Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has submitted 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. Chapter 35).

AGENCY:

United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

Title: Trademark Processing (proposed rulemaking, Processing Fee for Use of Paper Forms for Submission of Applications for Registration and Other Documents).

Form Number(s): PTO Form 4.8/4.9/4.16/1478/1478(a)/1553/1581/1583/1963/2000, PTO/TM/4.16/1583.

Agency Approval Number: 0651-0009.

Type of Request: Revision of a currently approved collection.

Burden: 144,587 hours annually.

Number of Respondents: 677,151 responses per year.

Avg. Hours Per Response: The time needed to respond is estimated to range from 3 to 30 minutes. It is estimated that the time needed to complete the electronic forms ranges from 4 to 21 minutes, and the time needed to complete the paper forms with the declaration ranges from 6 to 24 minutes. The information collection also includes four items, namely, powers of attorney, designations of domestic representatives, trademark amendments/corrections/ surrenders, and petitions to revive abandoned applications, for which forms have not been created and which are not subject to the proposed mandatory electronic filing rule. The USPTO estimates that completing these items ranges from 3 to 30 minutes. The time estimates include time to gather the necessary information, create the documents, and submit the completed requests.

Needs and Uses: This collection is being submitted as a proposed addition in support of a proposed rulemaking, “Processing Fee for Use of Paper Forms for Submission of Applications for Registration and Other Documents.” The USPTO proposes to amend 37 CFR § 2.6(a) of the Rules of Practice in Trademark Cases to require payment of a processing fee whenever a party elects to make a submission using paper in place of an electronically transmittable form available through the Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS). If a party submits a paper document to the USPTO, and the TEAS system includes a form for preparing that document and transmitting it to the USPTO electronically, the fee for submitting the paper document will be fifty dollars ($50.00) more than the fee for submitting the equivalent electronic document.

Affected Public: Individuals or households; business or other for-profit; not-for-profit institutions; farms; the federal Government; and state, local or tribal Government.

Frequency: On occasion.

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

OMB Desk Officer: David Rostker, (202) 395-3897.

Copies of the above information collection proposal can be obtained by calling or writing Susan K. Brown, Records Officer, Office of Data Management, Data Administration Division, (703) 308-7400, USPTO, Suite 310, 2231 Crystal Drive, Washington, DC 20231, or by e-mail at susan.brown@uspto.gov.

Written comments and recommendations for the proposed collection should be sent on or before June 14, 2002 to David Rostker, OMB Desk Officer, Room 10202, New Executive Office Building, Washington, DC 20503.