[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 291 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 291

To establish a digital and wireless network technology program, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 12, 2007

 Mr. Smith (for himself and Mr. Kerry) introduced the following bill; 
    which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, 
                      Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To establish a digital and wireless network technology program, and for 
                            other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Minority Serving Institution Digital 
and Wireless Technology Opportunity Act of 2007''.

SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICE.

    (a) In General.--There is established within the National Science 
Foundation an Office of Minority Serving Institution Digital and 
Wireless Technology to carry out the provisions of this Act.
    (b) Purpose.--The Office shall--
            (1) strengthen the ability of eligible institutions to 
        provide capacity for instruction in digital and wireless 
        network technologies by providing grants to, or executing 
        contracts or cooperative agreements with, those institutions to 
        provide such instruction; and
            (2) strengthen the national digital and wireless 
        infrastructure by increasing national investment in 
        telecommunications and technology infrastructure at eligible 
        institutions.

SEC. 3. ACTIVITIES SUPPORTED.

    An eligible institution shall use a grant, contract, or cooperative 
agreement awarded under this Act--
            (1) to acquire equipment, instrumentation, networking 
        capability, hardware and software, digital network technology, 
        wireless technology, and infrastructure;
            (2) to develop and provide educational services, including 
        faculty development, related to science, mathematics, 
        engineering, or technology;
            (3) to provide teacher education, library and media 
        specialist training, and preschool and teacher aid 
        certification to individuals who seek to acquire or enhance 
        technology skills in order to use technology in the classroom 
        or instructional process;
            (4) to implement joint projects and consortia to provide 
        education regarding technology in the classroom with a State or 
        State education agency, local education agency, community-based 
        organization, national non-profit organization or business;
            (5) to provide professional development in science, 
        mathematics, engineering, or technology to administrators and 
        faculty of eligible institutions with institutional 
        responsibility for technology education;
            (6) to provide capacity-building technical assistance to 
        eligible institutions through remote technical support, 
        technical assistance workshops, distance learning, new 
        technologies, and other technological applications;
            (7) to foster the use of information communications 
        technology to increase scientific, mathematical, engineering, 
        and technology instruction and research; and
            (8) to develop proposals to be submitted under this Act and 
        to develop strategic plans for information technology 
        investments.

SEC. 4. APPLICATION AND REVIEW PROCEDURE.

    (a) In General.--To be eligible to receive a grant, contract, or 
cooperative agreement under this Act, an eligible institution shall 
submit an application to the Director at such time, in such manner, and 
accompanied by such information as the Director may reasonably require. 
The Director, in consultation with the advisory council established 
under subsection (b), shall establish a procedure by which to accept 
and review such applications and publish an announcement of such 
procedure, including a statement regarding the availability of funds, 
in the Federal Register.
    (b) Advisory Council.--The Director shall establish an advisory 
council to advise the Director on the best approaches for involving 
eligible institutions in the activities described in section 3, and for 
reviewing and evaluating proposals submitted to the program. In 
selecting the members of the advisory council, the Director may consult 
with representatives of appropriate organizations, including 
representatives of eligible institutions, to ensure that the membership 
of the advisory council reflects participation by technology and 
telecommunications institutions, eligible institution communities, 
Federal agency personnel, and other individuals who are knowledgeable 
about eligible institutions and technology issues. Any panel assembled 
to review a proposal submitted to the program shall include members 
from minority serving institutions. Program review criteria shall 
include consideration of--
            (1) demonstrated need for assistance under this Act; and
            (2) diversity among the types of institutions receiving 
        assistance under this Act.
    (c) Data Collection.--An eligible institution that receives a 
grant, contract, or cooperative agreement under section 2 shall provide 
the Office with any relevant institutional statistical or demographic 
data requested by the Office.
    (d) Information Dissemination.--The Director shall convene an 
annual meeting of eligible institutions receiving grants, contracts, or 
cooperative agreements under section 2 for the purposes of--
            (1) fostering collaboration and capacity-building 
        activities among eligible institutions; and
            (2) disseminating information and ideas generated by such 
        meetings.

SEC. 5. MATCHING REQUIREMENT.

    The Director may not award a grant, contract, or cooperative 
agreement to an eligible institution under this Act unless such 
institution agrees that, with respect to the costs to be incurred by 
the institution in carrying out the program for which the grant, 
contract, or cooperative agreement was awarded, such institution will 
make available (directly or through donations from public or private 
entities) non-Federal contributions in an amount equal to 25 percent of 
the amount of the grant, contract, or cooperative agreement awarded by 
the Director, or $500,000, whichever is the lesser amount. The Director 
shall waive the matching requirement for any institution or consortium 
with no endowment, or an endowment that has a current dollar value 
lower than $50,000,000.

SEC. 6. LIMITATIONS.

    (a) In General.--An eligible institution that receives a grant, 
contract, or cooperative agreement under this Act that exceeds 
$2,500,000, shall not be eligible to receive another grant, contract, 
or cooperative agreement under this Act until every other eligible 
institution that has applied for a grant, contract, or cooperative 
agreement under this Act has received such a grant, contract, or 
cooperative.
    (b) Awards Administered by Eligible Institution.--Each grant, 
contract, or cooperative agreement awarded under this Act shall be made 
to, and administered by, an eligible institution, even when it is 
awarded for the implementation of a consortium or joint project.

SEC. 7. ANNUAL REPORT AND EVALUATION.

    (a) Annual Report Required From Recipients.--Each institution that 
receives a grant, contract, or cooperative agreement under this Act 
shall provide an annual report to the Director on its use of the grant, 
contract, or cooperative agreement.
    (b) Evaluation by Director.--The Director, in consultation with the 
Secretary of Education, shall--
            (1) review the reports provided under subsection (a) each 
        year; and
            (2) evaluate the program authorized by section 3 on the 
        basis of those reports every 2 years.
    (c) Contents of Evaluation.--The Director, in the evaluation, shall 
describe the activities undertaken by those institutions and shall 
assess the short-range and long-range impact of activities carried out 
under the grant, contract, or cooperative agreement on the students, 
faculty, and staff of the institutions.
    (d) Report to Congress.--The Director shall submit a report to the 
Congress based on the evaluation. In the report, the Director shall 
include such recommendations, including recommendations concerning the 
continuing need for Federal support of the program, as may be 
appropriate.

SEC. 8. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Eligible institution.--The term ``eligible 
        institution'' means an institution that is--
                    (A) a historically Black college or university that 
                is a part B institution, as defined in section 322(2) 
                of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
                1061(2));
                    (B) a Hispanic-serving institution, as defined in 
                section 502(a)(5) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 
                (20 U.S.C. 1101a(a)(5));
                    (C) a tribally controlled college or university, as 
                defined in section 316(b)(3) of the Higher Education 
                Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1059c(b)(3));
                    (D) an Alaska Native-serving institution under 
                section 317(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
                U.S.C. 1059d(b));
                    (E) a Native Hawaiian-serving institution under 
                section 317(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
                U.S.C. 1059d(b)); or
                    (F) an institution determined by the Director, in 
                consultation with the Secretary of Education, to have 
                enrolled a substantial number of minority, low-income 
                students during the previous academic year who received 
                assistance under subpart I of part A of title IV of the 
                Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070a et seq.) 
                for that year.
            (2) Director.--The term ``Director'' means the Director of 
        the National Science Foundation.

SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to the Director of the 
National Science Foundation $250,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 
2008 through 2012 to carry out this Act.
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