1.This Act may be cited as the
National Innovation Act - Commerce
Provisions
.
2.
(a)Congress
makes the following findings:
(1)The United States
is the most innovative Nation in the world. Since our Nation’s founding,
exploration, opportunity, and discovery have remained essential to fulfilling
our Nation’s strategic economic and political objectives.
(2)In the 21st
century, a well-educated and trained workforce, investment in research and
development, and a regulatory and physical infrastructure that supports
innovators are essential to ensuring that the United States continues to lead
the global economy on innovation.
(3)America’s future
economic and national security will largely depend on the creativity and
commitment of our Nation to unleash its innovation capacity.
(4)The world has
become dramatically more interconnected and competitive. Cutting edge research,
world-class education, and highly skilled labor pools are no longer within the
sole purview of the United States.
(5)The United States
investment in basic research is currently insufficient to meet the challenges
we face.
(6)Federal support
for basic research in the physical sciences has consistently lagged behind that
given to the life sciences in recent years.
(7)Traditional
measurements of innovation capacity focused solely on inputs, such as research
and development spending, number of patents and value of physical
infrastructure. The traditional measurements are necessary but are not
sufficient metrics for innovation in the 21st century’s knowledge
economy.
(8)Current Federal
budget constraints require prioritization of spending and new programs must be
funded through existing funds or through identifiable funding offsets whenever
possible.
(9)A national,
private sector-led, and government supported plan is required if the United
States is to adequately respond to the challenges of increased global
competition and take advantage of the opportunities this changing global
dynamic presents.
(b)The
purposes of this Act are to—
(1)make innovation a
fundamental economic priority for the United States;
(2)create the most
fertile policy environment for innovation to occur;
(3)increase the
Federal Government’s investment in basic research, especially in the physical
sciences;
(4)direct greater
funding toward multidisciplinary and frontier research where tomorrow’s
innovations are most likely to occur; and
(5)secure a strong
advanced manufacturing base in the United States to ensure that as innovations
occur, America is poised to reap the benefits via the creation of new jobs and
investment.
3.In this Act:
(1)The term Executive agency has the meaning
given that term in section 105 of title 5, United States Code.
(2)Extended
production enterpriseThe term extended production
enterprise means a system in which key entities in the manufacturing
chain, including entities engaged in product design and development,
manufacturing, sourcing, distribution, and user entities, are linked together
through information technology and other means to promote efficiency and
productivity.
(3)The
term innovation means the intersection of invention and insight
leading to the creation of social and economic value, including through efforts
meeting fundamental technology challenges and involving multidisciplinary work
and a high degree of novelty.
(4)Manufacturing
extension partnership programThe term Manufacturing
Extension Partnership Program means the Manufacturing Extension
Partnership Program of the Department of Commerce.
(5)Manufacturing
technology programThe term Manufacturing Technology
Program means the Manufacturing Technology Program under section 2521 of
title 10, United States Code.
(6)Regional
innovation hot spots definedThe term regional innovation
hot spots means regions that are defined by a high degree of innovation
and the availability of talent, investment, and infrastructure necessary to
create and sustain such innovation.
(7)The term service science means curriculums,
research programs, and training regimens, including service sciences,
management, and engineering (SSME) programs, that exist or that are being
developed to teach individuals to apply technology, organizational process
management, and industry-specific knowledge to solve complex problems.
(8)Small business
innovation research programThe term Small Business
Innovation Research Program has the meaning given that term in section
2500(11) of title 10, United States Code.
(9)Small business
technology transfer programThe term Small Business
Technology Transfer Program has the meaning given that term in section
2500(12) of title 10, United States Code.
(10)The
term SSME means the discipline known as service sciences,
management, and engineering that—
(A)applies
scientific, engineering and management disciplines to tasks that one
organization performs beneficially for others, generally as part of the
services sector of the economy; and
(B)integrates
computer science, operations research, industrial engineering, business
strategy, management sciences, and social and legal sciences, in order to
encourage innovation in how organizations create value for customers and
shareholders that could not be achieved through such disciplines working in
isolation.
4.President’s
Council on Innovation
(a)The President shall establish a President’s Council on
Innovation (in this section referred to as the Council
).
