[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 753 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 753

    To enhance scientific research and competitiveness through the 
 Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 2, 2007

   Mr. Rockefeller (for himself, Ms. Snowe, Mr. Reed, Mr. Hagel, Mr. 
 Baucus, Mr. Roberts, and Mr. Cochran) introduced the following bill; 
     which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, 
                     Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To enhance scientific research and competitiveness through the 
 Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research, 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 ``EPSCoR Research and Competitiveness 
Act of 2007''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Ensuring regional diversity in research funding is an 
        essential strategy in strengthening international 
        competitiveness.
            (2) Economic development in high technology fields is often 
        advanced by industrial partnerships located nearby research 
        institutions from which companies can acquire intellectual 
        property, highly trained staff, and vital resources.
            (3) The National Science Foundation is an independent 
        Federal agency created by Congress in 1950 ``to promote the 
        progress of science; to advance the national health, prosperity 
        and welfare, and to secure the national defense''.
            (4) Congress has subsequently directed that, ``it shall be 
        an objective of the Foundation to strengthen research and 
        education in the sciences and engineering, including 
        independent research by individuals, throughout the United 
        States, and to avoid undue concentration of such research and 
        education''.
            (5) Currently, Foundation research investments are 
        concentrated in a small number of States. In contrast, 25 other 
        States together receive less than 10 percent of the 
        Foundation's research funding, yet these States are home to 20 
        percent of the population, 25 percent of doctoral/research 
        universities, and 18 percent of academic scientists and 
        engineers, and train nearly 20 percent of science and 
        engineering graduate students.
            (6) Insufficient research infrastructure diminishes the 
        ability of many universities to compete effectively for 
        research funding, and thereby limits their contributions to 
        regional economic development and international 
        competitiveness.
            (7) The Foundation's Experimental Program to Stimulate 
        Competitive Research, or EPSCoR, is the primary program by 
        which the Foundation seeks to improve the research 
        infrastructure of institutions in States that presently receive 
        small portions of Foundation funding. EPSCoR is thus an 
        important component of national efforts to increase innovation 
        and improve competitiveness.
            (8) EPSCoR jurisdictions possess strong science and 
        technology resources that can be utilized to address national 
        priorities and needs in areas such as ``energy'', where EPSCoR 
        States account for 7 of the 10 leading energy producing States; 
        ``health'', where EPSCoR States' medical universities have 
        developed IT-based distance medical care for their rural 
        populations; ``defense'', where EPSCoR universities are 
        producing ``high'' tech tools for military; ``homeland 
        security'', where EPSCoR universities are developing tools to 
        monitor human and animal traffic across some of the world's 
        longest open borders; and cyber infrastructure, where nearly 
        all EPSCoR universities are making significant investments for 
        the future.
            (9) Full participation by EPSCoR jurisdictions in National 
        Science Foundation science and engineering programs will enable 
        these jurisdictions to contribute to National Science 
        Foundation efforts to increase the number of United States born 
        students who enter science and engineering disciplines. 
        Providing resources to EPSCoR universities will enable the 
        American born students who are trained by these institutions to 
        fill an important workforce need in science and technology 
        areas.
            (10) Existing National Science Foundation EPSCoR award 
        mechanisms need to be more flexible and longer-term, reflecting 
        the particular needs of different States and regions. There 
        should also be better use by EPSCoR of existing National 
        Science Foundation grant mechanisms that effectively serve 
        other National Science Foundation research programs.

SEC. 3. FUNDING.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to the Foundation for 
EPSCoR--
            (1) $125,000,000 for fiscal year 2008; and
            (2) for each of fiscal years 2009 through 2012, an amount 
        equal to the sum of--
                    (A) $125,000,000; and
                    (B) $125,000,000 multiplied by a percentage equal 
                to the percentage by which the Foundation's budget 
                request for such fiscal year exceeds the total amount 
                appropriated to the Foundation for fiscal year 2008.

SEC. 4. RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENT GRANTS.

    (a) In General.--In the administration of the Foundation's research 
infrastructure improvement grant program, the Director shall authorize 
States participating in the grant program to include partnerships with 
out-of-State research institutions if the amount of funding transferred 
to another State does not exceed 5 percent of the amount of the grant 
in any fiscal year.
    (b) Authorization Level.--From amounts appropriated pursuant to 
section 3, the Director shall make available to the research 
infrastructure improvement grant program--
            (1) $65,000,000 for fiscal year 2008; and
            (2) for each of fiscal years 2009 through 2012, an amount 
        equal to the sum of--
                    (A) $75,000,000; and
                    (B) $75,000,000 multiplied by a percentage equal to 
                the percentage by which the Foundation's budget request 
                for such fiscal year exceeds the total amount 
                appropriated to the Foundation for fiscal year 2008.

SEC. 5. CO-FUNDING.

    (a) In General.--For each of fiscal years 2008 through 2012, the 
Director shall obligate and expend not less than 20 percent of the 
amount available for EPSCoR on co-funding projects that are ranked, by 
a peer-review process, in the top 20 percent of all proposals submitted 
in response to an announced competition.
    (b) Annual Report.--The Director shall submit an annual report to 
the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate 
and the Committee on Science of the House of Representatives that 
provides information about--
            (1) co-funded projects on a State-by-State basis for the 
        preceding year; and
            (2) the amount and use of co-funding by each of the 
        Foundation's directorates for that year.

SEC. 6. CYBER INFRASTRUCTURE.

    Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 
the Director, through the Office of Cyber Infrastructure, shall develop 
and publish a plan enabling States participating in EPSCoR to 
participate fully in the Foundation's Cyber Infrastructure Initiative.

SEC. 7. MAJOR RESEARCH INSTRUMENTATION.

    Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 
the Director, through the Office of Major Research Instrumentation, 
shall develop and publish a plan enabling States participating in 
EPSCoR to develop partnerships and participate fully in the 
Foundation's major research instrumentation program.

SEC. 8. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Director.--The term ``Director'' means the Director of 
        the National Science Foundation.
            (2) EPSCoR.--The term ``EPSCoR'' means the Experimental 
        Program to Stimulate Competitive Research authorized by section 
        113 of the National Science Foundation Authorization Act of 
        1988 (42 U.S.C. 1862g).
            (3) Foundation.--The term ``Foundation'' means the National 
        Science Foundation.
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