USPTO Announces FY 2006 Budget Request

The President’s fiscal year 2006 budget request for the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is $1.7 billion, equaling anticipated FY 2006 fee collections from patent and trademark filings. The FY 2006 request represents a $149 million increase over FY 2005, and reflects an anticipated rise in patent and trademark fee collections.

In FY 2006, the USPTO anticipates hiring 900 patent examiners and 75 trademark examining attorneys. By the end of FY 2006, the USPTO expects to have over 4,500 patent examiners and over 350 trademark examining-attorneys.