(b)The
Council’s duties shall include—
(1)monitoring
implementation of legislative proposals and initiatives for promoting
innovation, including policies related to research funding, taxation,
immigration, trade, and education that are proposed in this and other
Acts;
(2)in consultation
with the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, developing a process
for using metrics to assess the impact of existing and proposed policies and
rules that affect innovation capabilities in the United States;
(3)identifying
opportunities and making recommendations for the heads of executive agencies to
improve innovation, monitoring, and reporting on the implementation of such
recommendations;
(4)developing
metrics for measuring the progress of the Federal Government with respect to
improving conditions for innovation, including through talent development,
investment, and infrastructure improvements; and
(5)submitting an
annual report to the President and Congress on such progress.
(c)Membership and
Coordination
(1)The
Council shall be composed of the Secretary or head of each of the
following:
(A)The Department of
Commerce.
(B)The Department of
Defense.
(C)The Department of
Education.
(D)The Department of
Energy.
(E)The Department of
Health and Human Services.
(F)The Department of
Homeland Security.
(G)The Department of
Labor.
(H)The Department of
the Treasury.
(I)The National
Aeronautics and Space Administration.
(J)The Securities
and Exchange Commission.
(K)The National
Science Foundation.
(L)The Office of the
United States Trade Representative.
(M)The Office of
Management and Budget.
(N)The Office of
Science and Technology Policy.
(2)The
Secretary of Commerce shall serve as chairperson of the Council.
(3)The
chairperson of the Council shall ensure appropriate coordination between the
Council and the National Economic Council and the National Security
Council.
(d)Development of
Innovation Agenda
(1)The Council shall develop a comprehensive agenda for
strengthening the innovation capabilities of the Federal Government and State
governments, academia, and the private sector in the United States.
(2)The
comprehensive agenda required by paragraph (1) shall be developed in
consultation with appropriate representatives of the private sector, scientific
organizations, and academic organizations.
5.Innovation
acceleration grants
(a)The President shall establish a grant program, to be
known as the Innovation Acceleration Grants Program
, to support
and promote innovation in the United States. Priority in the awarding of grants
shall be given to projects that meet fundamental technology challenges and that
involve multidisciplinary work and a high degree of novelty.
(b)Awarding of
Grants Through Departments and Agencies
(1)The President shall ensure that it is the goal of each
Executive agency that finances research in science, mathematics, engineering,
and technology to allocate at least 3 percent of the agency’s total annual
research and development budget to funding grants under the Innovation
Acceleration Grants Program.
(2)
(A)Each head of an Executive agency awarding grants under
paragraph (1) shall submit a plan for implementing the grant program within
such Executive agency to the Director of the Office of Science and Technology
Policy and the Director of the Office of Management and Budget. The
implementation plan shall be submitted not later than 90 days after the date of
enactment of this Act. The implementation plan may incorporate existing
initiatives of the Executive agencies that promote research in innovation as
described in subsection (a).
(B)The head of each Executive agency submitting an
implementation plan pursuant to this section shall include metrics upon which
grant funding decisions will be made and metrics for assessing the success of
the grants awarded.
(C)Grant duration
and renewals
(i)Any grants issued by an Executive agency under this
section shall be for a period not to exceed 3 years.
(ii)Not
later than 90 days prior to the expiration of a grant issued under this
section, the Executive agency that approved the grant shall complete an
evaluation of the effectiveness of the grant based on the metrics established
pursuant to subparagraph (B). In its evaluation, the Executive agency shall
consider the extent to which the program funded by the grant met the goals of
quality improvement and job creation.
(iii)The Executive agency shall publish and make available
to the public the review of each grant approved pursuant to this
section.
(iv)Any grant that the Executive agency awarding the
grant determines has failed to satisfy any of the metrics developed pursuant to
subparagraph (B), shall not be eligible for a renewal.
(v)A
grant issued under this section that satisfies all of the metrics developed
pursuant to subparagraph (B), may be renewed once for a period not to exceed 3
years. Additional renewals may be considered only if the head of the Executive
agency makes a specific finding that the program being funded involves a
significant technology advance that requires a longer timeframe to complete
critical research, and the research satisfies all the metrics developed
pursuant to subparagraph (B).
6.A
national commitment to basic research
(a)Plan for
Increased ResearchNot later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Director of the National Science Foundation shall
submit to Congress a comprehensive, multiyear plan that describes how the funds
authorized in subsection (b) shall be used. Such plan shall be developed with a
focus on utilizing basic research in physical science and engineering to
optimize the United States economy as a global competitor and leader in
productive innovation.
(b)Increased
Funding for National Science FoundationThere are authorized to
be appropriated to the National Science Foundation for the purpose of doubling
research funding the following amounts:
(1)$6,440,000,000
for fiscal year 2007.
(2)$7,280,000,000
for fiscal year 2008.
