Congressional Record, Volume 153 Issue 64 (Friday, April 20, 2007)

[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 64 (Friday, April 20, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4790-S4802]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

AMERICA COMPETES ACT

The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Under the previous order, the
Senate will proceed to consideration of S. 761, which the clerk will
report.
The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

A bill (S. 761) to invest in innovation and education to
improve the competitiveness of the United States in the
global economy.

The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The majority leader is recognized.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, sometime last year, word was received that
Senators Bingaman and Alexander had an idea. The idea was to do
something about our country's educational slide the wrong way. I spoke
to them on several occasions. They wanted to see what we could do to
increase our competitiveness internationally. Their suggestion was,
first, let's do a study and find out how bad it is; is it as bad as we
think it is. These two fine Senators got other Senators to join with
them in the idea. They received a study from the National Academy of
Sciences to find out where we were internationally with our science
programs. The information was not good. As a result of that, we have
the legislation now before the Senate.
This legislation is not the know-all and cure-all, but it is
certainly a major step forward, if we can do this, and there is no
reason we cannot.
I am happy and pleased to speak about the America COMPETES
legislation. America COMPETES comes from the words ``creating
opportunities to meaningfully promote excellence in technology,
education, and science,'' COMPETES. This is something we should do and
are doing on a bipartisan basis. The bill is sponsored by both leaders
and 50 Senators. That is a step in the right direction. Frankly, this
is the way we used to do legislation here. There was so much that was
done on a bipartisan basis. If we are able to complete this
legislation, it will allow us to move forward on other meaningful
legislation dealing with this subject generally.
The bill is the result clearly of a truly bipartisan effort. This
legislation has been in the making for 2 years. I said last year. Time
flies by. It was the year before last that these two Senators came to
me to talk about this subject. They asked the National Academy to make
recommendations on steps we should take as a nation to maintain our
competitive advantage. The result was the Augustine report, ``Rising
Above the Gathering Storm.'' The report warned that the Nation's
traditional advantages are eroding at a time when many other nations
are gathering strength and that decisive action is needed now.
We faced a challenge such as this before, one that occurred when I
was in high school. In 1957, when the Soviets launched Sputnik, there
was panic and concern. That panic and concern came about from our
inability to do what they were doing to maintain our technological
superiority. The Soviet Union clearly was ahead of us. Our great
country responded to these threats quickly. The following year Congress
passed, on a bipartisan basis, the National Defense Education Act, the
sole purpose of which was to keep the United States ahead of the Soviet
Union, to increase investment in math and science education. As a
result of that bipartisan legislation, our country trained a whole new
generation of engineers and scientists and ensured our preeminence in
technology innovation for a generation.
The fact is, Federal investment in the basic sciences and research
has long been a critical component of America's competitive dominance
globally. Some economists have estimated that more than half of the
country's economic growth since World War II has been a result of that
technological innovation and dominance. Today, sadly, our position of
dominance has been lost. We can debate where we are, but our dominance
is not there--strong, of course, but dominant, no. We are challenged by
emerging countries such as India and China where national investment in
basic research, math, and science education continues to grow at a far
greater pace than in the United States.

The Augustine panel cited many examples, but some statistics are
striking. Consider that in 2005, more than 600,000 engineers graduated
from institutions of higher education in China, 600,000; 350,000 in
India; in the United States, 70,000--70,000 in the United States,
600,000 in China, and 350,000 in India. We can't keep up at that rate.
China's population is more than the United States, of course, yet they
graduate eight times the number of engineers even though they are only
three times larger than the United States. The report also found that
American 12th graders, seniors in high school, performed below the
national average for 21 countries on a general knowledge of math and
science.
Another study cited in the report had American 15-year-olds rank 24th
out of 40 countries on a math assessment. I am embarrassed to tell the
Senate and everyone within the sound of my voice Nevada students ranked
43rd out of 50 States in the Nation on math assessment.

[[Page S4791]]

As other countries become more competitive, it is clear we must
refocus our energies on enhancing the Federal commitment to funding
basic research in education.
My mind goes back to Paul Simon. The three of us had the opportunity
to serve with him. Of course, Senator Alexander served with him in
different capacities when he was part of the Cabinet. He was a
wonderful man, uneducated himself, no college education, wrote more
than 20 books. He was a newspaper publisher when he was 19 years old.
He knew that education was important, even though he was uneducated. He
wrote a book called ``The Tongue-Tied American,'' about our declining
knowledge of languages and how it was hurting us internationally. I
joined with him in legislation to give summer workshop programs
sponsored by the Federal Government where we could pay math and science
teachers on an elementary and secondary level so they could make more
money than other teachers to keep up with math and science and keep
them in the classroom. Paul Simon has passed away, but I am sure he is
smiling on us today as a result of our trying to move forward on
something that was his vision many years ago.
The America COMPETES Act addresses concerns of Paul Simon and the
National Science Foundation. It is in effect a downpayment, a very
modest first step in ensuring that America retains its competitive
edge.
I extend my appreciation to Senators Bingaman and Alexander for
authorizing the academy study. This study, along with a number of
recent reports and books, brought a much needed sense of urgency to
this issue. There are also chairmen and ranking members of committees
who have expressed an interest in and support of what we are doing.
Senators Inouye, Stevens, Kennedy, Enzi, Lieberman, Ensign, Mikulski,
Hutchison, and Nelson of Florida have been instrumental in crafting
this legislation. This legislation will double the Federal investment
for the National Science Foundation over the next 4 years and for the
Office of Science at the Department of Energy over the next decade. I
personally think it should be more than five. I am happy if we can do
this. I hope we can. I am confident we can.
The bill provides grants to States in order to better align
elementary and secondary school curriculum with the knowledge and
skills needed for the global economy. Nevada has a program recognizing
where we are in the overall scheme. It is called a P-16 Council.

This Federal legislation we have introduced and are considering now
will also strengthen our math and science teaching workforce--that was
Paul Simon's dream--by recruiting and training teachers to teach in
high-need schools and help improve math instruction at the elementary
and middle school level, through Math Now grants.
I suggest to the two authors and the two managers of this bill we go
back and look at the idea Senator Simon had--and I joined with him--
that we have summer workshop programs sponsored by the Federal
Government for elementary and secondary teachers so they can update
their math and science skills, get paid for doing that, and stay
teaching. We have such a shortage of math and science teachers.
On the high school level, we have far fewer physics teachers than we
have schools. Of course, the other reason for doing this is, with the
collective bargaining agreements--I support them, and we have them in
many of our schools, in most of our school districts--it makes it very
difficult to pay math or science teachers more than you can pay a PE
teacher. This summer workshop program would allow that to take place.
So I hope that is something Senator Alexander and Senator Bingaman
will look at and see if we can come up with that. It is not only
important to produce these math and science teachers but to keep them
in the schools also.
America COMPETES will expand important advanced placement and
international baccalaureate, IB, programs by increasing the number of
math, science, and foreign languages AP and IB courses and preparing
more teachers to teach these challenging courses. This is essential for
all States. But take, again, Nevada, where only 6 percent of 12th
graders took the AP calculus exam and only 7 percent took the AP
science exam.
If signed into law, our bill will do much of what the Augustine
Report recommended, but the truth is, in years to come we will have to
do even more.
Although we make new and significant investments in research, we
still must address our tax structure and make sure we do as much as
possible to encourage investment in research and development.
In 1844, this Congress was approached by an individual who said he
had a great idea. He could not raise the money in the private sector,
but he had an idea that would revolutionize the communications of this
country, and in 1844 Congress appropriated $40,000 for a man to build a
telegraph line between Washington, DC, and Baltimore, MD.
It revolutionized--revolutionized--the communication industry, the
telegraph.
The Federal Government is going to have to understand there are times
when we have to advance moneys for research and development that cannot
come from the private sector. I hope we will look to do it. We should
start by finally making the R&D tax credit permanent.
We must also do more in education. The bill strengthens educational
opportunities in science, technology, engineering, math, and critical
foreign languages, but this, again, is a first step--but it is a big
first step.
As an example, we must take a very hard look at our high schools. As
Bill Gates has said, and often, our high schools were designed for a
20th century economy and often do not address the needs of the 21st
century workforce.
Bill Gates and Melinda Gates now are giving money to schools, school
districts, but they have a lot of strings on it. For example, recently
they gave money to a New York school district, with this proviso: You
can only use this money if you are going to make your schools smaller.
Nevada, again--we have high schools in Nevada that have more than
5,000 students. How in the world can students learn well--and try to
make that basketball team--with 5,000 students? Some of the schools are
not that big now, but we have many schools in southern Nevada that have
over 3,000 students. So the Gates recognize this. We have to recognize
this also as part of our problem. The average school in America is
about 50 years old.
We should also realize that unless our most basic commitments to
America's students are met--by properly funding title I and No Child
Left Behind and making a college education accessible and affordable--
these efforts alone in this bill cannot prepare our students for the
global economy.
The American COMPETES Act is a tremendously important step in
maintaining this Nation's competitive advantage. I look forward to
doing whatever I can to make this legislation a reality.
I express my appreciation to the Republican leader for joining in
this legislation. This is something he and I have talked about now for
3 months since we have assumed our roles in this 110th Congress. We are
going to work to make sure this legislation goes forward.
I say to everyone within the sound of my voice, for this legislation
there is going to be no cloture motion filed.
We are either going to do this or not do it. This is something we
need to do. We need to prove we can do things on a bipartisan basis.
And if we cannot do this, Mr. President, we are in real trouble.
So I hope we can move forward on this legislation. I hope it sets a
foundation for the first of many items we can do on a bipartisan basis
to move this country forward.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Republican leader is
recognized.
Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I thank my good friend, the majority
leader, for his remarks and indicate that even though this is a Reid-
McConnell bill, the true inspirations for this measure being on the
Senate floor right now are Senator Alexander from Tennessee and Senator
Bingaman from New Mexico.
They made an extraordinary contribution in pulling together a
disparate group of Senators from different committees to produce an
extremely important piece of legislation.

