{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.hirono.senate.gov/news/press-releases/hirono-tillis-velazquez-kim-reintroduce-bipartisan-bicameral-bill-to-collect-data-about-who-is-applying-for-patents", "Hirono, Tillis, Vel\u00e1zquez, Kim Reintroduce Bipartisan, Bicameral Bill to Collect Data About Who is Applying for Patents", "2024-09-12", "2024", "2024-09", "Democrat", "Senate", "HI", "Mazie K. Hirono", "H001042", "www.hirono.senate.gov", "hirono", "https://www.hirono.senate.gov/news/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, DC \u2013 Today, U.S. Senators Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) and Thom Tillis (R-NC), and Representatives Nydia M. Vel\u00e1zquez (D-NY) and Young Kim (R-CA) announced the reintroduction of the Inventor Diversity for Economic Advancement (IDEA) Act of 2024, bicameral, bipartisan legislation to permit the collection of data that will provide a better understanding of the disparate rates at which women, veterans, and other groups apply for patents in the United States. The IDEA Act is scheduled to be considered by the Senate Judiciary Committee at its September 19th Executive Business Meeting.\n\n\u201cIn order for America to remain innovative and competitive on a global scale, we must include inventors from underrepresented groups across the country\u2014such as women, veterans, and communities of color\u2014in our patent system,\u201d said Senator Hirono. \u201cThe IDEA Act will help us to better understand who is applying for patents so that we can focus resources and education to help more people participate in this important part of our economy.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is vitally important to ensure that all Americans have the opportunity to innovate and to seek to protect their innovations,\u201d said Senator Tillis. \u201cI am proud to reintroduce this bipartisan, bicameral legislation to get a better understanding of the background of individuals who apply for patents with the USPTO.\u201d\n\n\u201cOn the House Small Business Committee, I see every day how innovation and invention drive entrepreneurship and create greater opportunity,\u201d said Congresswoman Nydia M. Vel\u00e1zquez, Ranking Member of the House Small Business Committee. \u201cThis legislation will drive better policy that ultimately helps more women, people of color and other traditionally disadvantaged groups obtain patents for their inventions, bring new products to markets, creating jobs and enhancing our nation's competitiveness along the way.\u201d\n\n\u201cFor America to lead in today\u2019s innovative, dynamic economy, we need all of our best and brightest minds at the table. Unfortunately, Americans of different backgrounds can face barriers to making their ideas a reality,\u201d said Rep. Young Kim. \u201cThe IDEA Act aims to help us bridge the opportunity gap and identify barriers to developing patents. I am proud to co-lead this bill with Rep. Velazquez and will keep fighting to ensure all Americans have the opportunity to invent and achieve their dream.\u201d\n\nIn addition to Senators Hirono and Tillis and Reps. Vel\u00e1zquez and Kim, the legislation is cosponsored in the Senate by Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Chris Coons (D-DE), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Alex Padilla (D-CA), and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN).\n\nStudies show that women and other underrepresented groups apply for and obtain patents at significantly lower rates than the population as a whole. There is a complete lack of data around the rate at servicemembers and veterans are using our patent system. The IDEA Act works to provide more data about those gaps by directing the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to collect demographic data\u2014including gender, military or veteran status, and race\u2014from patent applicants on a voluntary basis. It further requires the USPTO to both issue reports on the data collected and make the data available to the public, thereby allowing outside researchers to conduct their own analyses and offer insights into the various patent application gaps.\n\nThe full text of the bill is available here.\n\n\u201cPassing the IDEA Act will help us get the information we need to expand our innovation talent pool and compete globally. We thank Senators Hirono and Tillis and Representatives Vel\u00e1zquez and Kim for their strong commitment to expanding participation in inventing, and we look forward to working with them to enact this important legislation,\u201d said Invent Together Executive Director Holly Fechner.\n\n\u201cAs the U.S. heads into the next century of innovation and competitiveness, the IDEA Act will provide vital demographic data that can help inform policy-making and educational initiatives,\u201d said Barbara Snyder, President, Association of American Universities. \u201cThe Act will also enable academic research into inventorship and entrepreneurship.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe Society of Women Engineers wholeheartedly endorses the Inventor Diversity for Economic Advancement Act,\u201d said Society of Women Engineers Executive Director and CEO Karen Horting. \u201cThis vital legislation will not only help bridge the gender gap in innovation, but also empower women engineers to fully contribute to our nation's technological and economic progress. By fostering a more inclusive environment for inventors, we can unlock the untapped potential of diverse minds and drive forward a future of greater innovation and prosperity.\u201d\n\n\u201cAUTM, an association whose 3,000+ Members support research commercialization, would like to thank Senator Hirono and her colleagues for their leadership on introducing the IDEA Act,\u201d said AUTM CEO Stephen Susalka. \u201cThis legislation is crucial for addressing the underrepresentation of diverse inventors in the patent system.\u201d\n\n\u201cBetter reporting on underrepresentation in entrepreneurship and patenting is a crucial step for understanding how the government, the academy, and industry can all do better to recognize and reward the full spectrum of genius to be found in inventors across every background and to capitalize on the social and economic benefits that unleashing their innovation will provide,\u201d said Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation CEO Erik Iverson and Chief Intellectual Property and Licensing Officer Michael Falk. \u201cThe IDEA Act embraces the above recommendation by requiring that the USPTO collect demographic data on a voluntary basis and then requiring that both reports and the data itself be made public. We strongly support this commonsense step toward ensuring that the benefits of patent protection are shared by inventors of all backgrounds.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf we want America to lead the world in the development of cutting-edge technologies like artificial intelligence, life-saving medicines and quantum computing, we need to expand American innovation geographically, demographically and economically across all American communities,\u201d said Andrei Iancu, former undersecretary of commerce for intellectual property and director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (2018-2021), and current board co-chair of the Council for Innovation Promotion (C4IP). \u201cThe IDEA Act will help us gather the data needed to increase access to the intellectual property system so that the United States maximizes its innovation potential.\u201d\n\n\u201cEvery American, no matter their background, has a right to protect their intellectual property,\u201d said David Kappos, former undersecretary of commerce for intellectual property and director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (2009-2013), and current board co-chair of the Council for Innovation Promotion (C4IP). \u201cThe IDEA Act is a much-needed reform that will help policymakers identify and address harmful disparities in the patent system. These disparities deprive inventors of beneficial economic opportunities and prevent groundbreaking products from reaching consumers. The Council for Innovation Promotion thanks Sen. Hirono and her colleagues for their work on this legislation, and we urge Congress to enact it without delay.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-07T21:43:57Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.hirono.senate.gov/news/press-releases/hirono-tillis-velazquez-kim-reintroduce-bipartisan-bicameral-bill-to-collect-data-about-who-is-applying-for-patents"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.7692106775939465, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}