Coalition to Promote Technology Transfer

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s-leg_433_028_008_tr.txt

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Extent (Dublin Core)

2 Pages

File Name (Dublin Core)

s-leg_433_028_008

Title (Dublin Core)

Coalition to Promote Technology Transfer

Date (Dublin Core)

1993-09-10

Date Created (Dublin Core)

1993-09-10

Congress (Dublin Core)

103rd (1993-1995)

Topics (Dublin Core)

See all items with this valueTechnology transfer--United States

Policy Area (Curation)

Science, Technology, Communications

Creator (Dublin Core)

Coalition to Promote Technology Transfer

Record Type (Dublin Core)

FAQs

Names (Dublin Core)

See all items with this valueUnited States. Bayh-Dole Act

See all items with this valueDole, Robert J., 1923-2021

See all items with this valueWyden, Ron, 1949-

Rights (Dublin Core)

http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/

Language (Dublin Core)

eng

Collection Finding Aid (Dublin Core)

https://dolearchivecollections.ku.edu/index.php?p=collections/findingaid&id=23&q=

Physical Location (Dublin Core)

Collection 003, Box 433, Folder 28

Institution (Dublin Core)

Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

Archival Collection (Dublin Core)

Robert J. Dole Senate Papers-Legislative Relations, 1969-1996

Full Text (Extract Text)

This document is from the collections at the Dole Archives, University of Kansas
http://dolearchives.ku.edu

handwritten notes on page: (illegible), "to stop the Wyden Bill"

Coalition to Promote Technology Transfer
The Coalition's Position: Maintain present system of technology transfer between the private sector and universities and non-profit research laboratories that receive federal funding as established under the Bayh-Dole Act of 1980.

Who Is the Coalition to Promote Technology Transfer: A coalition of the nation's most respected and important university and non-profit research laboratories. The coalition includes: (handwritten: *)

What is Technology Transfer: Technology transfer is the process whereby inventions from universities and non-profit research laboratories which receive varying degrees of federal funding are transferred to the private sector for commercial development and public consumption.

Why Maintain the Current System: It works!

What is Bayh-Dole: A federal law passed by Congress in 1980 to facilitate the commercialization of technology developed with government support at the nation's universities and non-profit research laboratories. Bayh-Dole forged a new partnership between the nation's universities, non-profit research laboratories and the private sector that has, among other things, spawned the biotechnology industry and revitalized American technological leadership in the world.

What was the Situation that Led to Passage of Bayh-Dole: Prior to 1980, the federal government retained title to all university and non-profit research laboratory inventions if any federal funding was involved. As a result, fewer than 4 percent of the 28,000 government-owned inventions were ever commercialized. And, not a single drug to which the government held the patent was ever brought to market for the benefit of the public!

What Does the Legislation (H.R. 1334) Which the Coalition Opposes Seek to Do: Eliminate exclusive licenses and mandate government controlled prices for the commercialized products of technologies developed by university and non-profit research laboratories receiving federal funds.

Page 1 of 2
s-leg_433_028_008_A1b.pdf

This document is from the collections at the Dole Archives, University of Kansas
http://dolearchives.ku.edu

Why Will These Changes Affect Technology Transfers: Because companies will be unwilling to undertake the enormous financial risk to commercialize an invention without both patent protection and the ability to receive adequate compensation.

What Impact Would the Passage of the Wyden Bill (H.R. 1334) or Similar Legislation Have: It would, in essence, return the United States to a pre-Bayh-Dole situation. The current relationship between business and universities that has been responsible for so much economic growth would cease to exist. Faced with the lack of exclusivity and government controlled prices, companies would tum elsewhere to acquire technology.

Why Shouldn't the Government Control the Price if the Invention was Made with some Federal Assistance: Because the cost of bringing a technology to market is vastly greater than the cost of inventing it (a CRS report quotes a study which suggests that in general it costs more than 100 times as much to commercialize a new technology than to invent it), and once it is on the market there is no guarantee that those costs can be recouped let alone a profit made. Without exclusive licenses and market prices, the prospects of recouping an investment are minimal. Companies will not bear the financial risk of bringing a new technology to market without these reasonable incentives. Prior to the passage of the current incentive system virtually no technology developed with federal assistance was brought to the market.

What Happens to the Royalties that Universities and Non-Profit Research Laboratories Receive from Their Commercialized Inventions: Under Bayh-Dole, the actual inventor must receive some portion of the royalty. However, the bulk of the monies go back to the originating institution which must, under the law, plow them back into research and education. Typically, universities will use these funds to seed new research projects as well as fund existing ones.

