This morning, the House of Representatives passed the widely supported Innovation Act, H.R 3309, by a bipartisan majority of 325 to 91. Engine Advocacy, and our nationwide network of startups, entrepreneurs, investors and allies, welcome this action taken by the House as yet another step in neutralizing the threat of patent trolls and the daily harm they cause to our economy. We commend leaders from both sides of the aisle including House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) and Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) among others in moving this bipartisan legislation through committee, onto the floor and ultimately working to ensure a sweeping majority in favor.
We also commend the thought that went into making this bill stronger through the amendment process with the Manager’s Amendment offered by Chairman Goodlatte and suggestions from Rep. Polis (D-CO), Rep. Jeffries (D-NY) among others. This bill now sits alongside the parallel, bipartisan, process being undertaken by the Senate, and we hope its serves as a guideline in those deliberations. While we still hope to see work on many issues including patent quality and greater transparency in demand letters, the Innovation Act provides an excellent framework for further discussion.
As encouraged as we are by today’s bipartisan vote, the process still has a long way to go in the Senate, and beyond. Engine Advocacy, our members, supporters, and allies in the Coalition for Patent Fairness and other groups, will continue to support legislation and proponents who share the goal of freeing our economy from the scourge of patent trolling to protect innovation and growth. Again, we thank the House for taking a bold step in ensuring American competitiveness in a global economy, and we look forward to continuing this debate with members of the Senate.
