84 STAT. ]
PUBLIC LAW 91-577-DEC. 24, 1970
Sec. 7. Plant Variety Protection Board. (a) APPOINTMENT.—The Secretary shall appoint a Plant Variety Protection Board. The Board shall consist of individuals who are experts in various areas of varietal development covered by this Act. Membership of the Board shall include farmer representation and shall be drawn approximately equally from the private or seed industry sector and from the sector of government or the public. The Secretary or his designee shall act as chairman of the Board without voting rights except in the case of ties. (b) FUNCTIONS OF BOARD.—The functions of the Plant Variety Protection Board shall include: (1) Advising the Secretary concerning the adoption of Eules and Regulations to facilitate the proper administration of this Act; (2) Making advisory decisions on all appeals from the examiner. The Board shall determine whether to act as a full Board or by panels it selects; and whether to review advisory decisions made by a panel. For service on such appeals, the Board may select, as temporary members, experts in the area to which the particular appeal relates; and (3) Advising the Secretary on all questions under section 44. (c) COMPENSATION or BOARD.—The members of the Plant Variety Protection Board shall serve without compensation except for standard government reimbursable expenses. Sec. 8. Library. The Secretary shall maintain a library of scientific and other works and periodicals, both foreign and domestic, in the Plant Variety Protection Office to aid the officers in the discharge of their duties. Sec. 9. Register of Protected Plant Varieties. The Secretary shall maintain a register of published specifications of United States protected plant varieties and a file of such other scientific and technical information as may be necessary or practicable. Sec. 10. Publications. (a) The Secretary may publish, or cause to be published, in such format as he shall determine to be suitable, the following: (1) The specifications for plant variety protection including drawings and photographs. (2) The Official Journal of the Plant Variety Protection Office, including annual indices. (3) Pamphlet copies of the plant variety protection laws and rules of practice and circulars or other publications relating to the business of the Office. (b) The Plant Variety Protection Office may print the heading of the drawings or photographs for protected plant varieties for the purpose of photolithography and may provide suitable copy for any lithoghaphy to appear on the same page. (c) The Secretary may (1^ establish public facilities for the searching of plant variety protection records and materials, and (2) from time to time, as through an information service, disseminate to the public those portions of the technological and other public information available to or within the Plant Variety Protection Office to encourage innovation and promote the progress of the useful arts. (d) The Secretary may exchange any of the publications specified for publications desirable for the use of the Plant Variety Protection Office. The Secretary may exchange copies of specifications, drawings, and photographs of United States protected plant varieties for copies
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