[[Page S4792]]

The America COMPETES Act is vitally important legislation that this
Senate must pass to ensure America retains its competitive edge in the
global economy of the 21st century.
This bill, sponsored by my good friend and counterpart on the other
side of the aisle, Senator Reid, also enjoys broad bipartisan support,
as I just indicated. Our two parties' cooperation shows how we can and
should work together to accomplish important things for the American
people.
The story of this bill began 2 years ago, when Senators Alexander and
Bingaman, from the Energy Committee, with then-Chairman Pete Domenici's
blessing, asked the National Academy of Sciences a simple question:
What are the top 10 actions that policymakers in Washington could take
to keep America in the lead in science and technology for the 21st
century?
That was the question. The National Academies turned to leaders of
business, government, and academia for an answer, including three Nobel
prize winners and a university president who is now the Secretary of
Defense.
The respected former CEO of Lockheed Martin, Norm Augustine, headed
the panel and produced the report we have all heard so much about,
titled ``Rising Above the Gathering Storm.''
Mr. Augustine summed up the problem we face when he wrote in that
report:

In the five decades since I began working in the aerospace
industry, I have never seen American business and academic
leaders as concerned about this nation's future prosperity as
they are today.

However, his report also specifically recommended to us how we attack
this problem, and maintain America's lead in science and innovation.
Additional recommendations were made by the Council on
Competitiveness and by the President in his American Competitiveness
Initiative.
The good news is, boosting the number of rocket scientists--along
with mathematicians, engineers, and computer designers--is not rocket
science. We currently have the greatest scientific and technological
enterprise in the world.
We have the finest system of colleges and universities anywhere. But
in many ways we have become complacent, while other countries are
catching up.
They see by investing in science and technology and in the education
of their citizens, they can attract jobs and create wealth. We must
make the same investment in our future if we are to maintain our
leadership through this century and beyond in the global marketplace.
This bill, S. 761, will help maintain and improve the competitive
edge of the United States over the next century by increasing our
investment in basic research, strengthening educational opportunities
in science, technology, engineering, and math at all educational
levels, and encouraging young people to pursue careers in those fields.
From my home State of Kentucky, that means scholarships for future
math and science teachers. It means increased research and development
at our State universities, which could lead to new discoveries, new
high-tech companies, and, of course, new jobs.
This fall, Kentucky will open the Academy of Mathematics and Science
in Kentucky at Western Kentucky University, located in Bowling Green.
Thanks to the leadership of Dr. Julia Roberts, director of the Center
for Gifted Studies at WKU, the academy will bring together talented
high-school students from all over the Commonwealth to study advanced
math and science year-round--year-round--for college credit.
This bill will provide Federal support to advanced academies such as
the Kentucky Academy throughout the Nation. A good friend of mine at
the University of Kentucky, its president, Lee Todd, has also been
working for decades to highlight the importance of math, science, and
engineering in keeping Kentucky competitive. In a letter he recently
sent me, President Todd wrote:

The National Academies' report ``Rising Above the Gathering
Storm'' has the wrong title. The ``storm'' is not gathering--
it is already here. . . . We are putting our economic future
at risk. We must do better.

Now, President Todd knows what he is talking about. Prior to assuming
the presidency of one of the State's flagship institutions of higher
learning, he was a highly regarded engineer and successful
entrepreneur. He has built technology companies that compete in the
global economy, and he understands the challenges we face.
The America COMPETES Act will make it easier for leaders like him to
create more opportunities for technical learning and careers. I want to
commend him for all the hard work he has done, and I ask unanimous
consent his entire letter be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:

Office of the President,

University of Kentucky,

Lexington, KY, March 8, 2007.
Hon. Mitch McConnell,
Washington, DC.
Dear Senator McConnell: The ``America COMPETES Act''
provides the visionary investment in education and research
America needs, and we appreciate your continued leadership in
support of the act. If we are serious about competing in the
global economy, we have to pursue bold policy change.
The National Academies' report ``Rising above the Gathering
Storm'' has the wrong title. The ``storm'' is not gathering--
it is already here. America is not producing enough
engineers, scientists, and mathematicians to maintain our
role as a world leader in technological advance. We are
putting our economic future at risk. We must do better.
The same is true for Kentucky. If we want to recruit and
retain knowledge-based businesses, we have to change the way
we teach our kids. We must inspire a lot more of them to seek
technical careers, and they need to have the skills necessary
to fill high-paying jobs and create new ones. That is why I
am leading a statewide Task Force on Science, Technology,
Engineering, and Math (STEM). We will soon announce
recommendations that have much in common with the ``America
COMPETES Act.'' Tinkering with Kentucky's current structure
will not be enough if we want real and lasting change in math
and science education. The time has come for fundamental
change.
A second initiative the Task Force will share with the
``America COMPETES Act'' is recognition of the vital role
energy education and research play in our future economic and
homeland security. Kentucky is well positioned to provide
solutions to America's need for energy independence.
Senator McConnell, I want our state to be a national leader
in producing STEM graduates and solving America's energy
problems. For too long, we have been willing to wait and
watch as other states make tough choices that result in
progress for them and leftovers for us. Kentucky has that
opportunity to lead right now if we are willing to take
action. I am ready to work with you in any way I can to move
Kentucky and America forward.
Thank you again for your leadership in math and science and
your strong and consistent support for the University of
Kentucky.
Sincerely,
Lee T. Todd, Jr.,
President.

Mr. McCONNELL. Finally, Mr. President, I especially want to commend,
once again, as I did at the outset of my remarks, my good friend from
the neighboring State of Tennessee, Senator Alexander, for his
extraordinary leadership in building the case for this legislation,
helping to craft its various components, and shepherding it through
each stage of the process to this point.
It was Senator Alexander who, 2 years ago, along with Senator
Bingaman, asked the National Academy of Sciences the question that led
to their recommendations, and sparked this entire process.
Their inquiry led to the release of the Academy's report, which made
plain for all that the leadership of the United States in science and
technology is eroding, with serious consequences for our workers, our
jobs, our economy, and our very way of life.
Three different committees contributed titles to this bill--the
Energy, Commerce and HELP Committees--so I also want to thank those
committees' leaders--Senators Inouye and Stevens, Senators Domenici and
Bingaman, and Senators Kennedy and Enzi--for their cooperation and hard
work on this important bipartisan bill.
In a sign of how cooperative their efforts have been, this bill was
actually assembled last year when Republicans held the majority, but it
was created in such a bipartisan fashion that we are bringing the very
same bill up today under a Democratic majority.
That is a credit to the Republican leaders of these three committees,
who worked closely with their Democratic counterparts every step of the
way to craft this important legislation.

