Washington, D.C. – The U.S. Department of Commerce’s United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) is seeking nominations to fill upcoming vacancies for the Patent Public Advisory Committee (PPAC) and the Trademark Public Advisory Committee (TPAC). Nominations must be postmarked or electronically transmitted on or before July 25, 2015. Submission details can be found in the Federal Register Notice.
The Public Advisory Committees for the USPTO were created through the Patent and Trademark Office Efficiency Act statute in the American Inventors Protection Act of 1999 to advise the Secretary of Commerce and the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO on the management of patent and trademark operations. The Public Advisory Committees review the policies, goals, performance, budget, and user fees of the patent and trademark operations, respectively, and advise the director on these matters. Each committee has nine voting members who are appointed by, and serve at the pleasure of, the Secretary of Commerce. Each member serves a three-year term.
For more information you may contact, Andrew C. Byrnes, Chief of Staff, Office of the Under Secretary and Director, USPTO, by facsimile transmission marked to his attention at (571) 273-0464.