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Patent Policy: Department of Commerce Involvement in Department of Energy Activities

RCED-86-83 Published: Mar 25, 1986. Publicly Released: Jun 06, 1986.
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Highlights

In response to a congressional request, GAO examined several Department of Commerce actions aimed at influencing Department of Energy (DOE) patent policy to determine if they were in violation of the law, specifically: (1) Commerce's involvement in an Office of Management and Budget (OMB) initiative to change DOE patent policies and reduce its patent attorney staff; (2) Commerce's role in an OMB decision not to clear a DOE letter to Congress expressing concerns regarding patent legislation being considered; (3) Commerce's role in drafting a letter to OMB critical of DOE actions relating to federal patent policy; and (4) regulations Commerce was developing to implement newly enacted patent legislation governing certain aspects of DOE handling of patent rights at its nonprofit contractor-operated laboratories.

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