[[Page S4793]]

I also want to recognize the efforts of my friend and predecessor as
Republican leader, Senator Bill Frist of Tennessee. Senator Frist
invested a great deal of time and energy last year to bring these three
committees together, and he was the primary sponsor of the bill last
year, along with Senator Reid.
America has led the world in innovation for over a century. From the
light bulb, to the airplane, to the integrated circuit, America has
given the world the tools to live happier, easier, and more productive
lives.
Now the rest of the world is beginning to catch up. Nations such as
China and India are seeing the benefits of brainpower and what it can
do to remake their economies.
The America COMPETES Act is the best way to keep more of the jobs of
the 21st century right here in America, and the best way to ensure that
our children have the skills to keep America at the forefront of
innovation and discovery.
Once again, I thank all of my colleagues for working on this
comprehensive, bipartisan solution to reinvigorate scientific
exploration and invention at home. This bill is an investment in our
children, our schools, and in the future of America.
It is a bill this Senate can pass and the President can sign into
law. With my colleagues' support, I hope to see exactly that in the
very near future.
Mr. President, I yield the floor.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from New Mexico.
Mr. BINGAMAN. Mr. President, first I thank Senator Reid and Senator
McConnell for their fine statements and their willingness to be the
lead in bringing this bill to the floor. It is bipartisan legislation.
It is legislation that was developed in the last Congress. We were not
able to complete action on it there, so we are trying to do so at this
time.
It does represent the work of three committees over the past year.
Those are the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, the Commerce,
Science and Transportation Committee and, of course, the Health,
Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. I am fortunate to serve on two
of those committees.
The chairman and ranking member of each of the three committees are
cosponsoring this bill. In fact, we now have 57 Members of the Senate
who are cosponsoring this legislation, with Senators Reid and McConnell
as the lead sponsors.
This bill reflects a deep undercurrent of anxiety in this country. It
was highlighted recently by the very best-selling book by Tom Friedman
called ``The World Is Flat.'' It is also highlighted by the report to
which Senator McConnell just referred, the ``Rising Above the Gathering
Storm'' report issued by the National Academies of Science and
Engineering. Both of these publications highlight a strengthening,
worldwide, of the effort in science and technology.
Although we in the United States are still a world leader in these
areas, other nations are clearly catching up. Without effort and
intervention now, and attention to this issue now, I fear we may lose
our edge in high technology areas that are critical to our future
economy. The high technology competition has been an ongoing effort and
continues and will continue indefinitely.
In the 1980s, during the Cold War, we were about to lose our
semiconductor leadership to Japan. Motivated then by national security
concerns, the U.S. Government worked with industry to help preserve our
domestic chip-making capability. Along with Secretary of Defense Caspar
Weinberger and Dr. Bob Noyce, Gordon Moore from Intel, and others, we
were able to launch a public-private partnership called Sematech. This
partnership developed early phase technologies designed to keep our
semiconductor industry competitive.
Sematech was a success. It kept our industry competitive through the
1990s and even today. But the issue we are faced with here in 2007 is
even more troubling. India and China and other countries from the
former Soviet Union now represent nearly 3 billion new capitalists who
are coming at us in a competitive way through the Internet where, in
one click, anyone in this country can order a product from anywhere in
the world and have that delivered to his or her doorstep. Not only can
these countries and entrepreneurs in these countries manufacture at a
fraction of the cost that oftentimes is required here in the United
States, but in coordination with their Governments they are climbing up
the value chain by developing the professional talents in areas such as
research and engineering and in telemedicine and in finance--in a whole
variety of areas.
We have taken for granted that our Nation would never be displaced in
many of these areas. These are areas that represent part of the pillars
of our national identity. Many Americans have grown up assuming the
United States would always be the leader in high technology, but that
is not a foregone conclusion. It is not the simple box fan that is
being made in China today that concerns people. It is the sophisticated
code from Beijing for enterprise server software or state-of-the-art
locomotives and turbines designed in Bangalore when they used to be
designed in this country.
The data paints a disturbing picture about the trends with which we
are faced. Right now the United States invests about 2.7 percent of its
gross domestic product in research and development. That is not bad. It
puts us No. 5 in the world in the percentage of our gross domestic
product invested in research and development. Yet we are still behind
Korea. We are still behind Japan. Both those countries invest over 3
percent of their gross domestic product in research and development.
However, the issue is not to look at the static snapshot that says
today we are fifth in this level of effort, but to look at the change
in the rate of commitment over time.
Let me do that with a chart here. I have several charts I want to
briefly take people through, to make the case for what we are up
against. This is the Emerging Economies Rapidly Increasing Research and
Development Investments chart. The top line with the orange dots upon
it shows the United States and shows we are investing more than other
nations. But the bottom line, which, of course, is rising rapidly, is
fast-growing economies. Those economies are specifically China,
Ireland, Israel, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan. So clearly we have
a circumstance where the rate of change is not favorable to us. In
fact, during this same timeframe, China's research and development per
GDP grew from .6 percent to 1.4 percent. That is still well behind us,
the United States, but it doubled in slightly more than a half dozen
years, at a 7-percent annual growth rate.
The trend line on the chart is self-evident. We need to begin to
focus again on this area if we are going to maintain our ability to
compete in biotechnology, in semiconductors, in flat panel displays. In
some of those areas, particularly flat panel displays, the reality is
we no longer compete effectively.
Let me move to a second chart. This second chart shows the widening
trade deficit in certain advanced technologies, in areas such as
semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, and telecommunications. As the
sophistication of the imports we bring into this country increases, so
will the sophistication of the research and development that is needed
to support this type of manufacturing. You can see this orange line
here, which represents the trade balance in advanced technology. You
can see that up until somewhere around 2000, or the late 1990s, we had
a very positive balance of trade with regard to advanced technology
products. Since then, the line has been going down and going down
rapidly. This is a concern which all of us should focus on, and this
legislation is designed to address this concern head on.
The third chart shows the average science literacy score of 15-year-
old students by country. This is very hard to read. Unfortunately, the
lettering is too small. But the main point can be understood. These, of
course, are the future scientists and engineers in the world, young
people on whom we depend to become future scientists and engineers and
innovators. Obviously, we are concerned that the United States ranks
way down here on the chart compared to 15-year-old students in all of
these countries above us: Japan, South Korea, Australia, Netherlands,
Czech Republic, New Zealand, Canada, Switzerland, France, Belgium,
Sweden, Ireland, Hungary--you can follow on down. We come in right
behind Iceland. We need to do better. I think

[[Page S4794]]

everyone in this country who is concerned about the future of our
economy and the future of our children knows we need to do better by
those children and provide a better opportunity for them to compete in
this world.

Let me move to the fourth chart. If we look further up the pipeline
of future innovators, the news is not that much better. This chart
shows the fraction of United States undergraduates who receive science
and engineering degrees, so you can see that at least three times more
college students graduate with science and engineering degrees in China
each year than in the United States. This is not a favorable trend
either. Obviously, there are more people in China. But our ability to
compete in the world, to a substantial extent, is going to depend on
how many people we can train and equip to compete in this science and
competition.
The fifth chart I have here relates to trained scientists and
engineers. This shows that China now produces almost as many Ph.D.'s as
the United States. Again, the trend is the disturbing part of this
chart. It is not that China is producing nearly as many doctoral
degrees in the natural sciences and math and engineering as is the
United States today. That is a fact but one that does not cause great
concern. The concern is that we were dominant in this area and have
been for a very long time. Now that has changed very dramatically.
Universities in these other countries are first-class universities and
people need to focus on that. Universities such as Tsinghua, in China,
are very high quality. If they turn out a Ph.D. in engineering or
science or the natural sciences in these schools, those individuals are
world-class scientists in their fields.
There is a 1995 quote by Alan Greenspan that sums up the importance
of investment in research and development and education:

Had the innovations of recent decades, especially in
information technologies, not come to fruition, productivity
growth would have continued to languish at the rate of the
preceding 20 years.

