The USPTO appears to be understaffed since they can't seem to examine all the design patents they have been getting these past few years and the number of backlogs has been steadily increasing. This is a major problem for the U.S. economy because it means individuals have to wait more and more until they can get their patent approved and begin producing whatever they invented.
Currently, the USPTO has the capacity to look at 25,000 design patents a year. Although this may seem a lot, there backlog right now far exceeds that number which means some people are going to have to wait over a year until they will finally get to see their patent approved. It is interesting to note however, that in September, nearing the end of the examination period, for a $900 fee, you can get "expedited examination." Even though there are discounts for individuals and micro-entities, it is still a good amount of money. In the end, it will be the person who is pursuing the patent to see if it is really worth that much extra money to be put through that process.
This is fundamentally a money issue since the USPTO can't afford to employ more employees than they already have to slow the backlog down. I believe it would be wise to put more money into the Patent Office because that is where innovation is finally certified and slowing that down only means that we're slowing down innovation -- which is not what the US economy needs right now.
