E8-24680. Fastener Quality Act Insignia Recordal Process

ACTION:

Proposed collection; comment request.

SUMMARY:

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on the extension of a continuing information collection, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13 (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)).

DATES:

Written comments must be submitted on or before December 16, 2008.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments by any of the following methods:

• E-mail: [e-mail]. Include “0651-0028 comment” in the subject line of the message.
• Fax: [phone], marked to the attention of Susan K. Fawcett.
• Mail: Susan K. Fawcett, Records Officer, Office of the Chief Information Officer, Customer Information Services Group, Public Information Services Division, United States Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1451, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450.
• Federal Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Requests for additional information should be directed to the attention of Sharon R. Marsh, Deputy Commissioner for Trademark Examination Policy, Office of the Commissioner for Trademarks, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1451, Alexandria, VA 22313-1451; by telephone at 571-272-7140; or by e-mail at [e-mail].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

Under Section 5 of the Fastener Quality Act of 1999 (FQA), 15 U.S.C. 5401 et seq., certain industrial fasteners must bear an insignia identifying the manufacturer. The manufacturer must record this fastener insignia with the United Stated Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The procedures for the recordal of fastener insignia under the FQA are set forth in 15 CFR 280.300 et seq.

Manufacturers of certain fasteners are required to record their insignia. The purpose of this collection is to ensure that certain fasteners can be traced to their manufacturers. It is mandatory for manufacturers of fasteners covered by the FQA to submit an application to the USPTO for recordal of an insignia on the Fastener Insignia Register.

The insignia may be either a unique alphanumeric designation that the USPTO will issue upon request, or a trademark that is either registered at the USPTO or is the subject of an application to obtain a registration. After a manufacturer submits a complete application for recordal, the USPTO issues a Certificate of Recordal. These certificates remain active for five years. Applications to maintain the certificates must be filed within six months of the expiration date or upon payment of an additional surcharge, within six months following the expiration date. If a recorded alphanumeric designation is assigned by the manufacturer, the designation becomes “inactive,” and the new owner must submit an application to reactivate the designation within six months of assignment. If the recordal is based on a trademark application or registration, and that registration is assigned, the recordal becomes “inactive” and cannot be reactivated. Instead, the new owner of the trademark application or registration must apply for a new recordal. Manufacturers who record insignia must notify the USPTO of any changes of address.

This information collection includes one form, the Application for Recordal of Insignia or Renewal/Reactivation of Recordal Under the Fastener Quality Act (PTO-1611), which provides manufacturers with a convenient way to submit a request for the recordal of a fastener insignia or to renew or reactivate an existing Certificate of Recordal. Use of Form PTO-1611 is not mandatory, and applicants may instead prepare requests for recordal using their own format. In October of 2007 OMB approved a Change Worksheet to update the design of Form PTO-1611 and to include instructions for submitting the completed form by electronic mail.

The public uses this information collection to comply with the insignia recordal provisions of the FQA. The USPTO uses the information in this collection to maintain the Fastener Insignia Register, which is open to public inspection. The public may download the Fastener Insignia Register from the USPTO Web site or purchase printed copies from the USPTO.

II. Method of Collection

By mail, facsimile, hand delivery, or electronically to the USPTO.

III. Data

OMB Number: 0651-0028.

Form Number(s): PTO-1611.

Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.

Affected Public: Businesses or other for-profits.

Estimated Number of Respondents: 130 responses per year.

Estimated Time per Response: The USPTO estimates that it will take the public approximately 15 minutes (0.25 hours) to gather the necessary information, prepare the form, and submit the request for recordal or renewal of a fastener insignia to the USPTO.

Estimated Total Annual Respondent Burden Hours: 33 hours per year.

Estimated Total Annual Respondent Cost Burden: $3,300 per year. The USPTO expects that the information in this collection will be prepared by paraprofessionals at an estimated rate of $100 per hour. Therefore, the USPTO estimates that the respondent cost burden for this collection will be $3,300 per year.

Item	Estimated time for response	Estimated annual responses	Estimated annual burden hours
Application for Recordal of Insignia or Renewal/Reactivation of Recordal Under the Fastener Quality Act (PTO-1611)	15 minutes	130	33
Total		130	33

Estimated Total Annual Non-hour Respondent Cost Burden: $2,845. There are no capital start-up costs, recordkeeping costs, or maintenance costs associated with this information collection. However, this collection does have annual (non-hour) costs in the form of filing fees and postage costs.

Under 37 CFR 2.7, the filing fee for a recordal of fastener insignia is $20, whether it be a new recordal, renewal, or a request for reactivation. The USPTO estimates that it will receive 125 new recordals or renewals of fastener insignia per year for a total of $2,500 in filing fees. If a manufacturer submits a renewal after the expiration date but within six months of that date, then the manufacturer must pay an additional $20 late renewal surcharge. The USPTO estimates that approximately 10 of the estimated 125 responses per year will be late renewals that incur the surcharge, for a total of $200 in additional charges. If a manufacturer fails to renew or assigns an alphanumeric designation assigned by the USPTO to a new owner, the current owner may submit a request for reactivation of that same alphanumeric designation for a fee of $20. The USPTO estimates approximately 5 reactivation requests will be received per year, for a total of $100. Therefore, the total estimated filing costs for this collection will be $2,800 per year.

The public may submit the information for this collection to the USPTO by mail through the United States Postal Service. The USPTO estimates that approximately 60 of the 130 responses per year will be submitted to the USPTO by mail at an average first-class postage cost of 75 cents per response, for a total postage cost of $45 per year.

The total non-hour respondent cost burden for this collection in the form of filing fees ($2,800) and postage costs ($45) is estimated to be $2,845 per year.

IV. Request for Comments

Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden (including hours and cost) of the proposed collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, e.g. , the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized or included in the request for OMB approval of this information collection; they also will become a matter of public record.

Dated: October 10, 2008.

Susan K. Fawcett,

Records Officer, USPTO, Office of the Chief Information Officer, Customer Information Services Group, Public Information Services Division.