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Americans for Tax Reform joined a coalition of over 70 groups urging the 115th Congress to protect intellectual property rights for every American innovator. In this letter, they put forth a set of guidelines and principles that will enable the Trump Administration to uphold, protect and enforce intellectual property protections.

Some points of the letter are extracted below.

Intellectual property deserves the same protection as physical property:

“The Founding Fathers recognized the importance of IP in Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution: “To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries.”

“IP rights are not regulations—they are property rights that, when combined with the freedom to contract, facilitate markets.”

Intellectual property rights are vital for free speech, economic growth and consumer protection:

“Strong IP rights go hand-in-hand with free speech as creators vigorously defend their ability to create works of their choosing, free from censorship.” 

“IP rights create jobs and fuel economic growth, turning intangible assets into exclusive property that can be traded in the marketplace… IP-intensive industries added $6.6 trillion to the value of GDP in 2014, equal to 38.2 percent of total GDP. In a knowledge based global economy, America’s ability to remain a world leader in creativity and innovation depends on strong protection of IP.”

“IP rights protect consumers by enabling them to make educated choices about the safety, reliability, and effectiveness of their purchases.”

Online intellectual property must be protected on the internet:

“Protecting IP and internet freedom are both critically important and complementary—they are not mutually exclusive. A truly free internet, like any truly free community, is one where people can engage in legitimate activities safely, and where bad actors are held accountable.”

Our letter urges the federal administration to uphold the Founding Fathers’ vision for American innovation that is protected and facilitated through sound intellectual property protections.