# 119-hr-7140: CLEAR Act

119-hr-7140, CLEAR Act, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Lee, Laurel M. [R-FL-15] (R-FL); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-04-21).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7140
- As of: 2026-04-21
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-hr-7140
- Congress: 119
- Title: CLEAR Act
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2026-01-16
- Sponsor: Rep. Lee, Laurel M. [R-FL-15] (R-FL)
- Cosponsors: 1
- Policy area: Commerce
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-04-21

## Summary

**Pauses patent claims against retailers and end users when the manufacturer is part of the dispute.** This bill would add Section 299A to Title 35 to require courts to stay the portion of a patent lawsuit that targets a retailer or end user if the manufacturer of the accused product is a party to the same patent dispute and specified conditions are met. - Retailers and end users would be able to seek a stay of claims against them if they did not make or substantially contribute to the accused product. They must agree to waive certain defenses in future cases and to be bound by issues and any injunctions decided in the manufacturer's case. - Manufacturers would become the primary target for resolving infringement over a given product because staying sellers and users depends on the manufacturer being a party. Courts can lift a stay if the manufacturer cannot be made to satisfy a damages judgment and may require bonds or escrow to protect plaintiffs. - Patent owners would need to pursue remedies against the manufacturer to obtain issue rulings or injunctions that will bind retailers and end users. - Courts would have a clear mandatory stay rule for these situations while retaining power to order limited discovery about product use and to require security when there is a risk the manufacturer cannot pay.

## Cosponsors (1)

- Rep. Lofgren, Zoe [D-CA-18] (D-CA), 2026-01-16T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Pause patent lawsuits for retailers and users: mixed, low. This bill would require courts to pause (stay) the part of a patent-infringement suit against a retailer or end user when the product’s manufacturer is a party to the same patent dispute (or a separate related action). The retailer or end user must not have made, assembled, integrated, transformed,…

## Related bills

- 119-hr-4669: FEMA Act of 2025
- 119-hr-3816: Weather Act Reauthorization Act of 2025
- 119-hr-4206: CONNECT for Health Act of 2025
- 119-hr-1262: Mikaela Naylon Give Kids a Chance Act
- 119-hr-1065: Protect Our Letter Carriers Act of 2025
- 119-hr-4145: Ensuring Justice for Camp Lejeune Victims Act of 2025

## Sources
- [119-hr-7140 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/7140)

## Related
- [119-hr-4669: FEMA Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-4669)
- [119-hr-3816: Weather Act Reauthorization Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-3816)
- [119-hr-4206: CONNECT for Health Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-4206)
- [119-hr-1262: Mikaela Naylon Give Kids a Chance Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-1262)
- [119-hr-1065: Protect Our Letter Carriers Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-1065)
- [119-hr-4145: Ensuring Justice for Camp Lejeune Victims Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-4145)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7140 (as of 2026-04-21).