United States Patent and Trademark Office
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 United States Patent and Trademark Office facts

• S
• Department of Commerce that issues patents to inventors and businesses for their inventions, and trademark registration for product and intellectual property identification
• The USPTO is "unique among federal agencies because it operates solely on fees collected by its users, and not on taxpayer dollars"
• Its "operating structure is like a business in that it receives requests for services—applications for patents and trademark registrations—and charges fees projected to cover the cost of performing the services [it] provide[s]"
• The USPTO is based in Alexandria, Virginia, after a 2005 move from the Crystal City area of neighboring Arlington, Virginia
• The offices under Patents and the Chief Information Officer that remained just outside the southern end of Crystal City completed moving to Randolph Square, a brand-new building in Shirlington Village, on April 27, 2009
• The head of the USPTO is Michelle K
• Lee
• She took up her new role on January 13, 2014, initially in a temporary Deputy role
• On March 13, she formally took office as Director after being nominated by President Barack Obama and confirmed by the U