(3)$8,120,000,000
for fiscal year 2009.
(4)$8,960,000,000
for fiscal year 2010.
(5)$9,800,000,000
for fiscal year 2011.
(c)Recommendations
for Research and Development FundingNot later than 1 year after
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Director of the Office of Science
and Technology Policy shall evaluate and, as appropriate, submit to Congress
recommendations for an increase in funding for research and development in
physical sciences and engineering in consultation with agencies and departments
of the United States with significant research and development budgets.
7.Regional
economic development
(a)Development of
Funding Strategy
(1)The Assistant Secretary for Economic Development of the
Department of Commerce shall review Federal programs that support local
economic development and prepare and implement a strategy to focus funding on
initiatives that improve the ability of communities to participate successfully
in the modern economy through innovation. In preparing the strategy, priority
should be given to projects that—
(A)emphasize private
sector cooperation with State and local governments and nonprofit organizations
focused on regional economic development as the means of achieving specific
objectives related to the support and promotion of innovation; and
(B)are the most
successful in meeting the metrics established under subsection (b).
(2)The
Assistant Secretary shall coordinate the development and implementation of the
strategy with the activities carried out by the Under Secretary for Technology
under subsection (d).
(b)The Assistant Secretary for Economic Development of the
Department of Commerce shall develop metrics to measure the success of Federal
programs in supporting and promoting innovation at the local community level
while minimizing bureaucracy and overhead expenses.
(c)Promotion of
Economic Development OpportunitiesThe Assistant Secretary for
Economic Development of the Department of Commerce should work with
organizations focused on economic development to highlight opportunities for
such organizations to serve local communities through grants focused on
economic development and investment in companies pursuing innovation.
(d)Regional
Innovation Hot Spots
(1)Promotion of
regional innovation hot spotsThe Under Secretary for Technology
of the Department of Commerce shall coordinate activities focused on promoting
innovation through the development of regional innovation hot spots.
(2)Guide to
developing successful regional innovation hot spots
(A)Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this
Act, the Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with representatives of
regional innovation hot spots, shall publish a report, to be titled the
Guide to Developing Successful Regional Innovation Hot Spots
,
that examines successful regional innovation hot spots and includes
recommendations for establishing and fostering regional innovation hot
spots.
(B)The
report required under subparagraph (A) shall—
(i)include
information on the evaluation of human capital;
(ii)include
information on the role of sponsoring institutions, such as universities,
nonprofit organizations, and laboratories, in establishing and fostering
regional innovation hot spots;
(iii)include
information on the role of State and local government leaders, leaders in the
research and business communities, and community organizations in establishing
and fostering regional innovation hot spots;
(iv)discuss the
importance of collaboration by public and private sector leaders;
(v)identify sources
of funding for these activities within Federal, State, and local governments
and the private sector; and
(vi)include
recommendations for developing strategic plans to stimulate innovation,
including recommendations relating to knowledge transfer and commercialization,
the support of regional entrepreneurship and increased innovation within
existing regional firms, and the linking of primary institutions engaged in the
innovation process.
(3)Regional
innovation hot spot metrics
(A)In conjunction with publishing the report required under
paragraph (2), the Secretary of Commerce shall develop the following sets of
metrics:
(i)Metrics to be
considered for identifying potential regional innovation hot spots (in this
subsection referred to as identifying metrics
).
(ii)Metrics to be
considered for evaluating the impact and effectiveness of established regional
innovation hot spots (in this subsection referred to as evaluation
metrics
).
(B)The Under Secretary of Commerce for Technology shall use
the identifying metrics to conduct biannual assessments of potential regional
clusters and shall use the evaluation metrics to assess the impact and
effectiveness of established regional innovation hot spots in improving the
regional economy and regional job market. The Under Secretary shall also assess
the cost effectiveness of operating within each regional hot spot. The Under
Secretary shall report the biannual assessments to Congress.
8.Development of
advanced manufacturing systems
(a)The Director of the National Institute of Standards
and Technology shall support research and development in collaboration with
entities and organizations from the industrial sector to supplement and support
work in the private sector on advanced manufacturing systems designed to
increase productivity and efficiency and to create competitive advantages for
United States businesses. These research and development activities should
focus on the following activities:
(1)Supporting
industry efforts to develop innovative, state-of-the-art manufacturing
processes, advanced technologies through interoperable standards, and related
concepts, including—
(A)advanced
distributed and desktop manufacturing linked to and made compatible with the
extended production enterprise system described in paragraph (2);
(B)non-contact
quality inspection processes linked to and made compatible with the extended
production enterprise system;
(C)small lot
manufacturing processes that are—
(i)as
cost-effective as mass production processes; and
(ii)linked to and
compatible with the extended production enterprise system; and
(D)the use of
state-of-the-art materials and processes at the nanotechnological level.
