SACRAMENTO — On the eve of California’s 150th anniversary, Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante wants to cash in on the state’s second gold rush. The state’s vast reservoir of intellectual property lies largely untapped, he says, but could yield tens, even hundreds, of millions were it suitably exploited.
Bustamante delivered that message at a Capitol conference hosted last week by the Institute for Legislative Practice of McGeorge School of Law, which added an IP concentration to its curriculum last year. Through SB 875, a bill being carried by Sen. Martha Escutia, D-Montebello, Bustamante is proposing a centralized Office of Intellectual Property under the Department of Trade and Commerce. The office would control marketing, licensing and protection of IP, as well as collection of any profits.
