.
(25) The success of domestic and international intellectual
property rights enforcement requires an effective partnership
between the public and private sector and other interested
groups.
SEC. 3. NATIONAL INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LAW ENFORCEMENT COORDINATION
COUNCIL REPEAL.
Section 653 of the Treasury and General Government Appropriations
Act, 2000 (15 U.S.C. 1128) is repealed.
SEC. 4. THE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY ENFORCEMENT NETWORK.
(a) Establishment.--
(1) In general.--There is established the Intellectual
Property Enforcement Network (in this section referred to as
the ``IPEN'').
(2) Membership.--The IPEN shall consist of the following
officials or their designees:
(A) The Deputy Director for Management of the
Office of Management and Budget, who shall serve as the
chairperson of the IPEN.
(B) The Coordinator for Intellectual Property
Enforcement, described in subsection (b)(2)(A), who
shall serve as vice chairperson of the IPEN.
(C) The Deputy Attorney General.
(D) The Deputy Secretary for Homeland Security.
(E) The Deputy Secretary of the Treasury.
(F) The Deputy Secretary of Commerce.
(G) The Deputy Secretary of State.
(H) A Deputy United States Trade Representative, as
determined by the United States Trade Representative.
(I) Such other officials as the members of the IPEN
shall consider necessary and appropriate.
(3) Relevant agencies.--In this section, the term
``relevant agency'' means an agency of which an official listed
in paragraph (2) is a member, including an agency of which an
official identified by the IPEN under paragraph (2)(I) is a
member.
(b) Organization.--
(1) Meetings.--The IPEN shall meet at least once every 6
months to approve the ongoing operations of the IPEN, to
provide overall direction for the IPEN, to approve the
strategic plan referred to in subsection (h) and the report
referred to in subsection (i), and to approve the budget
referred to in paragraph (2)(B)(i).
(2) Coordinator.--
(A) In general.--The day-to-day functions of the
IPEN shall be carried out by a Coordinator for
Intellectual Property Enforcement (in this Act referred
to as the ``Coordinator'') who shall be appointed by
the President.
(B) Other responsibilities.--In addition to the
responsibilities described in subparagraph (A), the
Coordinator shall be responsible for the following:
(i) Developing for each fiscal year, with
the advice of the officials of the IPEN and the
relevant agencies, a budget proposal to
implement the policies, objectives, and
priorities described in subsection (c).
(ii) Drafting and transmitting to the
President and the Congress the strategic plan
referred to in subsection (h) and the report
referred to in subsection (i).
(c) Duties.--The IPEN, established under subsection (a), shall be
responsible for the following:
(1) Coordinating and facilitating implementation by the
relevant agencies of the policies, objectives, and priorities
described in paragraph (2), and fulfilling the responsibilities
assigned to such agencies to complete the actions described in
paragraph (3).
(2) Establishing policies, objectives, and priorities
concerning international intellectual property protection and
intellectual property law enforcement. The policies,
objectives, and priorities shall include--
(A) eliminating counterfeit and pirated goods from
the international supply chain;
(B) identifying individuals, companies, banks, and
other entities involved in the financing, production,
trafficking, and sale of counterfeit and pirated goods;
(C) identifying and sharing information among the
relevant agencies for the purpose of arresting and
prosecuting persons who are knowingly involved in the
financing, production, trafficking, and sale of
counterfeit and pirated goods;
(D) disrupting and shutting down counterfeit and
piracy networks;
(E) strengthening the capacity of other countries
to protect and enforce intellectual property rights and
reducing the number of countries that fail to enforce
laws that prevent the financing, production,
trafficking, and sale of counterfeit and pirated goods;
and
(F) working with like-minded countries to establish
international standards and policies for the effective
protection and enforcement of intellectual property
rights.