Much of the prosperity we have enjoyed and have come to expect has
been the result of the focus we have had on science and engineering in
our history.
The final chart I have here is one from ``The Economist.'' It is
based on the 2006 work that was done by three individuals at the
Federal Reserve. It deals with this broad category of so-called
intangible assets, assets such as research and development, information
technology, even finance.
Basically what it says is, as a percentage of gross domestic product,
there is a very large amount of our gross domestic product that is tied
to these so-called intangible assets. They now account for nearly 11
percent of our gross domestic product--that is $3.1 trillion in 2003.
In other words, growth that is attributed to such areas is absolutely
crucial to our overall economy--again, another reason why we need to be
concerned about this issue.
With this background, let me briefly talk about what is in the bill
before I defer to my colleague here, Senator Alexander. In the Energy
and Natural Resources Committee, the portion of the bill that was
developed out of that committee, we do several things. First, we create
a director for math and science education in the Department of Energy
whose job it is to coordinate math and science education,
departmentwide. The director would report to the Under Secretary for
Science in the Department of Energy.
Next, we would significantly increase funding for the Department of
Energy's Office of Science to match the multiyear funding profile of
the President's advanced competitiveness initiative which he presented
to us here this year.
Third, the bill proposes to create an Advanced Research Projects
Agency for Energy, to translate basic research that is carried out in
the Office of Science into solutions for critical problems facing the
applied energy programs in the Department.
Examples of such problems would include hydrogen fuel storage using
new materials or applying nanoscience to a new generation of solid-
state lights.
The bill will also address broader themes related to math and science
education. According to the National Academy of Sciences, the technical
building blocks of our Nation's economic strength have been eroding for
a time. We need to produce students who are prepared to meet the
challenges of the 21st century. That means more attention to math and
science education.
America COMPETES contains a number of important provisions to improve
K-12 math and science education, strengthen science and math skills of
our teaching workforce. I know Senator Reid talked eloquently about
that need and, of course, the commitment our former colleague, Paul
Simon, had to progress in that area.
First, it provides incentives for universities to systematically
change the way they prepare teachers to teach math and science. The
legislation provides grants to universities to integrate the teacher
preparation programs with rich content subject matter in math and
science, develop bachelor's degree programs in math and science with
concurrent teacher certification, as well as master's degree programs
in math and science for people who are currently teaching in our
schools.
Second, to make these programs attractive to students who are
inclined to study these subjects--math, science, and engineering--the
legislation significantly expands the National Science Foundation
scholarships for students to become math and science teachers.
The legislation significantly expands opportunities for teachers to
strengthen their math and science skills. The bill increases training
for teachers to become qualified to teach advanced placement courses
and international baccalaureate courses in math and science. The bill
provides significant training opportunities for teachers at both the
National Science Foundation, as well as our National Laboratories, and
there I think some of the summer programs Senator Reid was talking
about are intended to take place at our universities, at our
laboratories. Clearly, he is right in saying we need to provide the
financial wherewithal so that teachers can take advantage of these
programs and can upgrade their knowledge and then give that knowledge
to their students the next school year.
Further, the legislation provides grants to States to promote better
alignment of elementary and secondary education with the knowledge and
skills needed for success in postsecondary education and in the 21st
century workforce.
The bill significantly increases funding for the National Science
Foundation, essentially doubling that budget in 5 years, while ensuring
that the math and science education programs that are in the National
Science Foundation increase at the same rate as the overall budget
increases.
The bill helps manufacturers by increasing funding for the National
Institute of Standards and Technology, or NIST, by 33 percent over 4
years.
As I have said many times, this America COMPETES bill is only an
authorization bill. The hard part, obviously, is going to be providing
the funds to carry out the programs in this bill to meet these
authorization targets we have set.
In this regard, we were successful just a month or so ago, with
Senator Alexander's good help, in adopting an amendment in the Senate
which was an amendment to the budget resolution. It was adopted 71 to 1
to provide $1 billion in additional leeway or additional opportunity to
meet the President's request in the areas of funding for the Department
of Energy's Office of Science, the National Science Foundation, and
NIST. Because of that amendment to the budget resolution, virtually all
of the authorization we are calling for in this legislation will be
permitted to be appropriated this year, and that is very good news.
This bill is a good bill. It is bipartisan. Like most bipartisan
bills, it is the product of much negotiation. Many competing views,
many competing interests have had a chance to be heard.
I am proud of the way this bill has come together. Our staffs deserve
great credit for the hard work they have put into this legislation.
I particularly commend Senator Alexander. He is the person who got
this initiative started and came to me initially and said: Let's do
this letter to the National Academies and see if they will do a study
and tell us what are the most important things we can do in this
country to keep this country competitive in world markets. That is what

[[Page S4795]]

then led to the Augustine Commission report and, of course, that
combined with the other reports that came forward--and there were
several other very useful reports--that have gotten us to this point.
Senator Alexander deserves particular credit for the success we have
had so far.
I hope all colleagues will look seriously at this legislation and
will support the effort to move ahead with it. This is authorizing
legislation. In doing the appropriations bills that will come to the
floor later this year, we still will have an opportunity to debate the
specific funding levels for some of these programs. This sets out a
framework for progress which can be very beneficial to this country and
a framework which is long overdue.
I urge my colleagues to support the legislation.
I yield the floor. I know my colleague from Tennessee wishes to speak
at this time.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Tennessee.
Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, I thank the Senator from New Mexico. No
one in the Senate on either side of the aisle has been more consistent
or more effective in advancing our Nation's position in science and
technology. He is also a delight to work with. It is rare to have a
chance to work across the aisle in the way we have the last couple of
years, not only on this legislation, but Senator Bingaman, for example,
noticed that we were losing our edge in world-class computing. He saw
that because of a visit to Japan. He came to me, and we worked together
to try to restore that edge. He constantly is doing that in a quiet and
effective way. It is a pleasure to work with him.
I also thank the majority leader, Senator Reid, and the Republican
leader, Senator McConnell. Senator Bingaman and I went to see the
majority leader 2 years ago when he was the minority leader. We asked
him to do exactly what he has done. He and Senator Frist did. They
created an environment in which this bill had a chance to succeed. Then
Senator McConnell stepped right up, following Senator Frist's
tremendous help and leadership in this effort, and it is fairly
remarkable that we worked so evenly together in the last Republican
Senate on this bill that the legislation was introduced in the
Democratic Senate in the same way because we worked together on it and,
hopefully, that has produced a better result.
I begin my remarks with a story. Last August, a group of Senators
went to China. We were led by two of our most distinguished Members,
Senator Stevens and Senator Inouye, the two leaders of the Commerce
Committee and two of the major contributors to this legislation. Those
two Senators were very well received in China. Senator Inouye, of
course, is a Congressional Medal of Honor winner from World War II, and
Senator Stevens was a Flying Tiger. He flew the first cargo plane into
Beijing toward the end of World War II. So he was very well received in
China.
As a result, we had a chance to meet with the senior leaders of China
in a way most Americans had not to that time. We spent an hour with
President Hu. We spent another hour with the No. 2 leader in China, Mr.
Wu, who is chairman of the National People's Congress.
We talked about the issues one would expect an American delegation of
a dozen Senators would talk about with the leaders of China. We talked
about their military posture. We talked about North Korea. We talked
about Iraq. We talked about Iran. But, Mr. President--I can still see
this--in both of the meetings we had, one with Mr. Hu, the second with
Mr. Wu, there was one subject about which those two leaders of China
were most animated, and that was the subject we are discussing today:
how to develop China's brain power advantage so they can create more
good, new jobs in China. That was the subject they really wanted to
talk about.
President Hu had gone to the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the
Chinese Academy of Engineering just a month earlier in July. He
assembled them in the Great Hall of the people. He outlined a new 15-
year plan to make China a technology leader in the world.
In his speech, President Hu said China must ``promote a huge leap
forward in science and technology. We shall put strengthening
independent innovation capability at the core of economic structure
adjustment.''
Anyone who follows China knows that when their leaders talk about
leaps forward, it is a pretty big deal. President Hu's new plan appears
more likely to succeed and includes reforming China's universities and
massively investing in new research.
We regularly see stories of how Chinese-born academicians, some of
our most distinguished faculty members at our major universities, are
now accepting invitations to go back to China, their homeland, and
create great universities there. There are a lot of people here--one-
half of the Nobel Prize winners in physics who are American are
immigrants or the sons and daughters of immigrants.
So China is serious about this plan. Mr. Hu said:

We all bear the time-honored mission to provide strong
scientific support for the construction of a well-off society
by improving our independent innovation capability and
building an innovative country. I hope that our scientists
and technicians will strive hard to make our brilliant
achievements and constantly contribute to our country and our
people.

