2011-31353. Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) will submit to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for clearance the following proposal for collection of information under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 35).

Agency: United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

Title: Statutory Invention Registration.

Form Number(s): PTO/SB/94.

Agency Approval Number: 0651-0036.

Type of Request: Revision of a currently approved collection.

Burden: 4 hours annually.

Number of Respondents: 8 responses per year.

Avg. Hours per Response: The USPTO expects that it will take the public approximately 24 minutes (0.40 hours) to gather the necessary information, create the document, and submit the completed request.

Needs and Uses: 35 U.S.C. 157, administered by the USPTO through 37 CFR 1.293-1.297, authorizes the USPTO to publish a statutory invention registration containing the specifications and drawings of a regularly filed application for a patent without examination, providing the applicant meets all the requirements for printing, waives the right to receive a United States patent on the invention claimed in the identified patent application within a certain period of time prescribed by the USPTO, and pays all application, publication, and other processing fees.

The America Invents Act, Public Law 112-29, was enacted September 16, 2011. It calls for the repeal of Statutory Invention Registration 18 months after the enactment of the Act. The USPTO, therefore, will request renewal for this collection based upon the impending requirement for discontinuation in early 2013.

Affected Public: Businesses or other for-profits.

Frequency: On occasion.

Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain or retain benefits.

OMB Desk Officer: Nicholas A. Fraser, email: [e-mail].

Once submitted, the request will be publicly available in electronic format through the Information Collection Review page at http://www.reginfo.gov.

Paper copies can be obtained by:

• Email: [e-mail]. Include “0651-0036 copy request” in the subject line of the message.
• Mail: Susan K. Fawcett, Records Officer, Office of the Chief Information Officer, United States Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450.

Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information collection should be sent on or before January 6, 2012 to Nicholas A. Fraser, OMB Desk Officer, via email to [e-mail], or by fax to [phone], marked to the attention of Nicholas A. Fraser.

Dated: December 2, 2011.

Susan K. Fawcett,

Records Officer, USPTO, Office of the Chief Information Officer.