(3) Protecting United States intellectual property rights
overseas, including--
(A) working with similar networks in foreign
countries to create an effective international
intellectual property enforcement task force (in this
Act referred to as the ``international task force'');
(B) ensuring the international task force described
in subparagraph (A) consists of networks in countries
that--
(i) suffer substantial intellectual
property theft problems similar to those of the
United States;
(ii) have adequate and effective laws
protecting copyrights, trademarks, and patents;
(iii) have legal regimes that enforce their
own domestic intellectual property laws, and
have a proven track record of permanently
shutting down piracy operations, and arresting
and prosecuting those who commit intellectual
property crimes and offenses;
(iv) have officials who have ex officio
authority to seize, inspect, and destroy
pirated and counterfeit goods at ports of entry
(or are working toward providing officials with
such authority);
(v) have officials who can order the
seizure of pirated and counterfeit goods (or
are working toward providing officials with
such authority);
(vi) have laws in place that permit
officials to seize property used to produce
pirated and counterfeit goods (or are working
toward providing officials with such
authority);
(vii) are not on the Priority Watch List
issued by the United States Trade
Representative under title III of the Trade Act
of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2411 et seq.); and
(viii) have met additional standards to be
established by the international task force;
(C) exchanging information with networks in the
international task force relating to individuals and
entities involved in financing, production,
trafficking, and sale of pirated and counterfeit goods;
(D) utilizing the information to conduct
enforcement activities in cooperation with the networks
of other countries in the international task force; and
(E) building a formal process for consulting with
companies, industry associations, labor unions, and
other interested groups in the countries that have
networks in the international task force.
(d) Staff.--
(1) In general.--The Coordinator shall, in consultation
with the relevant agencies, appoint, and fix the compensation
of, such officers and employees of the IPEN as may be necessary
to carry out the functions of the IPEN and may request the
temporary assignment of personnel from the relevant agencies.
(2) Assignment and cooperation of other federal
employees.--Each member of the IPEN listed in subsection (a)
shall designate personnel from the member's relevant agency to
work with the IPEN and shall ensure that all units in the
member's relevant agency that have responsibility for the
protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights
provide information and personnel to the IPEN in order for the
IPEN to achieve the priorities, objectives, and policies
described in subsection (c)(2).
(e) Responsibility of Relevant Agencies.--The relevant agencies
shall take the following actions:
(1) Share information collected to increase the
intelligence and effectiveness of the protection and
enforcement of intellectual property rights.
(2) Coordinate civil and criminal actions with respect to
persons who violate intellectual property rights.
(3) Utilize information collected domestically, and from
other countries in the international task force, to--
(A) investigate, arrest, and prosecute entities and
individuals involved in financing, producing,
trafficking, and selling counterfeit and pirated goods;
(B) provide assistance to the Department of
Homeland Security, the Department of Justice, and other
relevant agencies in identifying, seizing, and
destroying counterfeit and pirated goods;
(C) provide assistance to the United States Trade
Representative in taking appropriate action against
countries that have violated World Trade Organization
rules regarding the protection of intellectual property
rights; and
(D) provide assistance to the United States Trade
Representative in taking appropriate action under any
trade agreement or treaty to which the United States is
a signatory.
(4) Establish a formal process for consulting and working
with State and local government agencies to investigate,
arrest, and prosecute entities and individuals involved in the
financing, production, trafficking, and sale of counterfeit and
pirated goods.
(5) Establish a formal process for consulting with
companies, including small and medium-sized businesses, their
designated representatives, and industry associations to
strengthen enforcement. Such processes shall include the
development of resources designed to assist businesses,
industry associations, and their representatives in addressing
intellectual property issues both domestically and
internationally.
(6) Establish a formal process for consulting with writers
and artists (and their organizations and unions), labor unions,
and other interested persons and groups that suffer from
counterfeiting and piracy.
(f) Consultation Required.--The members of the IPEN shall consult
with the Register of Copyrights on law enforcement matters relating to
copyright and related rights and matters.
(g) Priority in International Talks.--Considering the threat that
counterfeit and pirated goods pose to the economic health of the United
States, and the health and safety of United States citizens, the
President and officers of the relevant agencies, when meeting with
foreign countries described in subsection (c)(3)(B), should--
(1) stress the importance of establishing the international
task force described in subsection (c)(3)(A);
(2) strongly encourage countries to participate in the
international task force; and
(3) strongly encourage countries participating in the
international task force to cooperate with the United States in
ensuring the success of the international task force.
