Sec. 278n.
Advanced Technology Program
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| (a) |
There
is established in the Institute an Advanced Technology Program
(hereafter in this Act referred to as the "Program")
for the purpose of assisting United States businesses in creating
and applying the generic technology and research results necessary
to—
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(1) |
commercialize
significant new scientific discoveries and technologies rapidly;
and
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(2) |
refine
manufacturing technologies.
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The
Secretary, acting through the Director, shall assure that the
Program focuses on improving the competitive position of the
United States and its businesses, gives preference to discoveries
and to technologies that have great economic potential, and avoids
providing undue advantage to specific companies. In operating
the Program, the Secretary and Director shall, as appropriate,
be guided by the findings and recommendations of the Biennial
National Critical Technology Reports prepared pursuant to section
603 of the National Science and Technology Policy, Organization,
and Priorities Act of 1976 (42 U.S.C. § 6683).
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| (b) |
Under
the Program established in subsection (a), and consistent with
the mission and policies of the Institute, the Secretary, acting
through the Director, and subject to subsections (c) and (d),
may—
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(1) |
aid
industry-led United States joint research and development ventures
(hereafter in this section referred to as "joint ventures")
(which may also include universities and independent research
organizations), including those involving collaborative technology
demonstration projects which develop and test prototype equipment
and processes, through—
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(A) |
provision
of organizational and technical advice; and
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(B) |
participation
in such joint ventures by means of grants, cooperative agreements,
or contracts, if the Secretary, acting through the Director,
determines participation to be appropriate, which may include
(i) partial startup funding, (ii) provision of a minority share
of the cost of such joint ventures for up to 5 years, and (iii)
making available equipment, facilities, and personnel, provided
that emphasis is placed on areas where the Institute has scientific
or technological expertise, on solving generic problems of specific
industries, and on making those industries more competitive in
world markets;
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(2) |
provide
grants to and enter into contracts and cooperative agreements
with United States businesses (especially small businesses),
provided that emphasis is placed on applying the Institute's
research, research techniques, and expertise to those organizations'
research programs;
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(3) |
involve
the Federal laboratories in the Program, where appropriate, using
among other authorities the cooperative research and development
agreements provided for under section 12 of the Stevenson-Wydler
Technology Innovation Act of 1980; and
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(4) |
carry
out, in a manner consistent with the provisions of this section,
such other cooperative research activities with joint ventures
as may be authorized by law or assigned to the Program by the
Secretary.
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| (c) |
The
Secretary, acting through the Director, is authorized to take
all actions necessary and appropriate to establish and operate
the Program, including—
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(1) |
publishing
in the Federal Register draft criteria and, no later than six
months after the date of the enactment of this section, following
a public comment period, final criteria, for the selection of
recipients of assistance under subsection (b)(1) and (2);
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(2) |
monitoring
how technologies developed in its research program are used,
and reporting annually to the Congress on the extent of any overseas
transfer of these technologies;
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(3) |
establishing
procedures regarding financial reporting and auditing to ensure
that contracts and awards are used for the purposes specified
in this section, are in accordance with sound accounting practices,
and are not funding existing or planned research programs that
would be conducted in the same time period in the absence of
financial assistance under the Program;
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(4) |
assuring
that the advice of the Committee established under section 10
is considered routinely in carrying out the responsibilities
of the Institute; and
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(5) |
providing
for appropriate dissemination of Program research results.
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| (d) |
When
entering into contracts or making awards under subsection (b),
the following shall apply:
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(1) |
No
contract or award may be made until the research project in question
has been subject to a merit review, and has, in the opinion of
the reviewers appointed by the Director and the Secretary, acting
through the Director, been shown to have scientific and technical
merit.
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(2) |
In
the case of joint ventures, the Program shall not make an award
unless the award will facilitate the formation of a joint venture
or the initiation of a new research and development project by
an existing joint venture.
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(3) |
No
Federal contract or cooperative agreement under subsection (b)(2)
shall exceed $2,000,000 over 3 years, or be for more than 3 years
unless a full and complete explanation of such proposed award,
including reasons for exceeding these limits, is submitted in
writing by the Secretary to the Committee on Commerce, Science,
and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Science,
Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives. The proposed
contract or cooperative agreement may be executed only after
30 calendar days on which both Houses of Congress are in session
have elapsed since such submission. Federal funds made available
under subsection (b)(2) shall be used only for direct costs and
not for indirect costs, profits, or management fees of the contractor.
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(4) |
In
determining whether to make an award to a particular joint venture,
the Program shall consider whether the members of the joint venture
have made provisions for the appropriate participation of small
United States businesses in such joint venture.
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(5) |
Section
552 of title 5, United States Code, shall not apply to the following
information obtained by the Federal Government on a confidential
basis in connection with the activities of any business or any
joint venture receiving funding under the Program—
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(A) |
information
on the business operation of any member of the business or joint
venture; and
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(B) |
trade
secrets possessed by any business or any member of the joint
venture.
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(6) |
Intellectual
property owned and developed by any business or joint venture
receiving funding or by any member of such a joint venture may
not be disclosed by any officer or employee of the Federal Government
except in accordance with a written agreement between the owner
or developer and the Program.
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(7) |
If
a business or joint venture fails before the completion of the
period for which a contract or award has been made, after all
allowable costs have been paid and appropriate audits conducted,
the unspent balance of the Federal funds shall be returned by
the recipient to the Program.
