BILL NUMBER: AB 744	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member John A. Pérez

                        FEBRUARY 17, 2011

   An act to add Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 13988) to Part
4.5 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, relating to
intellectual property.



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 744, as introduced, John A. Pérez. Office of Intellectual
Property.
   Existing law permits various state agencies to enter into
contracts and agreements, create liabilities, and develop, own, and
control the use of intellectual property developed by the state.
   This bill would establish the Office of Intellectual Property in
the Business, Transportation and Housing Agency. The agency would be
responsible for tracking intellectual property generated by state
employees and by state-funded research, developing a database to
track intellectual property, developing an outreach campaign
informing state agencies of their rights and abilities concerning
intellectual property, developing a sample maintenance plan of an
inventory of intellectual property, and developing sample invention
assignment agreements and sample language for licenses or
terms-of-use agreements for use by state agencies. The bill would
define terms that apply to the function of the agency, and would make
findings and declarations regarding intellectual property.
   This bill would, notwithstanding any other law, provide that state
agencies and departments may, upon request, share records and
information related to intellectual property generated by state
employees and state-funded research with the office. This bill would
also impose certain restrictions on employees and former employees of
the office with respect to divulging certain information provided by
state agencies and departments regarding intellectual property. This
bill would provide that these provisions do not apply to
intellectual property agreements administered by the Regents of the
University of California, with exceptions, or to intellectual
property agreements governed by the California Stem Cell Research and
Cures Bond Act.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 13988) is added to
Part 4.5 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, to read:
      CHAPTER 2.  OFFICE OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY


   13988.  The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
   (a) The state is home to many of the world's top research
universities, national laboratories, and leading-edge high-technology
companies that generate significant intellectual property.
   (b) It is in the interest of the state to ensure that the results
of state-funded research are promptly developed and protected and to
make the research available in the public domain, where appropriate.
   (c) The commercialization of technology developed with the
investment of taxpayer dollars in the form of contracts, grants, and
agreements could generate public benefit, including, but not limited
to, state revenues, favorable pricing, revenue sharing, reinvestment
into research, development of new technologies, the commercialization
of the product of state-funded research, and the jobs created from
these types of research.
   (d) It is in the interest of the state to facilitate, promote, and
enhance technology transfer programs that will facilitate the
transfer of technology into the marketplace for the public benefit.
   (e) The Legislature supports the use of efficient models to
develop and streamline infrastructures, policies, and processes for
the management of intellectual property developed under state funding
in order to stimulate economic development in the state while, at
the same time, minimizing costs of administering policies in this
area.
   (f) It is the intent of the Legislature that the rights of state
agencies to track and manage intellectual property created with any
state funds shall be interpreted so as to promote the benefit to the
public.
   (g) It is the intent of the Legislature that the Office of
Intellectual Property have access to information about intellectual
property created by state employees and by state-funded research,
consistent with state and federal laws and regulations governing
access to this information
   13988.1.  The Office of Intellectual Property is hereby
established in the Business, Transportation and Housing Agency.
   13988.2.  Unless the context otherwise requires, the definitions
in this section govern the construction of this chapter:
   (a) "Agency" means the Business, Transportation and Housing
Agency.
   (b) "Databases" means compilations of data, typically generated
from research, sometimes from one source, but often combined from
many sources.
   (c) "Intellectual property" means intangible assets that are
subject to statutory protection under applicable patent, copyright,
and trademark law. Intellectual property includes, but is not limited
to, inventions, industrial designs, identifying marks and symbols,
electronic publications, trade secrets, and literary, musical,
artistic, photographic, and film works.
   (d) "Office" means the Office of Intellectual Property.
   13988.3.  The Office of Intellectual Property shall perform all of
the following functions:
   (a) Track intellectual property generated by state employees and
state-funded research.
   (b) Develop a database that includes, but is not limited to,
tracking intellectual property by category of protection, date of
creation, owner of intellectual property, grantee, state agency or
granting entity, sources of funding, and status of licensing,
including invention utilization updates. Failure to include an item
in the database does not create any presumption regarding ownership.
   (c) Develop a sample maintenance plan of an inventory of
intellectual property.
   (d) Develop factors that state agencies should consider when
deciding whether to sell their intellectual property or license it to
others.
   (e) Develop an outreach campaign informing state agencies of their
rights and abilities concerning intellectual property created by
their employees.
   (f) Develop sample invention assignment agreements that state
agencies can consider if they believe it is necessary to secure the
rights to potentially patentable items created by their employees on
worktime using state resources.
   (g) Develop sample language for licenses or terms-of-use
agreements that state agencies can use to limit the use of their
intellectual property by others to only appropriate purposes.
   13988.4.  (a) Notwithstanding any other law, state agencies and
departments may, upon request, share records and information related
to intellectual property generated by state employees and
state-funded research with the office.
   (b) Any employee or former employee of the office who has access
to or knowledge of the records and information described in
subdivision (a), shall not divulge or make known to any person not
employed by the office in any manner not expressly permitted by law
any particulars of these records or information the public disclosure
of which is restricted by law, or represents a first publication of
research results, or information pertaining to patent rights that
would not otherwise be publicly available.
   13988.5.  (a) This chapter shall not apply to intellectual
property or intellectual property related agreements administered by
the Regents of the University of California, and the subcontractors
of the Regents of the University of California, except under a
funding agreement from a state agency for the performance of
research.
   (b) This chapter shall not apply to intellectual property
agreements governed by the California Stem Cell Research and Cures
Bond Act (Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 125290.10) of Part 5 of
Division 106 of the Health and Safety Code.