Those are the leaders of China. They know what to do.
The United States has a remarkable position. As Senator Bingaman
said, Senator Reid said, and Senator McConnell said, we don't want to
take it for granted because we can't. But let's stop and think about
where we are. This huge brain power advantage we have in the United
States of America has given us a situation in which we produce about 30
percent of the gross national product in the world in for about 5
percent of the people. About 30 percent of all the dollars, volume in
the world this year is being produced in this country, a country that
only includes 5 percent of the people. How does that happen? The United
States has a number of advantages: its location, its resources, the
great diversity we have here, the fact we have turned all that
diversity into one country. But when we look at all of our advantages--
and I should quickly put the great entrepreneurial engine we have here,
the fact that if you want to come to a big country and start from
scratch and create a company--and I have had the privilege to help do
that in the private sector--this is the place to do it. But when you
look at our major advantage, it is our brainpower.
No other country has had the broad system of education we have had.
No other country has the large number of great research universities
the United States of America has. No other country has the great
National Laboratories we have. As a result, over the last century,
especially since World War II, no other country has come close to
turning its brainpower advantage into jobs, into dollars, into a high
standard of living for a large number of people, and the rest of the
world sees that. They see it on television. They see it on the
Internet. They see it because more than half a million students from
around the world, many of the brightest men and women in the world,
come here to our universities, and they see what we have been able to
do, and they say: Why can't we do this at home in China? Why can't we
do this at home in India? Why can't we do this in Ireland? And they are
doing it. We are glad they are doing it. We want them to have a high
standard of living, too. The more money they make, the more goods they
can buy from the United States of America. So we encourage that
activity.
It also spreads our democracy, our ideals. We go to Thailand or some
other country, and we find the Minister of Agriculture is a graduate of
the University of Tennessee. He has learned here. He goes there and
teaches about agriculture, and he promotes our ideas. Our higher
education system has probably been the most effective foreign aid we
have ever invested in, just those half million students who go there.
However, we are at risk of losing our brainpower advantage. If we
lose our brainpower advantage, we lose our advantage and our standard
of living. In other words, in plain English, we don't have as much
money in our pockets, we don't have as many good jobs, and our families
don't have the kind of prosperity many have come to take for granted.
That is what this piece of legislation is about.

[[Page S4796]]

We talk a lot about outsourcing jobs, about growing new jobs. Well,
this is the way to keep good new jobs in the United States and to grow
them. When a graduate of a university, such as the student at the
University of Maryland--I think he dropped out, actually--a foreign
student--creates Google, that creates thousands and thousands of new
jobs in the United States, as Thomas Edison did years ago, as Bill
Gates did more recently, and as thousands of entrepreneurs do every
day. It takes the brainpower advantage to create the job and it takes
the brainpower advantage to work at the facility or the plant that has
the jobs.
That is why, toward the end of a long Budget Committee hearing 2
years ago, I was getting a little depressed listening to what I heard
about the numbers. According to the budget 2 years ago, and the budget
last year, and the budget this year, we are on an unsustainable course
in terms of being able to pay for Medicare and Medicaid. So the
question came to me: Well, if we are going to squeeze out everything
else in order to pay for Medicare and Medicaid and other programs, the
war in Iraq, then how are we going to invest in this great engine of
brainpower that creates the money that pays all the bills? I struggled
with this as the Governor of Tennessee. I was trying to raise our
standard of living in Tennessee. We were the third poorest State 25
years ago when I became Governor, based on family incomes. We already
had low taxes. We had a right-to-work law. We needed to change some
rules about the usury limit in banking. We needed to add a new four-
lane highway system. All those were progrowth. But the most progrowth
action I discovered we could take was to improve our colleges and our
universities and our research facilities. That is progrowth.
As a result of better schools, better colleges, and better
universities, combined with our other advantages, we moved ahead in our
State. Better schools meant better jobs. Better colleges and
universities mean better jobs. More research means better jobs. So we
are talking today about better jobs--progrowth.
We better realize as well that we have some pretty big bills to pay.
Last year, we spent $237 billion on debt, $378 billion on Medicare,
$545 billion on Social Security, $70 billion or more on hurricanes, and
we are spending about $4 billion a week on Iraq. What this legislation
does is authorizes $4 billion a year over the next 4 years. As Senator
Bingaman said, we made room for it in the budget this year to create
and encourage and continue to push ahead this brainpower engine that
creates the money to pay for all these necessary and urgent needs we
have, these priorities we have. This is a progrowth piece of
legislation.
I would say this may be the most important piece of legislation the
Congress considers in this 2-year session. If it is not the most
important piece of legislation, there is certainly no more important
subject to most American families than: How do I keep money in my
pocket to pay my bills? How do we keep our jobs from going to India and
China? How do we keep our economic advantage? How do we come close to
continuing to be the country that produces 30 percent of all the money
in the world for only 5 percent of the people? That is why, at the end
of that Budget Committee hearing I mentioned a little earlier, I
literally walked down the street to the National Academy of Sciences
and asked them, on behalf of Senator Bingaman and myself, with the
approval of Senator Domenici, the chairman of our committee, and with
the endorsement of Representatives Boehlert and Gordon in the House of
Representatives--I said: Most ideas in Washington fail for lack of the
idea. You are here at the end of a long day in the National Academies.
You are supposed to be our advisers. So let me ask you a question: Why
don't you tell us the 10 most important things we can do, in priority
order, to keep our brainpower advantage? I said to them: I am merely
one Senator, but I will bet if you do that, we will do it. We will take
your advice.
The National Academy of Sciences and of Engineering and the Institute
of Medicine formed an immediate group. They asked Norm Augustine, the
former chief executive officer of Lockheed Martin and a member of the
National Academy of Engineering, to chair the group. He turned to 21
distinguished Americans who know a lot about the world and our country,
Craig Barrett, chairman of the board of Intel; Steven Chu, cowinner of
the Nobel prize in physics and Director of Lawrence Berkeley National
Laboratory; Robert Gates, who was then head of Texas A&M and now is the
Secretary of Defense, and a number of others; the former head of MIT,
Peter O'Donnell, a Texas businessman who has worked on AP courses, and
they did this report: ``Rising Above The Gathering Storm.'' They didn't
make 10 recommendations, they made 20, and they made them in priority
order. Their priorities began with K-12 education. They went next to
engineering and research. They went next to higher education. They went
next to incentives for innovation.
At that point, we formed a bipartisan group of Senators and began to
have what we called ``homework sessions'' with the various agencies of
the Federal Government that had jurisdiction over these programs and
the areas where the programs would fit. We also recognized that Senator
Lieberman, Senator Ensign, and others had been working hard with the
Council on Competitiveness, and they had similar recommendations. We
also acknowledged that Senators Hutchison, Bond, and Mikulski had for
many years been advocating various aspects of these programs, so we
tried to integrate all of this into a whole. That produced a long piece
of legislation that had to make its way through five different
committees, but it attracted 70 sponsors last year--35 Democrats, 35
Republicans. The Republican leader, Senator Frist, and the Democratic
leader, Senator Reid, were the principal sponsors of the bill.
Senator Bingaman has done a good job of outlining most of the
provisions of the bill, so I will, in a few minutes, put those into the
record, but there is no other piece of legislation during the past 2
years that was so broadly recommended by disinterested groups outside
of the Senate and the House, that has been worked on by so many
Senators here, and that has moved forward in the way this has. Making
this even more remarkable is not only was it introduced by the
Democratic and Republican leaders, it has been brought directly to the
floor for debate. So what we hope is our colleagues will carefully read
the bill, bring their amendments to the floor, and maybe we can operate
in an old-fashioned way here. Maybe we can consider the amendments, or
the improvements, debate them, vote on them, go to the next amendment,
and then after we have finished with that, have a vote on whether to
pass the bill, which I believe we will. I think we have a good chance
of doing that.
Mr. President, I wish to now insert into the Record a few items that
are important for our colleagues and those who are following this
debate, so I ask unanimous consent that following my remarks a ``Dear
Colleague'' letter of April 10, written by Senator Reid and Senator
McConnell to all of our colleagues, signed by the chairmen and
Democratic and Republican leaders of the three major committees which
contributed to this, and which produced 50 cosponsors--we hope there
will be more by next week--be printed in the Record.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so
ordered.
(See exhibit 1.)
Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that a two-page
summary of the America COMPETES Act be printed in the Record.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so
ordered.
(See exhibit 2.)
Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that a list of
the cosponsors of the America COMPETES Act, the 50 cosponsors, as it
stands today, be printed in the Record.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so
ordered.
(See exhibit 3.)
Mr. ALEXANDER. Finally, Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that a
section-by-section analysis of the America COMPETES Act be printed in
the Record.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so
ordered.

