Today, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce sent a letter to Congress in support of H.R. 2511, the “Innovative Design Protection and Piracy Prevention Act” (IDPPPA), which “offers a practical, narrowly tailored, approach to secure important yet limited intellectual property (IP) protection for truly unique, innovative, and original fashion designs.”

The pirating and counterfeiting of fashion designs undermine American jobs. As the letter points out, “there are more than 14,000 companies in the fashion and apparel industry in the U.S., directly employing approximately 4 million Americans and indirectly employing countless others.” Furthermore, “IDPPPA will incentivize the creativity of American designers and stimulate innovation in the fashion and apparel industry, while at the same time deter rampant counterfeiting and piracy.”

Creativity is a cornerstone of U.S. commerce, so we are greatly encouraged by Congress’ interest in upholding the integrity of American intellectual property, innovators, and employers. We urge Congress to act quickly and enact the IDPPA.