Chamber Praises Appointment of Intellectual Property Coordinator Chris Israel

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The U.S. Chamber of Commerce today praised President Bush's appointment of Chris Israel to be International Intellectual Property Coordinator at the Department of Commerce. This new role will head up the Bush administration's expanded anti-counterfeiting initiatives including the Strategy Targeting Organized Piracy (STOP).

"The Chamber has made combating counterfeiting and piracy a top priority and is leading the business community's Coalition Against Counterfeiting and Piracy," said Thomas Donohue, U.S. Chamber President and CEO. "Having a presidentially-appointed coordinator at a high level will greatly benefit the combined efforts of government and business in this fight."

The Chamber also commended Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez for his dedication to fighting intellectual property theft and counterfeiting, which have previously been hampered by lack of senior-level coordination among federal agencies. In order to strengthen government anti-counterfeiting and piracy efforts, legislation was enacted last year requiring the creation of the Coordinator for International Intellectual Property Enforcement post.

Israel will be based out of the Commerce Department but will work to coordinate global anti-piracy/anti-counterfeiting efforts among relevant agencies such as the Department of Commerce, the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Justice, the U.S. Trade Representative, and the Department of State. Israel is currently Deputy Chief of Staff to the Secretary and previously served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy.

"Today's appointment is recognition of an expanded effort to curb intellectual property theft and counterfeiting, critical problems costing American business $250 billion annually," said Donohue. "The Chamber looks forward to joining with Chris Israel and Secretary Gutierrez in this effort."

The Chamber of Commerce is the world's largest business federation representing more than 3 million businesses and organizations of every size, sector, and region.

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