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Congressman Capuano's
E-UPDATE
An update from the office of U.S. Representative Michael E. Capuano
7th Congressional District of Massachusetts


12,456 subscribers

December 6, 2013

Nelson Mandela

The world mourns the passing of Nelson Mandela, a truly historic figure who transformed a nation and the world. Throughout his life, Mr. Mandela consistently demonstrated compassion, dignity and leadership. He was a formidable moral presence, enduring decades of imprisonment then leading South Africans of all races into a democratic future. Mr. Mandela leaves a legacy of forgiveness and reconciliation. His dedication to freedom and justice will inspire us all for generations.

Financial Services

This week the House considered H.R. 1105, the Small Business Capital Access and Job Preservation Act. H.R. 1105 is yet another attempt to weaken some of the investor protections included in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street and Consumer Protection Act. Under current law, private equity funds managing more than $150 million must register with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as investment advisors. They are also subject to reporting requirements, providing a level of transparency to the funds. This legislation exempts the vast majority of private equity funds from registering with the SEC, which reduces the transparency of their transactions. The SEC opposes this legislation and the President has indicated that it will be vetoed. I voted NO. H.R. 1105 passed and the entire vote is recorded below:

  YEA NAY PRESENT NOT VOTING
REPUBLICAN

218

1

0

12

DEMOCRAT

36

158

0

6

TOTAL

254

159

0

18

MASSACHUSETTS
DELEGATION

0

8

0

0

Patent Reform

Yesterday the House considered H.R. 3309, the Innovation Act. The goal of H.R. 3309 is to address patent abuse by placing restrictions on so-called “patent trolls”, businesses that purchase patents but have no intention of ever developing a product. Instead, they use the purchase of the patent as a way to sue businesses for infringement. This bill has a number of common sense provisions, such as requiring litigants to disclose the real parties of interest in the patent.

The problem I have with H.R. 3309 is that patent reform legislation, the America Invents Act, passed just two years ago and is still being implemented. H.R. 3309 completely overhauls the patent program before the America Invents Act has been fully developed. H.R. 3309 is also overly broad, essentially treating all patent holders as trolls. The Senate is also considering legislation addressing the problems with “patent trolls” that I think is a better approach. I hope the differences between the bills can be worked out in a balanced manner and I can support the compromise bill. I voted NO. H.R. 3309 passed and the entire vote is recorded below:

  YEA NAY PRESENT NOT VOTING
REPUBLICAN

195

27

0

9

DEMOCRAT

130

64

0

6

TOTAL

325

91

0

15

MASSACHUSETTS
DELEGATION

3

5

0

0

What’s Up Next Week

The next votes in the House will take place on Tuesday December 10th. At this writing, a legislative schedule is not available.

Mike


Congressman Mike Capuano
7th District, Massachusetts
Committee on Ethics
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
Committee on Financial Services

P.S. I welcome your feedback on our e-Updates. Please let me and my staff know what you think of this service by e-mailing our office.


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