|
|
![]() |
![]() |
Performance and Accountability Report Fiscal Year 2006 Management's Discussion and Analysis |
RESULTS OF OPERATIONSThe USPTO generated a net income of $80.2 million in FY 2006, an increase of $124.0 million over the net cost in FY 2003 of $43.8 million. Typically, federal governmental agencies reflect a fiscal year gross cost of operations that exceed the total obligations incurred in that same fiscal year. This is due to including the costs of non-budgetary items, such as imputed costs. However, beginning in FY 2005, the USPTO’s gross cost of operations was less than obligations incurred. This difference is partly due to a change in the method to recognize the cost of post-employment benefits. In prior years, the USPTO recognized an imputed financing source and corresponding expense to represent its share of the cost to the federal government of providing pension and post-retirement health and life insurance benefits to all eligible USPTO employees. Beginning in FY 2005, the USPTO is now using fees to fund the cost of post-retirement benefits, resulting in increased obligations of approximately $42.7 million each fiscal year. Another contributing factor for the gross cost of operations being less than obligations incurred arises from decisions that were made to promote more efficient operations of the agency. As the USPTO receives no-year reimbursable appropriations, the agency was able to make optimal use of the funding structure during FY 2006 by realigning the period of performance for many contracts to increase effectiveness and by investing in several significant projects to advance the electronic operating environment, such as the PFW, disaster recovery, and technology improvements. Due to the increase in pendency (the amount of time an application is waiting before a patent is issued or trademark is registered), the USPTO has been recognizing a steadily increasing deferred revenue liability for fees received prior to the revenue being earned. From FY 2003 through FY 2006, unearned patent fees increased 55.7 percent, with a 13.3 percent increase from FY 2005. In FY 2006, for each month patent pendency to first action increased, deferred revenue increased approximately $28.4 million, with a corresponding decrease in earned revenue. While unearned trademark fees increased $26.6 million over the past three years, unearned trademark fees decreased $11.8 million in FY 2006, a result of the increased staffing to address the backlog and the decrease in pendency. In addition to the 1,218 patent examiners and 87 trademark examining attorneys hired during FY 2006, the USPTO plans to continue hiring at least 1,200 new patent examiners each fiscal year through FY 2012, as well as implementing new operating practices, to reduce the backlog of unprocessed applications and reduce pendency. |
< Previous Page | Next Page > |
Is there a question about what the USPTO can or cannot do that you cannot find an answer for? Send questions about USPTO programs and services to the USPTO Contact Center (UCC). You can suggest USPTO webpages or material you would like featured on this section by E-mail to the webmaster@uspto.gov. While we cannot promise to accommodate all requests, your suggestions will be considered and may lead to other improvements on the website. |
|