(h) Strategic Plan.--
(1) In general.--Within 6 months of the date of the
enactment of this Act, and once every 2 years thereafter, the
Director of the Office of Management and Budget and the
Coordinator shall submit a strategic plan to the President, and
to the Committees on the Judiciary, Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs, and Appropriations of the Senate, and the
Committees on the Judiciary, Oversight and Government Reform,
and Appropriations of the House of Representatives.
(2) Contents.--The strategic plan required by this
subsection shall include the following:
(A) A detailed description of the goals,
objectives, and priorities of the IPEN, including those
described in subsection (c)(2).
(B) An analysis of the threat posed by violations
of intellectual property rights, including targets,
risks, and threats of intellectual property theft, and
the costs to the economy of the United States resulting
from violations of intellectual property laws.
(C) Proposed methods for achieving success,
including through the growth of the international
intellectual property enforcement task force described
in subsection (c)(3).
(D) The performance measures that will be used to
monitor results.
(E) An estimate of the resources necessary to
achieve the goals, objectives, and priorities described
in subparagraph (A), and an estimate of the cost of
such resources.
(F) An identification of the relevant agencies that
will be involved in coordinating the IPEN and
implementing each priority.
(G) A strategy for ensuring coordination between
the chairperson and vice chairperson of the IPEN, and
the relevant agencies, including a process for
oversight of, and accountability among, the relevant
agencies carrying out the strategy.
(H) A description of how the IPEN will carry out
its oversight and accountability responsibilities to
monitor and implement the strategy.
(i) Report.--
(1) In general.--The Director of the Office of Management
and Budget and the Coordinator shall report annually on the
IPEN's enforcement and coordination activities for the fiscal
year to the President, and to the Committees on the Judiciary,
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, and Appropriations
of the Senate, and the Committees on the Judiciary, Government
Reform, and Appropriations of the House of Representatives.
(2) Contents.--The report required by this subsection shall
include the following information:
(A) The progress made toward establishing an
international task force described in subsection
(c)(3).
(B) The progress made in working with foreign
networks in the international task force to
investigate, arrest, and prosecute entities and
individuals involved in the financing, production,
trafficking, and sale of counterfeit and pirated goods.
(C) The manner in which the relevant agencies are
working together and sharing information to strengthen
the protection and enforcement of intellectual property
rights.
(D) For each foreign network admitted or denied
entry into the international task force, an explanation
of the reasons for admitting or denying entry to the
international task force, including reasons for
admitting networks from those countries that are
currently on the Priority Watch List issued by the
United States Trade Representative under title III of
the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2411 et seq.).
(E) The progress made in strengthening the capacity
of countries denied entry into the international task
force to protect and enforce intellectual property
rights.
(F) The successes and challenges in sharing
information with countries in the international task
force.
(G) The progress of the United States Trade
Representative in taking appropriate action under any
trade agreement or treaty to which the United States is
a signatory.
(H) The progress made in establishing and improving
the formal process described in subsection (e)(4).
(I) The progress made in establishing and improving
the formal process described in subsection (e)(5).
(J) The progress made in establishing and improving
the formal process described in subsection (e)(6).
(K) The progress made in implementing the strategy
in subsection (h)(2).
(j) Government Accountability Office Report.--Not later than 1 year
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of
the United States shall complete a report and submit the report to the
Congress on the progress made on the items described in subsections (h)
and (i).
(k) Other Intellectual Property Activities.--If other government
intellectual property initiatives include enforcement activities
similar or identical to the activities described in this Act, those
activities should be consolidated into the work of the IPEN in order to
prevent duplication. Other activities that may improve enforcement may
continue outside of the IPEN, including--
(1) capacity building;
(2) outreach to countries that would not qualify for
membership in the international task force; and
(3) other bilateral and multilateral cooperative efforts.
(l) Prohibited Actions.--This section shall not be construed to
require any act, measure, or other conduct by any department, agency,
or other instrumentality of the United States that is prohibited by any
law, regulation, or rule of procedure.
SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated for each fiscal year such
sums as may be necessary to carry out this Act.
SEC. 6. EFFECTIVE DATE.
This Act shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this
Act.
<all>
Introduced in Senate
Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Committee on the Judiciary. Hearings held.
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