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(8) |
Upon
dissolution of any joint venture or at the time otherwise agreed
upon, the Federal Government shall be entitled to a share of
the residual assets of the joint venture proportional to the
Federal share of the costs of the joint venture as determined
by independent audit.
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(9) |
A
company shall be eligible to receive financial assistance under
this section only if—
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(A) |
the
Secretary finds that the company's participation in the program
would be in the economic interest of the United States, as evidenced
by investments in the United States in research, development,
and manufacturing (including, for example, the manufacture of
major components or subassemblies in the United States); significant
contributions to employment in the United States; and agreement
with respect to any technology arising from assistance provided
under this section to promote the manufacture within the United
States of products resulting from that technology (taking into
account the goals of promoting the competitiveness of United
States industry), and to procure parts and materials from competitive
suppliers; and
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(B) |
either— |
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(i) |
the
company is a United Statesowned company; or
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(ii) |
the
Secretary finds that the company is incorporated in the United
States and has a parent company which is incorporated in a country
which affords to United Statesowned companies opportunities,
comparable to those afforded to any other company, to participate
in any joint venture similar to those authorized under this Act;
affords to United States-owned companies local investment opportunities
comparable to those afforded to any other company; and affords
adequate and effective protection for the intellectual property
rights of United States-owned companies.
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(10) |
Grants,
contracts, and cooperative assignments under this section shall
be designed to support projects which are high risk and which
have the potential for eventual substantial widespread commercial
application. In order to receive a grant, contract, or cooperative
agreement under this section, a research and development entity
shall demonstrate to the Secretary the requisite ability in research
and technology development and management in the project area
in which the grant, contract, or cooperative agreement is being
sought.
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(11) |
(A) |
Title
to any intellectual property arising from assistance provided
under this section shall vest in a company or companies incorporated
in the United States. The United States may reserve a nonexclusive,
nontransferable, irrevocable paid-up license, to have practiced
for or on behalf of the United States, in connection with any
such intellectual property, but shall not, in the exercise of
such license, publicly disclose proprietary information related
to the license. Title to any such intellectual property shall
not be transferred or passed, except to a company incorporated
in the United States, until the expiration of the first patent
obtained in connection with such intellectual property.
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(B) |
For
purposes of this paragraph, the term "intellectual property" means
an invention patentable under title 35, United States Code, or
any patent on such an invention.
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(C) |
Nothing
in this paragraph shall be construed to prohibit the licensing
to any company of intellectual property rights arising from assistance
provided under this section.
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| (e) |
The
Secretary may, within 30 days after notice to Congress, suspend
a company or joint venture from continued assistance under this
section if the Secretary determines that the company, the country
of incorporation of the company or a parent company, or the joint
venture has failed to satisfy any of the criteria set forth in
subsection (d)(9), and that it is in the national interest of
the United States to do so.
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| (f) |
When
reviewing private sector requests for awards under the Program,
and when monitoring the progress of assisted research projects,
the Secretary and the Director shall, as appropriate, coordinate
with the Secretary of Defense and other senior Federal officials
to ensure cooperation and coordination in Federal technology
programs and to avoid unnecessary duplication of effort. The
Secretary and the Director are authorized to work with the Director
of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, the Secretary
of Defense, and other appropriate Federal officials to form interagency
working groups or special project offices to coordinate Federal
technology activities.
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| (g) |
In
order to analyze the need for the value of joint ventures and
other research projects in specific technical fields, to evaluate
any proposal made by a joint venture or company requesting the
Secretary's assistance, or to monitor the progress of any joint
venture or any company research project which receives Federal
funds under the Program, the Secretary, the Under Secretary of
Commerce for Technology, and the Director may, notwithstanding
any other provision of law, meet with such industry sources as
they consider useful and appropriate.
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| (h) |
Up
to 10 percent of the funds appropriated for carrying out this
section may be used standards development and technical activities
by the Institute in support of the purposes of this section.
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| (i) |
In
addition to such sums as may be authorized and appropriated to
the Secretary and Director to operate the Program, the Secretary
and Director also may accept funds from other Federal departments
and agencies for the purpose of providing Federal funds to support
awards under the Program. Any Program award which is supported
with funds which originally came from other Federal departments
and agencies shall be selected and carried out according to the
provisions of this section.
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| (j) |
As
used in this section—
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(1) |
the
term "joint venture" means any group of activities,
including attempting to make, making, or performing a contract,
by two or more persons for the purpose of—
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(A) |
theoretical
analysis, experimentation, or systematic study of phenomena or
observable facts;
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(B) |
the
development or testing of basic engineering techniques;
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(C) |
the
extension of investigative findings or theory of a scientific
or technical nature into practical application for experimental
and demonstration purposes, including the experimental production
and testing of models, prototypes, equipment, materials, and
processes;
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(D) |
the
collection, exchange, and analysis of research information;
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(E) |
the
production of any product, process, or service; or
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(F) |
any
combination of the purposes specified in subparagraphs (A), (B),
(C), (D), and (E), and may include the establishment and operation
of facilities for the conducting of research, the conducting
of such venture on a protected and proprietary basis, and the
prosecuting of applications for patents and the granting of licenses
for the results of such venture; and
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(2) |
the
term "United States-owned company" means a company
that has majority ownership or control by individuals who are
citizens of the United States.
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