Moolenaar, Colleagues Demand Admin Show Congress the Data on Tech Transfer Through US, PRC STA

WASHINGTON DC—Chairman John Moolenaar (R-MI) today sent a letter to Department of Commerce Under Secretary Kathi Vidal urging the Administration to provide a full accounting of the national security damage already caused by the United States and China's Science and Technology Agreement (STA). Despite the Biden Administration claiming that the STA has resulted in no dual-use technology transfer, we know that the Chinese Communist Party has previously leveraged the STA to advance its military objectives and will do so again. Alarmingly, the Biden Administration has extended the agreement twice.

The letter was also signed by Conference Chair Elise Stefanik (R-NY), and Reps. Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO), Andy Barr (R-KY), Michelle Steel (R-CA), and Carlos Gimenez (R-FL).

The lawmakers write, "We believe the U.S.-PRC STA is a vector to give the PRC access to U.S. dual-use research and presents a clear national security risk...The Biden Administration must stop fueling our own destruction and allow the STA to expire."

Additionally, given that the Commerce Department and its U.S. Patent and Trademark Office have the authority and obligation to help the United States determine the extent to which China has leveraged the misguided STA, the lawmakers request information to assess the damage already caused to U.S. national security. Specifically, the lawmakers request:

1. The number of patents filed annually at the USPTO since 2010 that were funded by the U.S. government, and included a Chinese inventor.

2. The technology classes for these inventions, which US government agency funded these inventions, and the name of the Chinese entity that employed the Chinese inventor.

3. Any affiliation of the inventors or their employer with the Chinese military or with any entity under US export control laws.

4. Whether Commerce is aware of any patents filed in China that replicates the inventions applied for in the United States.

The Select Committee previously sent a letter urging the Administration to let the STA expire.

Read the text of the letter below or click HERE to view the letter

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The U.S. Department of State is currently renegotiating the U.S.-PRC Science and Technology Agreement (STA) which had been set to expire in August 2023 but has since been the subject of two extensions by the Biden Administration. We believe the U.S.-PRC STA is a vector to give the PRC access to U.S. dual-use research and presents a clear national security risk. In June of last year, the Select Committee wrote to Secretary Blinken urging him to suspend the arrangement, citing how the STA is directly contributing to the PRC’s military-civil fusion goals to advance the modernization of the PLA and undermine U.S. national security. Additionally, the House Foreign Affairs Committee overwhelmingly passed Representative Andy Barr’s Science and Technology Agreement Enhanced Congressional Notification Act of 2024, requiring the State Department to ensure any future STA has clear protections for human rights and ends diversion of U.S. research to the PRC’s military. The Biden Administration must stop fueling our own destruction and allow the STA to expire. 

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), under 35 U.S.C. Section 2 and related regulations and practices, has both the resources and a statutory obligation to help the United States determine the extent to which the PRC has sought to leverage U.S. government-funded science and technology projects for its own gain. In particular, 35 U.S.C. provides that USPTO “shall advise Federal departments and agencies on matters of intellectual property policy in the United States and intellectual property protection in other countries…and shall provide guidance, as appropriate, with respect to proposals by agencies to assist foreign governments and international intergovernmental organizations on matters of intellectual property protection.” 35 USC Section 207 underscores the role of the Commerce Department generally in science and technology collaboration: “For the purpose of assuring the effective management of Government-owned inventions, the Secretary of Commerce is authorized to assist Federal agencies in seeking protection and maintaining inventions in foreign countries, and consult with and advise Federal agencies as to areas of science and technology research and development with potential for commercial utilization.” 

In light of those USPTO and Commerce Department authorities and responsibilities, Congress and the American people deserve a full understanding of the extent to which a renewal of a U.S.-PRC Science and Technology Agreement is threatening our intellectual property and national security.

We therefore request the following information: 

• The number of patents filed annually at the USPTO from 2010 to the current time which were (a) funded by the US government, and (b) included a Chinese resident inventor or coinventor
• The technology classes for these inventions, which US government agency funding these inventions, and the name of the Chinese entity that employed the Chinese inventor or coinventor of the inventions.
•  Any affiliation of the inventors or their employer with the Chinese military or with any proscribed entity under US export control laws. 
• Whether you are aware of any patents filed in China by the US inventor or the Chinese inventor on the same subject matter of the inventions applied for in the United States, including any improvements thereto.

We request that USPTO respond to these specific requests no later than 30 days after receiving this letter. We believe that USPTO undertook a similar effort when the STA was last renewed. A similar effort here would provide policy makers with valuable information as they reconsider the dangers of this agreement. If the Biden Administration continues its pursuit of a U.S.-PRC STA, Congress and the American people should at least have insight into the extent of U.S. research that is advancing the PRC’s military-civil fusion goals through this arrangement. Thank you for your attention to this important matter and we look forward to hearing your reply.