Notice2026-03860
Request for Comments on Community Outreach Office Locations in the Southeast Region
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
February 26, 2026
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentPatent and Trademark Office
Abstract
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO or Office) is seeking information to consider regarding the selection of locations for one or more community outreach offices (COOs) in the Southeast Region, which the USPTO was directed to establish under the Unleashing American Innovators Act of 2022 (UAIA). This region includes Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Arkansas.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 38 (Thursday, February 26, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 38 (Thursday, February 26, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9601-9603]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-03860]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Patent and Trademark Office
[Docket No. PTO-C-2026-0100]
Request for Comments on Community Outreach Office Locations in
the Southeast Region
AGENCY: United States Patent and Trademark Office, U.S. Department of
Commerce.
ACTION: Request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO or
Office) is seeking information to consider regarding the selection of
locations for one or more community outreach offices (COOs) in the
Southeast Region, which the USPTO was directed to establish under the
Unleashing American Innovators Act of 2022 (UAIA). This region includes
Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee,
Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Arkansas.
DATES: To ensure consideration, written comments must be received by 5
p.m. ET on or before March 30, 2026, and should be submitted in
accordance with the instructions in the ADDRESSES section. No public
hearing will be held.
ADDRESSES: Comments must be submitted electronically to
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#357b50427a53535c56504675404645415a1b525a43"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="317f54467e57575852544271444241455e1f565e47">[email protected]</span></a>. Attachments will be accepted as MICROSOFT
WORD[supreg] or ADOBE[supreg] PDF documents. To be considered, comments
must be submitted to the email box. Information that the submitter does
not desire to be publicly available, such as an address or phone
number, should not be included in the comments.
If submission of comments to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#450b20320a23232c26203605303635312a6b222a33"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="307e55477f56565953554370454340445f1e575f46">[email protected]</span></a> is not feasible
due to a lack of access to a computer and/or the internet, please
contact the USPTO using the contact information below for special
instructions regarding how to submit comments by mail or by hand
delivery, based on the public's ability to obtain access to USPTO
facilities at the time.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Chris Shipp, Chief of Staff, Office of
the Under Secretary of Commerce for
[[Page 9602]]
Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO, at 571-272-8600.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
Enabled by the 2011 Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (AIA), Public
Law 112-29, the USPTO currently has regional offices that are located
in Detroit, Michigan; San Jose, California (Silicon Valley); Dallas,
Texas; and Alexandria, Virginia (as well as a regional office in
Denver, Colorado that is planned to be closed in 2026). The purpose of
the regional offices (ROs), as originally defined in the AIA and
amended by the UAIA, Public Law 117-328, 104 (2022), and signed into
law as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 on December
29, 2022, is to:
<bullet> Better connect patent filers and innovators with the
Office, including by increasing outreach activities to individual
innovators, small businesses, veterans, low-income populations,
students, rural populations, and any geographic group of innovators
that the Director may determine to be underrepresented in patent
filings;
<bullet> Enhance patent examiner and administrative patent judge
retention, which includes patent examiners and administrative patent
judges from economically, geographically, and demographically diverse
backgrounds;
<bullet> Improve recruitment of patent examiners;
<bullet> Decrease the number of patent applications waiting for
examination; and
<bullet> Improve the quality of examination.
The USPTO has been focused on outreach and impact, and is
developing ways to better introduce, support and assist those who may
be new to the innovation ecosystem, enabling the involvement and
participation of more individuals.
In addition to regional offices, the UAIA requires the USPTO to
establish at least four COOs within five years from enactment of the
Act (i.e., no later than December 29, 2027). The purposes of the COOs
are to:
<bullet> Further achieve the purposes described above for the ROs;
<bullet> Partner with local community organizations, institutions
of higher education, research institutions, and businesses to create
community-based programs that provide education regarding the patent
system; and promote the career benefits of innovation and
entrepreneurship; and
<bullet> Educate prospective innovators, including individual
inventors, small businesses, veterans, low-income populations,
students, rural populations, and any geographic group of innovators
that the Director may determine to be underrepresented in patent
filings, about all public and private resources available to potential
applicants, including pro bono programs.
