2013-12130. Federal Acquisition Regulation; Information Collection; Patents

AGENCY:

Department of Defense (DOD), General Services Administration (GSA), and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

ACTION:

Notice of request for comments regarding an extension to an existing OMB clearance.

SUMMARY:

Under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act, the Regulatory Secretariat will be submitting to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) a request to review and approve an extension of a previously approved information collection requirement concerning patents.

DATES:

Submit comments on or before July 22, 2013.

ADDRESSES:

Submit comments identified by Information Collection 9000-0096, Patents, by any of the following methods:

• Regulations.gov: http://www.regulations.gov. Submit comments via the Federal eRulemaking portal by searching the OMB control number. Select the link “Submit a Comment” that corresponds with “Information Collection 9000-0096, Patents”. Follow the instructions provided at the “Submit a Comment” screen. Please include your name, company name (if any), and “Information Collection 9000-0096, Patents” on your attached document.
• Fax: [phone].
• Mail: General Services Administration, Regulatory Secretariat (MVCB), 1275 First Street NE., Washington, DC 20417. ATTN: Hada Flowers/IC 9000-0096, Patents.

Instructions: Please submit comments only and cite Information Collection 9000-0096, Patents, in all correspondence related to this collection. Submit cooments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden to: FAR Desk Officer, OMB, Room 10102, NEOB, Washington, DC 20503. All comments received will be posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov,, including any personal and/or business confidential information provided.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Ms. Marissa Petrusek, Procurement Analyst, Governmentwide Acquisition Policy Division, GSA [phone] or email [e-mail].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

 

A. Purpose

The patent coverage in FAR subpart 27.2 requires the contractor to report each notice of a claim of patent or copyright infringement that came to the contractor's attention in connection with performing a Government contract (sections 27.202-1 and 52.227-2).

The contractor is also required to report all royalties anticipated or paid in excess of $250 for the use of patented inventions by furnishing the name and address of licensor, date of license agreement, patent number, brief description of item or component, percentage or dollar rate of royalty per unit, unit price of contract item, and number of units (sections 27.202-5, 52.227-6, and 52.227-9).

Public comments are particularly invited on: Whether this collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of functions of the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR), and whether it will have practical utility; whether our estimate of the public burden of this collection of information is accurate, and based on valid assumptions and methodology; ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and ways in which we can minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, through the use of appropriate technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

B. Annual Reporting Burden

The information collection requirement in the FAR remains unchanged for the estimated number of respondents and responses received annually. There is no centralized database in the Federal Government that maintains information regarding notice or claim of patent or copyright infringement, when a response to a solicitation contains costs or charges to royalties or when a contractor submits a statement of royalties paid or required to be paid. Subject matter experts in intellectual property law were consulted to obtain additional information that could result in revised estimates for the public burden. These inquiries yielded no additional information in regards to the respondents or responses on a yearly basis. No public comments were received in prior years that have challenged the validity of the Government's estimates.

Number of Respondents: 30.

Responses Per Respondent: 1.

Total Responses: 30.

Average Burden Hours per Response: .5.

Total Burden Hours: 15.

Obtaining Copies of Proposals: Requesters may obtain a copy of the information collection documents from the General Services Administration, Regulatory Secretariat (MVCB), 1275 First Street NE., Washington, DC 20417, telephone [phone]. Please cite OMB Control No. 9000-0096, Patents, in all correspondence.

Dated: May 16, 2013.

William Clark,

Acting Director, Federal Acquisition Policy Division, Office of Governmentwide Acquisition Policy, Office of Acquisition Policy, Office of Governmentwide Policy.