[[Page S4797]]

(See exhibit 4.)
Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, we will have plenty of time to debate
this next week, so I will reserve most of my comments until then, but
let me reiterate some of the major provisions that are here. As Senator
Bingaman said, this is only an authorization bill. It is permission to
establish programs, but it is backed up by an amendment to the Budget
Act which creates room in the appropriations bill to pay for these
programs.
Here is what we intend to do: Double funding for the National Science
Foundation; set the Department of Energy's Office of Science on track
to double its funding; strengthen the skills of thousands of math and
science teachers by establishing training and education programs at
summer institutes hosted by the national laboratories; and by
increasing support for teacher institutes for programs at the National
Science Foundation.
These are the kinds of programs that Senator Reid, the majority
leader, was talking about.
Expand the teacher scholarship programs at NSF; help establish
academies for math and science in the various States.
North Carolina has had one for a long time, and 20 years ago, when I
was Governor, I went to see if Tennessee could create one. We decided
we didn't have the money to do it, so we created a summer Governor's
school, which turned out to be a good idea, where outstanding students
from math and science could go to the University of Tennessee for 4
weeks in the summer. The faculty loves it, the students love it, and
they participate in the Oak Ridge Laboratory. They go back fired up
into their classrooms, and the teachers are fired up as well. Our
Governor Bredesen wants to create a summer school for math and science,
and he has started on a modest basis, but this will help him expand
that.
We will expand advanced placement in international baccalaureate
programs by increasing the number of teachers who are trained to teach
math, science, and foreign languages. This would allow thousands of new
students to take these courses. The AP courses, as we call them, are a
good track to college, and college is a good track to success. Those
students are the ones who will help create the jobs to keep our high
standard of living. But we have a lot of students, many of them lower
income, who don't take these courses and who easily could. So we will
help pay for their tests, and we will train more teachers so they can
be taught, and we will see that three or four times more students will
be able to do this.
These programs weren't picked out of thin air. This group of
distinguished Nobel laureates, university presidents, and business
leaders spent their summer 2 years ago reviewing many programs. For
example, the AP program comes from a Texas program which has been
successful for 10 years. They picked the 20 best ideas in priority
order from among hundreds of ideas. This is not merely a group of
Senators and Congressmen picking our best friend's favorite program. We
all have one of those. This is the National Academies of Sciences and
Engineering and the Institute of Medicine reviewing hundreds of
programs with a distinguished panel in answering our question exactly
what do we need to do to keep our brainpower advantage, and they say
here are the first 20 things you ought to do.
Not in this legislation are other provisions that were part of this
report and that were acted on in the last Congress. One was the
temporary extension of the research and development tax credit. It
should be made permanent. Another are several provisions for attracting
and keeping in this country talented professionals from overseas. These
500,000 foreign students who are here include some of the brightest
students from China, some of the brightest students from India, some of
the brightest from around the world. They are going to create jobs
somewhere. We would like for them to stay and create jobs here, yet our
archaic immigration laws prevent that. They require these students to
swear they are going home before they come. They make it hard for them
to stay once they get here.
So the Senate, last year, in debating the immigration bill, adopted
three of the provisions from this report. One, for example, pins a
green card on any foreign student who gets a graduate degree in math,
science, engineering and technology so that person can stay here and
create jobs for us here.
I am hopeful when we get to the immigration legislation within a few
weeks that we will do at least that much to change our archaic
immigration laws and allow those students to stay here and create jobs
for us. We talk a lot about outsourcing jobs. This would be insourcing
brain power, and we would be smart to do it.
I particularly thank our staffs, and we will do this specifically by
name next week. This is a complex bill with many different parts, as
the section-by-section analysis shows. They have worked evenly to try
to make this a well-crafted bill. We have more work to do.
I conclude by again thanking the Democratic and Republican leaders,
Senator Bingaman, Senator Domenici, especially, who was chairman of our
committee last year, Stevens and Inouye, Enzi and Kennedy, Ensign and
Lieberman, Bond, Hutchison, Chambliss, Murkowski, and Mikulski--all of
these Senators made major contributions. I am sure they will be on the
Senate floor next week to address this legislation and to support it.
We are talking about keeping our brain power advantage so we keep our
jobs. We are talking about a country that has grown accustomed to 30
percent of all of the money in the world being produced each year with
just 5 percent of the people, and we are saying, unless we take at
least these steps, that won't continue.

Exhibit 1

U.S. Senate,

Washington, DC, April 10, 2007.
Dear Colleague: We are writing to invite you to cosponsor
the America COMPETES Act; a bipartisan bill to help America
maintain its edge in science, technology, engineering, and
mathematics in an increasingly competitive global economy. An
earlier version of this bill was introduced in the final days
of the 109th Congress as S. 3936.
The America COMPETES Act is based upon recommendations from
both the national Academies' ``Rising Above the Gathering
Storm'' report and the Council on Competitiveness' ``Innovate
America'' report. It contains revised versions of the
legislation approved by both the Senate Energy and Commerce
Committees [from the 109th Congress] in response to those
recommendations: S. 2197, the PACE-Energy bill, and S. 2802
the American Innovation and Competitiveness bill, which were
reported without opposition to the Senate floor. The bill
also includes provisions developed by the bipartisan
leadership of the HELP Committee to improve science,
technology, engineering, mathematics, and critical foreign
language skills.
The competitiveness package would significantly increase
the federal investment in basic research, foster and
innovative infrastructure, improve the teaching of math,
science, engineering and technology to our children, and
encourage the brightest minds to pursue careers in these
fields. Among other provisions, the bill would: Double the
investment in basic research at the national Science
Foundation (NSF), the National Institutes of Standards and
Technology (NIST), and the Department of Energy's Office of
Science (DOE-SC) over five to ten years; Improve teacher
training in math and science, through summer institutes
hosted by the NSF and the DOE-SC and grants to increase
university degree programs that combine math and science
study with concurrent teacher certification; and Increase
support for Advanced Placement programs to expand access for
low income students to take and succeed in college
preparatory courses.
This bill alone will not secure American leadership in the
decades to come. But it is a critical first step toward
protecting our competitive position in the world. We hope you
will join us in this effort and cosponsor this bipartisan
legislation.
Sincerely,
Harry Reid, Majority Leader; Jeff Bingaman, Chairman,
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources; Daniel K.
Inouy, Chairman, Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation; Edward M. Kennedy, Chairman, Committee
on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions; Joseph I.
Lieberman, U.S. Senator; Barbara A. Mikulski, U.S.
Senator; Bill Nelson, U.S. Senator; Mitch McConnell,
Republican Leader; Pete V. Domenici, Ranking Member,
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources; Ted Stevens,
Vice-Chairman, Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation; Michael B. Enzi, Ranking Member,
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions;
John Ensign, U.S. Senator; Lamar Alexander, U.S.
Senator; Kay Bailey Hutchison, U.S. Senator.

[[Page S4798]]

____
Exhibit 2

Summary of the ``America Competes Act''

The ``America COMPETES Act'' is a bipartisan legislative
response to recommendations contained in the National
Academies' ``Rising Above the Gathering Storm'' report and
the Council on Competitiveness' ``Innovate America'' report.
The bill is similar to the ``National Competitiveness
Investment Act'' that Senators Frist, Reid, Stevens, Inouye,
Domenici, Bingaman, Enzi, Kennedy, Ensign, Lieberman,
Alexander, Mikulski, Hutchison, and others introduced in
September 2006. Several sections of the bill are derived from
proposals contained in the ``American Innovation and
Competitiveness Act of 2006'' (S. 2802), approved without
opposition by the Senate Commerce Committee, and the
``Protecting America's Competitive Edge Through Energy Act of
2006'' (S. 2197) approved without opposition by the Senate
Energy Committee last year. Accordingly, the America COMPETES
Act focuses on three primary areas of importance to
maintaining and improving United States' innovation in the
21st century: (1) Increasing research investment, (2)
strengthening educational opportunities in science,
technology, engineering, and mathematics from elementary
through graduate school, and (3) developing an innovation
infrastructure. More specifically, the America COMPETES Act
would:

Increase Research Investment by:

Doubling funding for the National Science Foundation (NSF)
from approximately $5.6 billion in Fiscal Year 2006 to $11.2
billion in Fiscal Year 2011.
Setting the Department of Energy's Office of Science on
track to double in funding over 10 years, increasing from
$3.6 billion in Fiscal Year 2006 to over $5.2 billion in
Fiscal Year 2011.
Establishing the Innovation Acceleration Research Program
to direct federal agencies funding research in science and
technology to set as a goal dedicating approximately 8
percent of their Research and Development (R&D) budgets
toward high-risk frontier research.
Authorizing the National Institute of Standards and
Technology (NIST) from approximately $703 million in Fiscal
Year 2008 to approximately $937 million in Fiscal Year 2011
and requiring NIST to set aside no less than 8 percent of its
annual funding for high-risk, high-reward innovation
acceleration research.
Directing NASA to increase funding for basic research and
fully participate in interagency activities to foster
competitiveness and innovation, using the full extent of
existing budget authority.
Coordinating ocean and atmospheric research and education
at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and
other agencies to promote U.S. leadership in these important
fields.

