This collection of information is
required by the Trademark Act (Act), 15 U.S.C. § 1051 et seq.,
which provides for the registration of trademarks, service marks,
collective trademark and service marks, collective membership
marks, and certification marks. Individuals and businesses that use
or intend to use such marks in commerce may file an application to
register their marks with the United States Patent and Trademark
Office (USPTO). This information collection generally contains
information that is not submitted with the initial trademark
application but is associated with, or required for, the USPTO
review of applications for registration. In some cases, the USPTO
issues Office Actions to applicants who have applied to register a
mark, requesting information that was not provided with the initial
submission, but is required before the issuance of a registration.
Also, the USPTO may determine that a mark is not entitled to
registration, pursuant to one or more provisions of the Act. In
such cases, the USPTO will issue an Office Action advising the
applicant of the refusal to register the mark. Applicants reply to
these Office Actions by providing the required information and/or
by putting forth legal arguments as to why the refusal of
registration should be withdrawn.
For this renewal, the USPTO
estimates that the total annual responses will decrease by 78,648
(from 472,313 to 393,665) and the total burden hours will decrease
by 12,668 (from 265,726 to 253,058) from the currently approved
burden for this information collection. These decreases are due to
expected changes in the number of respondents filling responses to
office actions and other submissions associated with this
information collection. Changes in Annual (Non-hour) Costs For this
renewal, the USPTO estimates that the total annual (non-hour) costs
will increase by $1,196 (from $98,244 to $99,440). The decline in
items being mailed to the USPTO results in a decrease in postage
costs associate with this information collection, however,
increases in fees result in an overall slight increase in the total
annual (non-hour) costs.
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that
the collection of information encompassed by this request complies
with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR
1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding
the proposed collection of information, that the certification
covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a
benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control
number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of
these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked
and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.
Form PTO-1957 Response to Office Action and Substitute Marks (TEAS)
0050 supporting statement final.docx
Trademark Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1051 (1946).pdf
Response to Office Action and Substitute Marks (TEAS)