[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 81 (Wednesday, June 9, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1186]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  INTRODUCTION OF NETWORKING AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH AND 
                            DEVELOPMENT ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                    HON. F. JAMES SENSENBRENNER, JR.

                              of wisconsin

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 9, 1999

  Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce H.R. 2086 
the Networking and Information Technology Research and Development Act 
of 1999. And I recommend that all my colleagues join with Science 
Committee Ranking Member George Brown, Congressman Tom Davis and 23 
other Republican and Democrat Members of the Science Committee in 
cosponsoring this important bipartisan research initiative.
  Two decades ago, the changes wrought by information technology were 
unimaginable. The scope and scale of the changes produced by the 
explosion in information technology are comparable to those created 
during the Industrial Revolution of the 17th and 18th centuries. But 
whereas the Industrial Revolution ushered in the era of the machine--
symbolized by the steam engine, the factory, and the captain of 
industry--the Information Revolution promises to create the era of the 
mind--symbolized by the silicon chip, the microprocessor, and the high-
tech entrepreneur.
  Today, the United States is the undisputed global leader in computing 
and communications, and a healthy information-technology industry is a 
critical component of U.S. economic and National security. The impact 
of information technology on the economy is telling. It represents one 
of the fastest growing sectors of the U.S. economy, growing at an 
annual rate of 12 percent between 1993 and 1997. Since 1992, businesses 
producing computers, semiconductors, software, and communications 
equipment have accounted for one-third of the economic growth in the 
U.S.
  Fundamental information-technology research has played an essential 
role in fueling the Information Revolution and creating new industries 
and millions of new, high-paying jobs. But maintaining the Nation's 
global leadership in information technology will require keeping open 
the pipeline of new ideas, technologies, and innovations that flow from 
fundamental research. Although the private sector provides the lion's 
share of the research funding, its spending tends to focus on short-
term, applied work. The Federal Government, therefore, has a critical 
role to play in supporting the long-term, basic research the private 
sector requires but is ill-suited to pursue.
  However, as the Congressionally-chartered President's Information 
Technology Advisory Committee (PITAC) noted in its recent report, the 
emphasis of Federal information technology research programs in recent 
years has shifted from long-term, high-risk research to short-term, 
mission oriented research. This is a trend that began in 1986 but has 
accelerated over the last six years.
  PITAC warned that current Federal support for fundamental research in 
information technology is inadequate to maintain the Nation's global 
leadership in this area, and it advocated a five-year initiative that 
would significantly increase basic-research funding. The 
Administration's response to the PITAC report is its Information 
Technology for the 21st Century proposal--IT \2\. I believe this 
proposal, however well-intentioned, falls short of what PITAC 
envisioned. It does not, for example, commit the Administration to any 
funding increases beyond fiscal year 2000. In fact, according to the 
non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, the Administration's own 
figures show flat or declining budgets beyond next year for the IT \2\ 
agencies, so any increasess in information technology research would 
have to come out of other important science programs, an untenable 
situation.
  To address the issues raised in the PITAC report, I am introducing 
the Networking and Information Technology Research and Development Act 
today. This is a five-year bill that provides justifiable, sustainable, 
and realistic increase in information technology research. It 
authorizes for fiscal years 2000 through 2004 nearly $4.8 billion, 
almost doubling IT research funding from current level, at the six 
agencies under the Science Committee's jurisdiction: the National 
Science Foundation, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, 
the Department of Energy, the National Institute of Standards and 
Technology, the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, 
and the Environmental Protection Agency.
  This bill will fundamentally alter the way information technology 
research is supported and conducted. Its centerpiece is the Networking 
and Information Technology Research and Development program, which:
  Limits grants to long-term basic research with priority given to 
research which helps address issues related to high-end computing, and 
software and network stability, fragility, security (including privacy) 
and scalability.
  Requires all grants to be peer reviewed by panels that include 
private sector representatives.
  Establishes 20 large grants of up to $1 million in FY 2000-2001; 30 
large grants in FY 2002-2004.
  Makes $40 million available for grants of up to $5 million for IT 
Centers (6 or more researchers collaborating on cross-disciplinary 
research issues) in FY 2000-2001; $45 million in FY 2002-2003; $50 
million in FY 2004.
  Provides $95 million to create for-credit private sector internship 
programs at two and four-year colleges and universities for IT 
students. To participate in the program, a company must commit to 
provide 50 percent of the cost of the internship program.
  Authorizes a total of $385 million for new computer hardware for 
terascale computing, which will be allocated in an open competition by 
NSF. Awardees must agree to integrate with the existing Advanced 
Partnership for Advanced Computational Infrastructure program and give 
access to Networking and Information Technology Research and 
Development Act research grant recipients.
  In addition, the bill authorizes $111 million through fiscal year 
2002 for the completion of the Next Generation Internet program.
  Another of the bill's provisions requires NSF to report to Congress 
on the availability of encryption technologies in foreign countries and 
how they compare with similar technologies subject to export 
restrictions in the United States. I believe that export controls on 
encryption are stifling development in this critical area, and I think 
this study will demonstrate that the current policy on encryption is 
self-defeating.
  I also have included language in the bill to make the research tax 
credit permanent. For too long, businesses have been unable to plan for 
long-term research projects because of the annual guessing game 
surrounding the extension of the credit. To encourage capital 
formation, the credit must be a fixture in law instead of a perennial 
budget battle. As you know, there are a number of bills that expand the 
R&D tax credit, but I believe extending it permanently is a good start. 
Once that hurdle is cleared, we can then examine ways to improve it.
  The Networking and Information Technology Research and Development 
Act of 1999 has been endorsed by both the Technology Network, a 
coalition of leading technology executives, and Ken Kennedy, the 
academic co-chair of the PITAC. It is a strong bipartisan bill, and I 
encourage all my House colleagues to support the measure.

                          ____________________