The Northern New England Community Outreach Office was established
in January 2025 in Durham, New Hampshire. The Mountain West Community
Outreach Office located in Salt Lake City, Utah, and the Northwest
Frontier Community Outreach Office located in Bozeman, Montana, were
established in February 2026.
The USPTO is seeking information to consider regarding the
selection of locations for one or more COOs in the states of Virginia,
North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, Alabama,
Mississippi, Louisiana, and Arkansas.
The USPTO will use quantitative metrics and criteria to evaluate
and assess the location selection for future COOs. The Office intends
to consider the following classes of data (D) at a minimum:
<bullet> Robust research activity and graduate level programs of
study in areas which lead to innovations, IP, and IP-intensive
companies/industries;
<bullet> Availability and concentration of existing
commercialization and business development resources (Innovation
Ecosystem); and
<bullet> Ability to support all innovators, as set forth in UAIA,
Sec. 104(b)(3).
The USPTO welcomes input from all stakeholders on any matter that
they believe is relevant to the overall planning and design or site
selection of the USPTO COOs that will serve the states of Virginia,
North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, Alabama,
Mississippi, Louisiana, and Arkansas. Commenters are encouraged to
address any or all of the statutory considerations listed in the UAIA
and summarized above, any other considerations they believe the USPTO
should consider, and the questions listed below.
To be considered, comments must be submitted to
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#0c42697b436a6a656f697f4c797f7c7863226b637a"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="19577c6e567f7f707a7c6a596c6a696d76377e766f">[email protected]</span></a>. Please cite any public data that relates to or
supports your responses. If data is available but non-public, describe
such data to the extent permissible.
II. Planning and Design Considerations of New Community Outreach
Offices
With the addition of COOs to the agency's footprint, the USPTO
envisions the joint mission of the COOs to be the cultivation and
expansion of a vibrant innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem
supported by intellectual property across the United States. To
accomplish this mission, the offices will conduct broad stakeholder
engagement with innovators ranging from individual innovators to
multinational business entities; establish and leverage partnerships
and relationships to scale the USPTO's work; incentivize regional
innovation and entrepreneurship, especially in key emerging areas (e.g.
artificial intelligence (AI), quantum, and distributed ledger); and
promote full participation by innovators and entrepreneurs of all
backgrounds, including in rural areas and from our armed services, to
support U.S. innovation and job creation.
III. Specific Questions for Comment
The USPTO invites responses to the following questions:
Community Outreach Offices
1. Considering the envisioned mission described above, what
essential services--including outreach, education, and customer
service--should a COO provide to achieve the statutory purposes?
a. Should the services identified be delivered in person? Why or
why not?
b. Should the services identified be delivered virtually? Why or
why not?
2. What types of organizations should the COO seek to establish
relationships and collaborations with to better leverage and scale its
services?
3. Would there be a benefit for a COO to be co-located with other
public sector entities/services (e.g. universities)?
a. If so, please describe the added value of having a shared
location.
b. Which public sector entities/services would you suggest for the
shared location(s)?
c. If not, please describe the benefit of having a unique location
for a COO.
General Comments Regarding New Community Outreach Offices
4. What unique services should the COOs individually provide, and
how should the full range of services complement each other?
5. Considering the potential classes of data listed in Part I
above, what additional key indicators or data would support COO site
selection?
6. What other factors should the USPTO consider when planning for
the new COOs?
Location of New Community Outreach Offices
Given the statutory purposes and considerations of COOs, as
discussed in Part I, and the planning and design considerations
identified in Part II:
7. Which location is ideal for one or more community outreach
offices
[[Page 9603]]
(COOs) in the states of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina,
Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and
Arkansas?
8. What else should the USPTO consider when determining the ideal
locations for new Community Outreach Offices?
While the Office welcomes and values all comments from the public
in response to this request, the comments submitted do not commit the
Office to any further actions related to the comments, and the Office
may not respond to any or every submitted comment. The Office
nonetheless will consider all written submissions. Private information
should not be included as there is no guarantee that it will not become
public.
Any and all decisions made regarding the future locations of the
COOs will be consistent with the criteria outlined in the UAIA and the
goals and mission of the USPTO.
John A. Squires,
Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of
the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
[FR Doc. 2026-03860 Filed 2-25-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-16-P
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