President George W. Bush has signed the "Stop Counterfeiting in Manufactured Goods Act" into law. The bill passed the Senate on Feb. 15 and the House earlier this month.
The new law extends federal seizure authority to include not only the infringing product, but also the tooling, equipment and supplies used to produce and traffic counterfeit goods.
It also criminalizes production of stickers, tags boxes or other items used to traffic fake products.
"The bill strengthens penalties for counterfeiters and gives prosecutors new tools to stop those who defraud American consumers," Bush said at the signing.
"The bill requires courts to order the destruction of all counterfeit products seized as a part of a criminal investigation. The bill requires convicted counterfeiters to turn over their profits, as well as any equipment used in their operations, so it can’t be used to cheat our people again.
"The bill requires those convicted of counterfeiting to reimburse the legitimate businesses they exploited. These common sense reforms will help law enforcement to crack down on this serious crime. We’ve got to get the counterfeiters and their products off the streets."
