In a rare show of bipartisanship, Congress recently passed a piece of legislation to reform the nation’s patent system, and President Obama signed it into law.

A backlog of 675,000 patent applications exists today at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The law provides more funding and should cut down on lawsuits due to patent infringement.

A story from Wired.com explains the legislation and here’s a press release from Colorado State University supporting the bill with a statement from the Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce.

If you’re really interested in patent reform, here’s a white paper on the subject from the U.S. Department of Commerce.