(2)Supporting
industry efforts to develop an extended production enterprise system that
integrates key entities, including entities engaged in product design and
development, manufacturing, sourcing, distribution, and user entities,
including through the development of—
(A)interoperable
software and standards designed to maximize the compatibility of the design,
modeling, and manufacturing stages of the manufacturing process; and
(B)supply chain
software.
(b)Coordination of
ActivitiesThe Director of the National Institute of Standards
and Technology shall coordinate activities under subsection (a) with activities
under—
(1)the Small
Business Innovation Research Program;
(2)the Small
Business Technology Transfer Program; and
(3)the Manufacturing
Technology Program of the Department of Defense.
(c)The
Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology shall support
the work of entities and organizations from the industrial sector in developing
prototypes and testing areas for testing and refining, in actual production
conditions, the processes, technologies, and extended production enterprise
system described in subsection (a)(2) in order to maximize productivity gains
and cost efficiencies.
(d)The Director of the National Institute of Standards and
Technology, in coordination with entities and organizations from the industrial
sector and the Manufacturing Technology Program, shall support standards to be
used as manufacturing performance criteria to accelerate the adoption of
improvements and innovative processes and protocols developed under subsection
(a).
(e)Pilot Test Beds
of Excellence
(1)The
Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology shall, in
collaboration with entities and organizations from the industrial sector,
support not more than 3 pilot test beds of excellence in manufacturing fields
important to advanced technologies developed under subsection (a), such as
nanotechnology, to be used by the public and private sector. The test beds of
excellence shall focus on production development, particularly the invention,
prototyping, and engineering development stages of the manufacturing
process.
(2)The
Secretary of Commerce shall conduct a competition to select the pilot test beds
of excellence based on criteria and metrics established by the Secretary prior
to the competition.
(3)The
Secretary of Commerce may provide the pilot test beds of excellence selected
pursuant to the competition set forth in paragraph (2) with an appropriate
level of funding if and only if the following conditions are satisfied:
(A)No more than
1/3 of the funding of each test bed of excellence is
provided by the Federal Government.
(B)At least
1/3 of the cost of each test bed of excellence is provided
by participants from the private sector.
(C)At least
1/3 of the cost of each test bed of excellence is provided
by State or local governments.
(4)Review of
funded test bedsWithin 3 years of the start of Federal funding
for any test bed of excellence pursuant to this section, the Secretary of
Commerce shall use the metrics established pursuant to paragraph (2) and any
additional review metrics that the Secretary determines appropriate to assess
the performance of the federally funded test beds of excellence. Any test bed
of excellence that fails to satisfy any of the performance metrics will be
ineligible for additional Federal funding.
(5)Federal funding of any test bed of excellence shall
cease 5 years after the date of enactment of this Act.
(f)Manufacturing
Extension Partnership Focus on InnovationThe Director of the
National Institute of Standards and Technology shall ensure that the
Manufacturing Extension Partnership program develops a focus on innovation,
including through technology diffusion, supply and distribution chain
integration, and the dissemination of the processes, technologies, and extended
production enterprise systems developed under this section.
(g)Authorization
of AppropriationsThere are authorized to be appropriated to the
Department of Commerce for the purpose of carrying out activities under this
section the following amounts:
(1)$20,000,000 for
fiscal year 2007.
(2)$40,000,000 for
fiscal year 2008.
(3)$60,000,000 for
fiscal year 2009.
(4)$80,000,000 for
fiscal year 2010.
(5)$100,000,000 for
fiscal year 2011.
9.
(a)It is the sense of Congress that, in order to strengthen
the competitiveness of United States enterprises and institutions and to
prepare the people of the United States for high-wage, high-skill employment,
the Federal Government should better understand and respond strategically to
the emerging vocation and learning discipline known as service science.
(b)Not
later than 270 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Director
of the National Science Foundation shall conduct a study and report to Congress
regarding how the Federal Government should support, through research,
education, and training, the new discipline of service science.
(c)In conducting the study under subsection (b), the
Director of the National Science Foundation shall consult with leaders from 2-
and 4-year institutions of higher education (as defined in section 101 of the
Higher Education Act of 1965 (20
U.S.C. 1001)), leaders from corporations, and other relevant parties.