An interagency Working Group headed by the Office IP Enforcement Coordinator and including staff from the Office of Management and Budget, Department of Defense, NASA, and the General Services Administration has been formed to “eliminate counterfeit products from the U.S. Government supply chain.” It recently issued a Federal Register Notice listing its six core obectives, and requesting comments from the public on how to meet them. The objectives include determining whether the government needs to develop additional regulatory actions or increase measures needed to prosecute offenders. Comments are due September 16.
According to the Federal Register Notice, the Working Group’s objectives are:
- Develop procedures for program managers to identify items at risk for counterfeiting or requiring authentication of legitimacy. These procedures will, to the greatest extent practicable, utilize current industry standards.
- Examine whether additional administrative actions, including regulatory actions, are needed to require suppliers to take stronger anti-counterfeiting measures.
- Examine when and how product and package traceability, reporting and marking processes can be used by prime contractors, their suppliers, Federal government personnel and potentially other customers to confirm production authority by the original manufacturer of at-risk items.
- Examine government/industry evaluation capabilities and determine whether improvement is needed.
- Develop an anticounterfeiting training and outreach strategy for the Federal workforce.
- Examine whether additional measures are needed to protect the rights and interests of the United States, recoup costs and prosecute offenders.
