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With the government shutdown and Congress and the administration scrambling to cut a budget deal, many are seeking new ways to fund the federal government. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick recently proposed a tactic to mandate that universities share the profits generated by their federally funded patents. While the idea of revenue sharing may sound compelling, it distracts from a more fundamental issue that needs to be in the limelight: Patent abuse, which incentivizes litigation, threatens true invention, and rewards parties who contribute nothing to innovation.

This much larger concern about patents stems from the rise of non-practicing entities (NPEs)—the kind that exploit the patent system for profit rather than invention. Such NPEs do not innovate or produce anything. Universities are a form of NPE because they license their inventions to others rather than manufacturing or commercializing them. However, universities typically undertake new research, provide training, and partner with firms to commercialize their discoveries, all of which can encourage innovation and create value.

The real problem lies with another class of NPEs—often called “patent trolls,” or patent assertion entities (PAEs)—who build extensive portfolios of patents of questionable validity to use as leverage in lawsuits against businesses. These PAEs do not manufacture, produce, or innovate, nor do they employ anyone to do so. Instead, they use the legal system to extract royalties and licensing fees from companies producing in America that are actually trying to innovate. The large portfolios of poor-quality patents amassed by PAEs create an “anticommons”—a thicket of overlapping claims that make it difficult for follow-on innovators to enter the market. These impediments to innovation harm economic growth, which, in turn, reduces potential federal revenues.

- Wayne Brough

Read more at:

https://www.rstreet.org/commentary/patent-trolls-at-the-itc/

Any organization that gets it wrong a third of the time needs reform. Such is the case with the International Trade Commission.

The Trump administration has prioritized correcting trade imbalances for myriad reasons, including domestic economic policy and national security. Part of this course correction should include reforms at the ITC.

The ITC investigates cases in which imported goods may be harming domestic industries. When working as intended, the ITC protects American companies from unfair trade practices perpetrated by foreign competitors, including patent infringement. Following what are known as Section 337 investigations, the ITC has the authority to issue exclusion orders, enforced by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which bar the goods in question from entering the country and keep domestic markets free of foreign products built with stolen U.S. intellectual property.

- Trey Gowdy

Read more at:

https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/oct/13/amid-trade-talks-itc-reform-requires-attention/

When Idaho’s Sen. Mike Crapo recently became chairman of the U.S. Senate Finance Committee, our state gained significant influence to shape President Donald Trump’s America first policies. As chairman, Crapo will help oversee Trump’s trade agenda and deliver fair trade deals for the American people. As he does that, we’d like to see Crapo prioritize “Idaho First” trade policies that protect our state, because good Idaho companies are already under attack. governments and companies undermine American industry by flouting the rules of free and fair trade. They steal American intellectual property, export goods to the U.S. at artificially low prices, undercut “Made in America” products, and, as a result, leave us with massive trade deficits. Idaho needs more help defending itself, and Crapo has an opportunity to deliver by reforming the International Trade Commission, a premier avenue for bad actors to exploit American companies.

- Matthew Bundy 

Read more at: https://www.idahostatesman.com/opinion/readers-opinion/article308501755.html#storylink=cpy

WASHINGTON – On February 18, 2025, Howard Lutnick was confirmed by the United States Senate to serve as Secretary of the United States Department of Commerce. 

Below is a statement from Sarah Beth Jansen, Executive Director of ITC Modernization Alliance (IMA): 

“Congratulations to Secretary Lutnick on his confirmation as the 41st Secretary of Commerce. We look forward to working with the Commerce Department, including the US Patent and Trademark Office, which plays a critical role in promoting American innovators. We applaud the Secretary's recent statements during his confirmation hearing, focusing on enhancing American competitiveness and the abuse of the U.S. patent system by bad-faith foreign actors. We would encourage him to examine this problem as it relates to the International Trade Commission, a venue whose mission it is to promote American competitiveness and guard against unfair trade practices. The IMA looks forward to working with Secretary Lutnick and the Commerce Department to advance these and other policies to promote innovation and support U.S. global competitiveness.” 

Former Montana Senator Max Baucus and former House Judiciary Chair Bob Goodlatte say the ITC and Congress need to act to mitigate shell companies’ manipulation of domestic business through patent lawsuits.

China has consistently invested in the foundation of its innovation economy and is reaping the benefits. Now, the United States must do the same, or risk being left behind. Nowhere is the U.S. failure to support our own innovative industries more obvious than in the intellectual property abuses that are festering at the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), as unfair trade practices investigations have repeatedly set back American innovation and economic productivity.

Implementing disclosure requirements is imperative to safeguarding America’s competitive edge and national security from the activities of lawsuit financiers. We can no longer allow American businesses to be targeted by patent trolls operating in the shadows.