Strengthen Educational Opportunities in Science, Technology,
Engineering, Mathematics, and Critical Foreign Languages by:

Authorizing competitive grants to States to promote better
alignment of elementary and secondary education with the
knowledge and skills needed for success in postsecondary
education, the 21st century workforce, and the Armed Forces,
and grants to support the establishment or improvement of
statewide P-16 education longitudinal data systems.
Strengthening the skills of thousands of math and science
teachers by establishing training and education programs at
summer institutes hosted at the National Laboratories and by
increasing support for the Teacher Institutes for the 21st
Century program at NSF.
Expanding the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program at
NSF to recruit and train individuals to become math and
science teachers in high-need local educational agencies.
Assisting States in establishing or expanding statewide
specialty schools in math and science that students from
across the state would be eligible to attend and providing
expert assistance in teaching from National Laboratories'
staff at those schools.
Facilitating the expansion of Advanced Placement (AP) and
International Baccalaureate (IB) programs by increasing the
number of teachers prepared to teach AP/IB and pre-AP/IB
math, science, and foreign language courses in high need
schools, thereby increasing the number of courses available
and students who take and pass AP and IB exams.
Developing and implementing programs for bachelor's degrees
in math, science, engineering, and critical foreign languages
with concurrent teaching credentials and part-time master's
in education programs for math, science, and critical foreign
language teachers to enhance both content knowledge and
teaching skills.
Creating partnerships between National Laboratories and
local high-need high schools to establish centers of
excellence in math and science education.
Expanding existing NSF graduate research fellowship and
traineeship programs, requiring NSF to work with institutions
of higher education to facilitate the development of
professional science master's degree programs, and expanding
NSF's science, mathematics, engineering and technology talent
program.
Providing Math Now grants to improve math instruction in
the elementary and middle grades and provide targeted help to
struggling students so that all students can master grade-
level mathematics standards.
Expanding programs to increase the number of students from
elementary school through postsecondary education who study
critical foreign languages and become proficient.

Develop an Innovation Infrastructure by:

Establishing a President's Council on Innovation and
Competitiveness to develop a comprehensive agenda to promote
innovation and competitiveness in the public and private
sectors.
Requiring the National Academy of Sciences to conduct a
study to identify forms of risk that create barriers to
innovation.
____

Exhibit 3

Cosponsors, Alphabetical

[* = original cosponsor]

Sen Alexander, Lamar [R-TN]--3/5/2007*; Sen Bennett, Robert
F. [R-UT]--4/19/2007; Sen Biden, Joseph R. [D-DE]--4/18/2007;
Sen Bingaman, Jeff [D-NM]--3/5/2007*; Sen Brown, Sherrod [D-
OH]--3/15/2007*; Sen Cantwell, Maria [D-WA]--3/5/2007* Sen
Cardin, Benjamin L. [D-MD]--4/18/2007; Sen Carper, Thomas R.
[D-DE]--3/5/2007* Sen Chambliss, Saxby [R-GA]--3/7/2007; Sen
Clinton, Hillary Rodham [D-NY]--3/5/2007* Sen Cochran, Thad
[R-MS]--4/17/2007; Sen Coleman, Norm [R-MN]--3/5/2007*; Sen
Collins, Susan M. [R-ME]--3/14/2007; Sen Cornyn, John [R-
TX]--3/5/2007*; Sen Craig, Larry E. [R-ID]--3/5/2007*; Sen
Demenici, Pete V. [R-NM]--3/5/2007*; Sen Durbin, Richard [D-
IL]--3/6/2007; Sen Ensign, John [R-NV]--3/5/2007*; Sen Enzi,
Michael B. [R-WY]--3/5/2007*; Sen Feinstein, Dianne [D-CA]--
3/6/2007; Sen Hagel, Chuck [R-NE]--3/29/2007; Sen Hutchison,
Kay Baily [R-TX]--3/5/2007*; Sen Inouye, Daniel K. [D-HI]--3/
5/2007*; Sen Isakson, Johnny [R-GA]--3/29/2007; Sen Kennedy,
Edward M. [D-MA]--3/5/2007*; Sen Kerry, John F. [D-MA]--3/5/
2007*; Sen Klobuchar, Amy [D-MN]--3/14/2007; Sen Kohl, Herb
[D-WI]--3/5/2007*; Sen Landrieu, Mary L. [D-LA]--3/5/2007*;
Sen Lautenberg, Frank R. [D-NJ]--3/8/2007; Sen Levin, Carl
[D-MI]--4/19/2007; Sen Lieberman, Joseph I. [ID-CT]--3/5/
2007*; Sen Lott, Trent [R-MS]--4/18/2007; Sen Lugar, Richard
G. [R-IN]--3/5/2007*; Sen Martinez, Mel [R-FL]--3/5/2007*;
Sen McCaskill, Claire [D-MO]--3/8/2007; Sen McConnell, Mitch
[R-KY]--3/5/2007*; Sen Menendez, Robert [D-NJ]--3/5/2007*;
Sen Mikulski, Barbara A. [D-MD]--3/5/2007*; Sen Murkowski,
Lisa [R-AK]--3/5/2007*; Sen Nelson, Bill [D-FL]--3/5/2007*;
Sen Nelson, E. Benjamin [D-NE]--4/19/2007; Sen Obama, Barack
[D-IL]--3/5/2007*; Sen Pryor, Mark L. [D-AR]--3/5/2007*; Sen
Roberts, Pat [R-KS]--3/5/2007*; Sen Rockefeller, John D., IV
[D-WV]--3/5/2007*; Sen Salazar, Ken [D-CO]--3/5/2007*; Sen
Smith, Gordon H. [R-OR]--3/5/2007*; Sen Stabenow, Debbie [D-
MI]--4/19/2007; Sen Stevens, Ted [R-AK]--3/5/2007*; Sen
Voinovich, George V. [R-OH]--3/5/2007*; and Sen Warner, John
[R-VA]--3/5/2007*.
____

Exhibit 4

The America COMPETES Act

section-by-section analysis

Section 1. Short Title
Section 1 would provide that the legislation be cited as
the ``America COMPETES Act.''
Section 2. Organization of Act into Divisions; Table of
Contents
Section 2 would organize the legislation into four
divisions. Division A would contain sections related to
commerce and science; Division B would contain sections
related to the Department of Energy; Division C would contain
sections related to education; Division D would contain
sections related to the National Science Foundation. This
section would also provide a Table of Contents for the
legislation.

DIVISION A--COMMERCE AND SCIENCE

Section 1001. Short Title
This section would provide that this division may be cited
as the ``American Innovation and Competitiveness Act''

TITLE I--OFFICE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY POLICY; GOVERNMENTWIDE
SCIENCE

Section 1101. National Science and Technology Summit
This section would require the President to convene a
National Science and Technology Summit within 180 days of
enactment to evaluate the health and direction of nation's
science and technology enterprise and to identify key
research and technology challenges and recommendations for
research and development investment over the next five years
as a result of the summit.
Section 1102. Study on Barriers to Innovation
Section 1102 would require the Director of the Office of
Science and Technology Policy to enter into a contract with
the National Academy of Sciences to conduct a study to
identify forms of risk that create barriers to innovation one
year after enactment and four years after enactment. The
study is intended to support research on the long-term value
of innovation to the business community and to identify means
to mitigate risks presently associated with such innovation
activities.
Section 1103. National Innovation Medal
Section 1103 amends Section 16 of the Stevenson-Wydler
Technology Innovation Act of 1980 (15 U.S.C. 3711) to rename
the ``National

[[Page S4799]]

Technology Medal'' as the ``National Technology and
Innovation Medal.''
Section 1104. Release of Scientific Research Results
Section 1104 would require the Director of the Office of
Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), in consultation with
the Director of the Office of Management and Budget and the
heads of all federal civilian agencies that conduct
scientific research to develop and issue a set of principles
for the communication of scientific information by government
scientists, policy makers, and managers to the public within
90 days after the date of enactment of this Act. It is based
upon recommendations from the National Science Board's review
of the policies of federal science agencies concerning the
suppression and distortion of research findings and their
impact on the quality and credibility of all future
government-sponsored scientific research results.
Section 1105. Semiannual Science, Technology, Engineering,
and Mathematics Days
Section 1105 expresses a Sense of Congress that OSTP should
encourage all elementary and middle schools to observe a
Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Day twice in
every school year for the purpose of facilitating the
interaction of science, technology, engineering, and
mathematics mentors and grade school students. This section
also expresses a Sense of Congress that OSTP should encourage
involvement of federal employees, the private sector and
institutions of higher learning in such days.
Section 1106. Study on Service Science
Section 1106 would express a Sense of Congress that the
Federal Government should better understand and respond
strategically to the emerging management and learning
discipline known as, ``service science.''
Subsection (b) would require the Director of OSTP, through
the National Academy of Sciences, to conduct a study on how
the Federal Government should best support service science
through research, education, and training.

