[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 314 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. RES. 314
Recognizing the importance of trademarks in the economy and the role of
trademarks in protecting consumer safety, by designating the month of
July as ``National Anti-Counterfeiting and Consumer Education and
Awareness Month''.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
July 8, 2025
Mr. Grassley (for himself, Mr. Coons, Mr. Tillis, and Ms. Hirono)
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee
on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Recognizing the importance of trademarks in the economy and the role of
trademarks in protecting consumer safety, by designating the month of
July as ``National Anti-Counterfeiting and Consumer Education and
Awareness Month''.
Whereas public awareness is crucial to safeguard consumers and businesses from
unsafe and unreliable products that, through illicit activity, threaten
intellectual property rights, the economic market, and even the health
and well-being of consumers;
Whereas Federal statutes such as the Act entitled ``An Act to provide for the
registration and protection of trademarks used in commerce, to carry out
the provisions of certain international conventions, and for other
purposes'', approved July 5, 1946 (commonly referred to as the
``Trademark Act of 1946'' or the ``Lanham Act'') (60 Stat. 427, chapter
540; 15 U.S.C. 1051 et seq.) (referred to in this preamble as the
``Lanham Act''), and the Trademark Counterfeiting Act of 1984 (Public
Law 98-473; 98 Stat. 2178) regulate the unlawful act of producing and
selling counterfeit products;
Whereas the Lanham Act provided the foundation for modern Federal trademark
protection, creating legal rights and remedies for brand owners
suffering from trademark infringement, helping consumers make informed
choices by reducing the amount of confusingly similar products, and
making the marketplace more fair, competitive, and safe for all;
Whereas October 12, 2025, marks the 41st anniversary of the enactment of the
Trademark Counterfeiting Act of 1984 (Public Law 98-473; 98 Stat. 2178);
Whereas, according to the World Intellectual Property Organization, there were
an estimated 88,200,000 active trademark registrations around the world
in 2023, a 6.4 percent increase from the previous year;
Whereas counterfeit products undermine laws, including the Lanham Act, that
ensure the safety of consumers, businesses, and brand owners against
illegitimate products in the marketplace, from which criminal groups and
bad actors are benefitting at the expense of the public and private
sector;
Whereas counterfeiters use different online platforms to attract consumers to
buy illegitimate goods, usually enticing consumers through cheaper
prices;
Whereas the growth of both global commerce and electronic commerce has expedited
the evolving problem of counterfeit goods, because that growth in
commerce has given third-party actors an enhanced opportunity to reach
consumers that they may have not previously been able to reach;
Whereas the deceptive tactics of counterfeiters and their counterfeit products
pose actual and potential harm to the health and safety of the people of
the United States, especially the most vulnerable consumers in society,
such as senior citizens and children;
Whereas, according to the 2025 report by the United States Trade Representative
required under section 182(h) of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C.
2242(h)) (commonly referred to as the ``Special 301 Report''),
counterfeit items often do not comply with regulated safety standards,
and as a result, vast amounts of unsafe products are constantly
circulating the market and endangering the public;
Whereas goods originating in China and Hong Kong accounted for more than 90
percent of all customs seizures of dangerous counterfeit goods in fiscal
year 2024, including electronics, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and other
goods;
Whereas counterfeit medical products pose a particular threat to the safety and
health of consumers in the United States because those counterfeit goods
do not adhere to the same quality standards as authentic articles;
Whereas, in September 2021, the Drug Enforcement Administration issued its first
Public Safety Alert in 6 years to warn the public about the alarming
increase in the availability and lethality of fake prescription pills in
the United States, pills that often contain deadly doses of fentanyl,
and in 2024, the Drug Enforcement Administration seized a staggering
60,000,000 fentanyl-laced fake prescription pills;
Whereas counterfeit products threaten the United States economy and job
creation, and according to Library of Congress and the United States
Patent and Trademark Office, as of 2020, counterfeiting and piracy have
cost businesses in the United States more than $200,000,000,000 per
year, have led to the loss of more than 750,000 jobs, and have induced
an additional loss of approximately $29,000,000,000 per year to the
economy of the United States through displacing the legitimate sale of
authentic goods;
Whereas, according to the National Association of Manufacturers, in 2019,
counterfeiting caused an estimated $22,300,000,000 loss in labor income,
a $5,600,000,000 loss in Federal tax revenues, and a $4,000,000,000 loss
in State and local tax revenues;
Whereas, in 2024, U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized more than 32,300,000
counterfeit goods, with an estimated manufacturer's suggested retail
price of more than $5,400,000,000 if the goods were genuine, which
equates to about $14,794,520 in counterfeit goods seizures every day;
Whereas the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development found that
the global trade of counterfeit products was appraised at
$467,000,000,000 in 2021;
Whereas businesses of all sizes collectively spend millions of dollars to
protect and enforce their own brand and products by removing counterfeit
products from both online and physical marketplaces;
Whereas businesses must devote resources to combating counterfeit products
instead of using those resources to grow their business by hiring new
employees and developing new products;
Whereas one of the most effective ways to protect consumers from the dangers of
counterfeit products is through educational campaigns and awareness
programs; and
Whereas organizations such as the Congressional Trademark Caucus, Federal
enforcement agencies, the National Intellectual Property Rights
Coordination Center, and State enforcement agencies are actively working
to raise awareness of the value of trademarks and the impact and harms
caused by counterfeit products on both the national and State economies:
Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate--
(1) designates the month of July 2025 as ``National Anti-
Counterfeiting and Consumer Education and Awareness Month'';
(2) supports the goals and ideals of National Anti-
Counterfeiting and Consumer Education and Awareness Month to
educate the public and raise public awareness about the actual
and potential dangers counterfeit products pose to consumer
health and safety;
(3) affirms the continuing importance and need for
comprehensive Federal, State, and private sector-supported
education and awareness efforts designed to equip the consumers
of the United States with the information and tools needed to
safeguard against illegal counterfeit products in traditional
commerce, internet commerce, and other electronic commerce
platforms; and
(4) recognizes and reaffirms the commitment of the United
States to combating counterfeiting by promoting awareness about
the actual and potential harm of counterfeiting to consumers
and brand owners and by promoting new education programs and
campaigns designed to reduce the supply of, and demand for,
counterfeit products.
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