COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY UNITED STATES SENATE EIGHTY-SIXTH CONGRESS SECOND SESSION PURSUANT TO S. RES. 240 ON S. 3156 and S. 3550 58063 MAY 17 AND 18, 1960 Printed for the use of the Committee on the Judiciary UNITED STATES WASHINGTON: 1960 COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY JAMES O. EASTLAND, Mississippi, Chairman ESTES KEFAUVER, Tennessee ALEXANDER WILEY, Wisconsin EVERETT MCKINLEY. DIRKSEN, Illinois ROMAN L. HRUSKA, Nebraska KENNETH B. KEATING, New York NORRIS COTTON, New Hampshire SUBCOMMITTEE ON PATENTS, TRADEMARKS, AND COPYRIGHTS JOSEPH C. O'MAHONEY, Wyoming, Chairman OLIN D. JOHNSTON, South Carolina PHILIP A. HART, Michigan ALEXANDER WILEY, Wisconsin ROBERT L. WRIGHT, Chief Counsel II CONTENTS Robert F. Keller, General Counsel, General Accounting Office; accompanied by Wayne Smith, attorney, Office of the General Alan T. Waterman, in behalf of National Science Foundation; ac- companied by William J. Hoff, General Counsel; and Charles B. Ruttenberg, Deputy General Counsel.__. Parke Banta, General Counsel, Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, accompanied by Arthur H. Bissell, Office of the Surgeon General, PHS; Manuel B. Hiller, Office of General Counsel, Hon. Russell B. Long, U.S. Senator from the State of Louisiana__. Herbert D. Vogel, Chairman of the Board, Tennessee Valley Authority; accompanied by J. H. Walthall, Chemical Research and Fertilizer Development Staff; Duane Dunlop, Assistant General Counsel; Marguerite Owen; June Martin_. Dr. Robert E. Stewart, Director, Prosthetics and Sensory Aids Service, Department of Medicine and Surgery, Veterans' Administration; accompanied by Eugene Murphy, Chief, Research and Develop- ment Division, Prosthetics and Sensory Aids Service; and Graham Moseley, Special Assistant to Assistant Chief Medical Director for Exhibit No. 1. Patent practices of the National Science Foundation.. Exhibit No. 2. Patent practices of the Department of Health, Education, Exhibit No. 3. Supplemental statement of Mr. Parke Banta, General Counsel, Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, giving the appropriation history of NIH.. Exhibit No. 4. Letter to Hon. Joseph C. O'Mahoney, chairman, Sub- committee on Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights, from Herbert D. Vogel, Chairman of the Board, Tennessee Valley Authority, dated May 17, 1960, enclosing supplemental information regarding the patent Exhibit No. 5. Patent practices of the Tennessee Valley Authority. Exhibit No. 6. Patent practices of the Veterans' Administration__. Exhibit No. 7. Supplemental information regarding the patent practices III GOVERNMENT PATENT PRACTICES TUESDAY, MAY 17, 1960 U.S. SENATE, SUBCOMMITTEE ON PATENTS, TRADEMARKS, AND COPYRIGHTS OF THE COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY, Washington, D.C. The subcommittee met, pursuant to call, at 10:45 a.m., in room 2228, New Senate Office Building, Senator Joseph O. O'Mahoney presiding. Present: Senators O'Mahoney (presiding) and Hart. Also present: Robert L. Wright, chief counsel, Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights Subcommittee; John C. Stedman, associate counsel; Hershel F. Clesner, assistant counsel; Clarence M. Dinkins, assistant counsel, and George S. Green, professional staff member Senate Judiciary Committee, and Richard M. Gibbons, of the staff of Senator Wiley. Senator O'MAHONEY. The subcommittee has before it this morning two bills, one, S. 3156, which I introduced last March to provide for the protection of the interests of the United States in basic research with respect to patent rights arising from research conducted under projects financed by the United States. This bill may appear in the record. (S. 3156 follows:) [S. 3156, 86th Cong., 2d sess.] A BILL To provide for the protection of the interests of the United States in basic research with respect to patent rights arising from research conducted under projects financed by the United States Whereas the National Science Foundation has statutory responsibility for the promotion and coordination of all basic research financed by the Federal Government; and Whereas said Foundation has not yet determined the extent of the possible adverse impact on such research of patent provisions in various research contracts which reserve to the research contractor or grantee the right to exclude the Government or members of the public from the practice, in competition with the said contractor or grantee and his commercial licensees, of the inventions produced by such Government financed research: Now, therefore, Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That (a) no contract or agreement entered into by any department or agency of the United States with any contractor or grantee for the conduct of research by such contractor or grantee may contain any provision by reason of which such contractor or grantee would acquire the right to exclude the United States or any department or agency thereof or other members of the public from practicing, in competition with the said constractor or grantee or any licensee of such contractor or grantee, any invention produced under that contract or grant, unless a determination has been made in compliance with subsection (b) on the question whether the inclusion of that provision in such contract or agreement would adversely affect the basic research program of the United States. 1 |