Public User ID Badging

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 revision 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 January 16, 2015.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments by any of the following methods:

• Email: InformationCollection@uspto.gov. Include “0651-0041 comment” in the subject line of the message.
• Mail: Marcie Lovett, Records Management Division Director, Office of the Chief Information Officer, United States Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450.
• Federal Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Requests for additional information regarding online access cards or user training should be directed to Terry Howard, Manager, Public Search Facility, United States Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450; by telephone at 571-272-3258; or by email to Terry.Howard@uspto.gov.

Additional information about this collection is also available at http://www.reginfo.gov under “Information Collection Review.”

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is required by 35 U.S.C. 41(i)(1) to maintain a Public Search Facility to provide patent and trademark collections for searching and retrieval of information. The Public Search Facility is maintained for public use with paper and electronic search files and trained staff to assist searchers. The USPTO also offers training courses to assist the public with using the advanced electronic search systems available at the facility.

In order to manage the patent and trademark collections that are available to the public, the USPTO issues online access accounts to customers who wish to use the electronic search systems at the Public Search Facility. Customers may obtain an online access accounts by completing the application at the Public Search Facility reference desk and providing proper identification. The paper online access accounts include a bar-coded user number and an expiration date. Users may renew their accounts by validating and updating the required information and may obtain a replacement for a lost account by providing proper identification.

Under the authority provided in 41 CFR Part 102-81, the USPTO issues security identification badges to members of the public who wish to use the facilities at the USPTO. Public users may apply for a security badge in person at the USPTO Office of Security by providing the necessary information and presenting a valid form of identification with photograph. The security badges include a color photograph of the user and must be worn at all times while at the USPTO facilities.

II. Method of Collection

The applications for online access accounts and security identification badges are completed on site and handed to a USPTO staff member for issuance. User training registration forms may be mailed, faxed, emailed or hand delivered to the USPTO.

III. Data

OMB Number: 0651-0041.

Form Number(s): PTO-2030 and PTO-2224.

Type of Review: Revision of a currently approved collection.

Affected Public: Individuals or households; businesses or other for-profits; and not-for-profit institutions.

Estimated Number of Respondents: 8,058 responses per year.

Estimated Time per Response: The USPTO estimates that it will take the public approximately five to ten minutes (0.08 to 0.17 hours) to complete the information in this collection, including gathering the necessary information, preparing the appropriate form, and submitting the completed request.

Estimated Total Annual Respondent Burden Hours: 791 hours.

Estimated Total Annual Respondent Cost Burden: $168,483. The USPTO estimates that approximately 1/3 of the users responding to this collection are attorneys and 2/3 are paraprofessionals. Using 1/3 of the professional rate of $389 per hour for attorneys in private firms and 2/3 of the paraprofessional rate of $125 per hour, the estimated rate for respondents to this collection is approximately $213 per hour. Using this estimated rate of $213 per hour, the USPTO estimates that the respondent cost burden for submitting the information in this collection will be approximately $168,483 per year.

Estimated Total Annual Non-hour Respondent Cost Burden: $1,502. This collection has annual (non-hour) costs in the form of fees and postage costs.

There are no application or renewal fees for online access cards or security identification badges. However, there is a $15 fee for issuing a replacement security identification badge. The USPTO estimates that it will reissue approximately 100 security badges annually that have been lost, stolen, or need to be replaced, for a total of $1,500 per year in replacement fees.

Users may incur postage costs when submitting a user training registration form to the USPTO by mail. The USPTO expects that approximately 4 training forms received per year will be submitted by mail. The USPTO estimates that the average first-class postage cost for a mailed training form will be 49 cents, for a total postage cost of approximately $2 per year for this collection.

The total annual (non-hour) respondent cost burden for this collection in the form of fees and postage costs is estimated to be $1,502 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.