The Anti-Counterfeiting Educational Foundation (ACEF), representing the numismatic community,on July 14 joined 11 cross-industry associations in a joint letter to six congressional leaders urgingsupport for passage of Senate Resolution 314, which designates July as "National Anti-Counterfeiting and Consumer Education and Awareness Month."

The letter also sought help in preserving funding for the Office of the Intellectual PropertyEnforcement Coordinator (IPEC) and advocating for an appointment by the Trump Administrationof a coordinator before the end of 2025.

The congressional leaders include: Sen. Thom Tillis, Chairman of the Senate Subcommittee onIntellectual Property; Sen. Adam Schiff, Ranking Member of the Senate Subcommittee onIntellectual Property; Sen. Chuck Grassley, Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and Co-Chair of the Trademark Caucus; Sen. Chris Coons, Vice Chairman of the Senate SelectCommittee on Ethics and Co-Chair of the Trademark Caucus; Rep. Darrell Issa, Chairman of theHouse Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, Artificial Intelligence, and the Internet ; andRep. Hank Johnson, Ranking Member of the House Subcommittee on Courts, IntellectualProperty, Artificial Intelligence, and the Internet.

The letter emphasized that "The IPEC office plays a vital role in ensuring a strategic vision athome and abroad as American IP-intensive companies face growing threats from global IPinfringements, counterfeiting, and piracy - impacting domestic jobs, national security, and fuelingillicit actors. Inter-agency coordination is a must. So too is the need to pull all stakeholderstogether to support the Administration and Congress. The IPEC is essential to developing thiscoordinated government support and has been a missing link since the last IPEC left the WhiteHouse in 2021."

The cross-industry group noted its concern over the proposed reduction in funding for the IPECoffice in the FY 2026 budget. "We request your help in restoring this funding at previous levelsand advocating for the nomination, and swift confirmation of, an Intellectual Property EnforcementCoordinator by the end of the year."

The 12 signatories to the letter include: Alliance for Automotive Innovation (AAI); AmericanApparel & Footwear Association (AAFA); Anti-Counterfeiting Educational Foundation (ACEF);Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers (AHAM); Automotive Anti-Counterfeiting Council(A2C2): Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA); The Alliance for Safe OnlinePharmacies (ASOP); The International Anticounterfeiting Coalition (IACC); The Partnership forSafe Medicines; Personal Care Products Council; Plumbing Manufacturers International, and theTIC Council.

July is officially "National Anti-Counterfeiting and Consumer Education and Awareness Month."Unanimous approval of the designation resolution was voted by the U.S. Senate July 18.

"We applaud the Senate's recognition and we encourage everyone in the numismatic community- collectors, dealers and coin clubs - to help in creating awareness of the harmful effects ofcounterfeits in our marketplace," said John Albanese, president of the Anti-CounterfeitingEducation Foundation (ACEF). "By sharing knowledge about how to identify counterfeit coins andfake paper money, we as a concerned community can play a role in making our hobby andmarketplace safer," Albanese said.

ACEF, a non-profit organization, has been leading the fight against coin counterfeiting since 2018.Information about counterfeits is available at ACEF's website, www.acefonline.org.

The authorizing resolution was introduced by Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman ChuckGrassley, R-Iowa, and Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., co-chairs of the Congressional TrademarkCaucus. Sens. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., and Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, were co-sponsors of theresolution.

(ACEF), representing the numismatic community, joined 11 cross-industry associations in urgingsupport for passage of the Senate resolution. The 11 include: Alliance for Automotive Innovation(AAI); American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA); Association of Home ApplianceManufacturers (AHAM); Automotive Anti-Counterfeiting Council (A2C2): Consumer HealthcareProducts Association (CHPA); The Alliance for Safe Online Pharmacies (ASOP); TheInternational Anticounterfeiting Coalition (IACC); The Partnership for Safe Medicines; PersonalCare Products Council; Plumbing Manufacturers International, and the TIC Council.