How Do Taxpayers Benefit from the Current System: First, the research they support benefits them as new life-saving pharmaceuticals and other products. Second, prior to Bayh-Dole, much of taxpayers' money was wasted on the invention of new technologies that never saw the light of day because the government retained all patent rights. Third, royalties that universities and non-profit research laboratories receive from their commercialized inventions are (by law) poured back into research and education both expanding the scope of research and diminishing the need for federal assistance. Fourth, commercialized inventions like those that form the basis of the biotech industry create economic activity that results in new taxes and revenue to the government. Fifth, commercialized inventions mean new jobs --- 45,000 well paid, high technology jobs so far and growing by 25 to 30 percent each year, according to one estimate. Sixth, technology transfer has placed the United States in the forefront of world trade in areas like biotechnology and communications thus reducing the trade and balance of payment deficits.

*****

s-leg_433_028_008_A1b.pdf Page 2 of 2

This document is from the collections at the Dole Archives, University of Kansas
http://dolearchives.ku.edu

handwritten notes on page: (illegible), "to stop the Wyden Bill"

Coalition to Promote Technology Transfer
The Coalition's Position: Maintain present system of technology transfer between the private sector and universities and non-profit research laboratories that receive federal funding as established under the Bayh-Dole Act of 1980.

Who Is the Coalition to Promote Technology Transfer: A coalition of the nation's most respected and important university and non-profit research laboratories. The coalition includes: (handwritten: *)

What is Technology Transfer: Technology transfer is the process whereby inventions from universities and non-profit research laboratories which receive varying degrees of federal funding are transferred to the private sector for commercial development and public consumption.

Why Maintain the Current System: It works!

What is Bayh-Dole: A federal law passed by Congress in 1980 to facilitate the commercialization of technology developed with government support at the nation's universities and non-profit research laboratories. Bayh-Dole forged a new partnership between the nation's universities, non-profit research laboratories and the private sector that has, among other things, spawned the biotechnology industry and revitalized American technological leadership in the world.

What was the Situation that Led to Passage of Bayh-Dole: Prior to 1980, the federal government retained title to all university and non-profit research laboratory inventions if any federal funding was involved. As a result, fewer than 4 percent of the 28,000 government-owned inventions were ever commercialized. And, not a single drug to which the government held the patent was ever brought to market for the benefit of the public!

What Does the Legislation (H.R. 1334) Which the Coalition Opposes Seek to Do: Eliminate exclusive licenses and mandate government controlled prices for the commercialized products of technologies developed by university and non-profit research laboratories receiving federal funds.

Page 1 of 2
s-leg_433_028_008_A1b.pdf

This document is from the collections at the Dole Archives, University of Kansas
http://dolearchives.ku.edu

Why Will These Changes Affect Technology Transfers: Because companies will be unwilling to undertake the enormous financial risk to commercialize an invention without both patent protection and the ability to receive adequate compensation.

What Impact Would the Passage of the Wyden Bill (H.R. 1334) or Similar Legislation Have: It would, in essence, return the United States to a pre-Bayh-Dole situation. The current relationship between business and universities that has been responsible for so much economic growth would cease to exist. Faced with the lack of exclusivity and government controlled prices, companies would tum elsewhere to acquire technology.

Why Shouldn't the Government Control the Price if the Invention was Made with some Federal Assistance: Because the cost of bringing a technology to market is vastly greater than the cost of inventing it (a CRS report quotes a study which suggests that in general it costs more than 100 times as much to commercialize a new technology than to invent it), and once it is on the market there is no guarantee that those costs can be recouped let alone a profit made. Without exclusive licenses and market prices, the prospects of recouping an investment are minimal. Companies will not bear the financial risk of bringing a new technology to market without these reasonable incentives. Prior to the passage of the current incentive system virtually no technology developed with federal assistance was brought to the market.

What Happens to the Royalties that Universities and Non-Profit Research Laboratories Receive from Their Commercialized Inventions: Under Bayh-Dole, the actual inventor must receive some portion of the royalty. However, the bulk of the monies go back to the originating institution which must, under the law, plow them back into research and education. Typically, universities will use these funds to seed new research projects as well as fund existing ones.

How Do Taxpayers Benefit from the Current System: First, the research they support benefits them as new life-saving pharmaceuticals and other products. Second, prior to Bayh-Dole, much of taxpayers' money was wasted on the invention of new technologies that never saw the light of day because the government retained all patent rights. Third, royalties that universities and non-profit research laboratories receive from their commercialized inventions are (by law) poured back into research and education both expanding the scope of research and diminishing the need for federal assistance. Fourth, commercialized inventions like those that form the basis of the biotech industry create economic activity that results in new taxes and revenue to the government. Fifth, commercialized inventions mean new jobs --- 45,000 well paid, high technology jobs so far and growing by 25 to 30 percent each year, according to one estimate. Sixth, technology transfer has placed the United States in the forefront of world trade in areas like biotechnology and communications thus reducing the trade and balance of payment deficits.

*****

s-leg_433_028_008_A1b.pdf Page 2 of 2