Washington—Leading advocates in the Senate today introduced legislation to protect American innovation and address the enforcement of intellectual property rights.

The Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights Act of 2008 today was introduced in the Senate by Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Ranking Member Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), and is cosponsored by Sens. Evan Bayh (D-Ind.) and George Voinovich (R-Ohio). Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and John Cornyn (R-Texas) are also cosponsors of the bill.

In a press conference on Capitol Hill, Senators Bayh, Leahy, Specter, and Voinovich highlighted key aspects of the legislation, which reflect a measured compromise of a number of intellectual property proposals introduced during this Congress. Key among the legislation’s components are: authorization for the Attorney General to enforce civil copyright laws; enhancements to civil intellectual property laws; enhancements to criminal intellectual property laws; coordination and strategic planning of federal efforts against counterfeiting and piracy; and, increased resources for key programs within the Department of Justice to combat intellectual property theft.

“The global economy is not working as it should when we buy from countries that have a competitive advantage over us, and they steal from us when we have a competitive advantage over them,” Bayh said. “American businesses lose $250 billion every year, and we have lost more than 750,000 jobs because of intellectual property theft. The American auto industry estimates it could hire an additional 200,000 workers if we eliminated the trafficking of counterfeit auto parts. If hundreds of our cargo ships were being hijacked on the high seas or thousands of our business people were being held up at gunpoint in a foreign land, there would be a great sense of alarm and unshakable government resolve to act. That, in effect, is what is happening today, yet we are not doing nearly enough to stop it.”

“The protection of intellectual property is vital to our economy,” said Leahy. “The value of invention and innovation can be seen in so many Vermont-made products. The time has come to bolster the federal effort to protect this most valuable and vulnerable property, to give law enforcement the resources and the tools it needs to combat piracy and counterfeiting, and to make sure that the many agencies that deal with intellectual property enforcement have the opportunity and the incentive to talk with each other, to coordinate their efforts, and to achieve the maximum effects for their efforts. This bill does just that.”

“With intellectual property contributing over $5 trillion to our national economy, it is one of our most valuable assets and we must protect it,” Specter said. “This bill gives our government the additional tools that it needs to do just that by enhancing the civil and criminal penalties for intellectual property violations and discouraging criminal organizations from entering the business of counterfeiting and piracy.”

“In the fierce competition of the 21st-century global marketplace, intellectual property is one of the few areas where America has a clear advantage over foreign competitors. It is vital that we protect that advantage, level the playing field and ensure continued economic growth for Americans,” Voinovich said. “This vital legislation is a critical step toward safeguarding the economic health of our country by improving the management, coordination and effectiveness of our nation’s intellectual property enforcement efforts.”

The bill is expected to be referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee.

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