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May 31, 2005'Get Pumped' logo tossed in the trashCounty's septic campaign not OK'd for trademarkByRecord-Eagle staff writer  The county's proposed logo. For now, the Grand Traverse County Board of Public Works has dropped the logo but hasn't ruled out seeking a new logo. "We have more important things to work on right now," said Chris Buday, public works director. The logo cost about $5,000, said Rob Manigold, a member of the board's water and sewer committee. It was meant to be part of the department's public education campaign. "For the amount of money we've spent trying to educate a county, this is cheap," Manigold said. "I'd never say it's a waste of money." Buday said the logo is a small part of the outreach program to get people to pump their septic tanks on a regular basis. The sludge from the tanks goes to the new treatment plant. He said the logo would have been used on newsletters, brochures and other educational materials to help establish a brand identity. In its letter of refusal, the trademark office said it looks for similarities in appearance, sound and connotation and if the goods or services marketed by the companies are similar. A three-minute Record-Eagle search on the trademark office's Web site shows six other businesses have already registered "Get Pumped." The findings included a septic pumping firm that was cited by the federal trademark office in rejecting the application. The county hired CML Public Relations of Traverse City to create the trademark as part of a $30,000 contract. Charles Lombardo of CML said he was surprised by the rejection because his office searched the trademark Web site about 18 months ago and there was nothing similar. The firm that owns the "Get Pumped" trademark registered it in 2000. Lombardo said CML will come up with a new tag line as part of its existing contract. At the recommendation of its attorney, Michael J. Houlihan, the county paid the legal firm Bishop & Heintz, P.C. $2,560 to register the logo, including a $1,500 charge for an "all jurisdictional trademark search." "If we are going to spend the money on the logo then it ought to be protected," Houlihan said. The search turned up the same septic pumping firm, but attorney Douglas Bishop wrote he did not see anything that likely would bar registration by the trademark office. "It is reasonable to expect that a trademark application for the mark 'Get Pumped' ...would have a high likelihood of approval," Bishop wrote. After it was rejected, Bishop wrote to Houlihan that he had anticipated the possibility the application would be denied. "A high likelihood leaves open the possibility it wouldn't be approved," Bishop said. Houlihan himself billed the county $375 for a meeting with Bishop and trademark work was listed as part of another bill for $975. Bishop, who disagrees with the trademark office's denial of the trademark, suggested contacting the septic pumping company for permission to use the trademark, but the county rejected the idea. Since the county doesn't pump septic tanks, the slogan "Get Pumped" doesn't represent what the county does, Buday said.
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