TITLE II--INNOVATION PROMOTION

Section 1201. President's Council on Innovation and
Competitiveness
Section 1201 requires the President to establish a
President's Council on Innovation and Competitiveness to
develop a comprehensive agenda to promote innovation in the
public and private sectors. The Council, which could be
constituted by designating an existing body to perform its
functions, would include the Secretaries of Commerce,
Defense, Education, Health and Human Services, Homeland
Security, Labor, and Treasury along with the heads of the
National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Securities
and Exchange Commission, the National Science Foundation, the
Office of the United States Trade Representative, the
Office of Management and Budget, the Office of Science and
Technology Policy, the Environmental Protection Agency,
and other relevant federal agencies involved in
innovation. As the President's Council on Innovation and
Competitiveness develops a comprehensive agenda for
strengthening innovation and competitiveness it should the
consult with advisors from the private sector, labor,
scientific organizations, academic organizations, and
other nongovernmental organizations working in the area of
science or technology.
Section 1202. Innovation Acceleration Research.
Section 1202 would require the President, through the head
of each federal research agency, to establish the
``Innovation Acceleration Research Program'' to support and
promote innovation in the United States by requiring each
department or agency that sponsors scientific research to set
as a goal 8% of its annual research budget to be directed
towards innovation acceleration research.

TITLE III--NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION

Section 1301. NASA's Contribution to Innovation
Section 1301 would direct that NASA be regarded as a full
participant in interagency activities to promote
competitiveness and innovation and to enhance science,
technology, engineering and mathematics education. It would
identify NASA's balanced science program as an essential part
of NASA's contribution to innovation in and the economic
competitiveness of the United States and that funding NASA at
the levels authorized in the NASA Authorization Act of 2005
(P.L. 109-155) would enable NASA's programs to contribute to
U.S. innovation and competitiveness.
Section 1302. Aeronautics Institute for Research
Section 1302 would consolidate NASA's aeronautics research
authorized under the NASA Authorization Act of 2005 (P.L.
109-155) into an Aeronautics Institute for Research within
NASA. Subsection (c) would require the Institute to cooperate
with relevant programs in the Department of Transportation,
the Department of Defense, the Department of Commerce, and
the Department of Homeland Security, including the Joint
Planning and Development Office established under the VISION
100-Century of Aviation Reauthorization Act (P.L. 108-176).
The Aeronautics Institute would be allowed to accept
assistance, staff, and funding from other federal departments
and agencies.
Section 1303. Basic Research Enhancement
Section 1303 would establish, within NASA, a Basic Research
Executive Council to oversee the distribution and management
of programs and resources engaged in support of basic
research activity including the most senior agency official
representing the space science, earth science, life and
microgravity sciences, and aeronautical research. The duties
of the Council will be to set criteria for identification of
basic research, set priority of research activity, review
and evaluate research activity, make recommendations
regarding needed adjustments in research activities, and
provide annual reports to Congress on research activities.
Section 1304. Aging Workforce Issues Program
Section 1304 would express a Sense of Congress that the
Administrator of NASA should implement a program to address
aging workforce issues in aerospace that would (1) document
technical and management experiences of senior NASA employees
before they leave NASA; (2) provide incentives for retirees
to return to NASA to teach new NASA employees about their
lessons and experiences; (3) provide for the development of
an award to recognize and reward senior NASA employees for
their contributions to knowledge sharing.
Section 1305. Conforming Amendments
Section 1305 would amend Section 101(d) of the National
Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of
2005 (42 U.S.C. 16611(d)) by adding that the assessment
undertaken by NASA examine the number and content of science
activities which may be considered as fundamental, or basic
research, whether incorporated within specific missions or
conducted independently of any specific mission. In addition,
this section would require NASA to assess how NASA science
activities can best be structured to ensure that basic and
fundamental research can be effectively maintained and
coordinated in response to national goals in competitiveness
and innovation.
Section 1306. Fiscal Year 2008 Basic Science and Research
Funding
Section 1306 provides additional authorization, above the
levels authorized in the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration Act of 2005 (P.L. 109-155), of $160 million
for the funding of basic science and research for fiscal year
2008. The availability of these funds is made contingent upon
unobligated balances being available to the NASA

TITLE IV--NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF STANDARDS AND TECHNOLOGY

Section 1401. Authorization of Appropriations
Section 1401 would authorize appropriations for the
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) from
Fiscal Year 2008 through Fiscal Year 2011, including
authorizations for the Hollings Manufacturing Extension
Partnership Program (MEP). The MEP authorizations would be
taken from the authorizations provided for NIST.
Authorization levels would be set as follows:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
FY 2008 FY 2009 FY 2010 FY 2011
------------------------------------------------------------------------
NIST Total.................. $703.611 $773.972 $851.369 $936.506
MEP......................... $115 $120 $125 $130
------------------------------------------------------------------------
All amounts are in millions.

Section 1402. Amendments to the Stevenson-Wydler Technology
Innovation Act of 1980
Section 1402 would eliminate the Under Secretary of
Commerce for Technology at the Department of Commerce and the
related Technology Administration at the Department of
Commerce.
Section 1403. Innovation Acceleration
Section 1403 would establish the Innovation Acceleration
Research Program of Section 1202 at NIST, to be known as the
``Standards and Technology Acceleration Research Program'' to
support and promote innovation in the United States through
high-risk, high-reward research and set aside no less than 8
percent of the funds made available to the measurement
laboratories at NIST each year for the program.
Section 1404. Manufacturing Extension
Section 1404 would amend Section 25(c)(5) of the National
Institute of Standards and Technology Act (15 U.S.C.
278k(c)(5)) by inserting a probationary program for MEP
centers that have not received a satisfactory rating. If the
issues of a center are not addressed in one year, the
Director would be required to conduct a competition to select
a new operator for the center.
Subsection (b) would allow the acceptance of funds from
other. federal agencies and the private sector by the
Secretary of Commerce and Director to strengthen U.S.
manufacturing. Any private sector funding would not be
considered a part of the federal share for the purpose of
center cost-sharing. Funding accepted from other federal
departments or agencies may be considered in the calculation
of the federal share of capital and annual operating and
maintenance costs under 15 U.S.C. 278k(c).
Section 1405. Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive
Technology
Section 1405 would re-establish the Experimental Program to
Stimulate Competitive Technology (EPSCoT), previously managed
by the Technology Administration, at NIST.
Subsection (d) would require that in making awards under
this section, the Director of NIST shall ensure that the
awards are awarded on a competitive basis that includes a
review of the merits of the activities that are subject to
the award. A special emphasis would be given to those
projects which would increase the participation of women,
Native

[[Page S4800]]

Americans (including Native Hawaiians and Alaska Natives),
and other underrepresented groups in science and technology.
Subsection (d)(2) would impose a matching requirement that
not less than 50 percent of the cost of activities (other
than planning activities) carried out by an EPSCoT award be
funded by non-federal sources.
Section 1406. Technical Amendments to the NIST Act and Other
Technical Amendments
Section 1406 would make several technical amendments to the
NIST Act. Subsection (a) would lift the limitation on NIST-
sponsored research fellowships under current law. Subsection
(b) would clarify NIST's authority to issue grants and
cooperative agreements, along with contracts, cooperative
research and development agreements, and other appropriate
instruments, bringing NIST authority into conformance with
the Federal Grant and Cooperative Agreement Act (31 U.S.C.
6301-08). The subsection also would clarify NIST's authority
to purchase memberships in scientific organizations and pay
registration fees for NIST employees' attendance at
conferences.
Subsection (c) would permit NIST to utilize a portion of
its operating funds in the production of high priority
Standard Reference Materials and ensure that, once recovered
through sales, the working capital fund resources are
available to maintain future supplies. In addition, this
authority would permit funds transferred to NIST from other
federal agencies for the production of Standard Reference
Materials to be transferred to the fund.
Subsection (d) would update several measurements found in
statute to be consistent with current practice and
internationally recognized standards.
Subsection (e) would allow NIST to retain the depreciation
surcharge that is assessed against all federal agencies and
returned to the Treasury for the upkeep of public buildings.
Subsection (f) would strike NIST authority for the Non-
Energy Inventions program. This program is no longer operated
by NIST. Rather, it is now operated by the Department of
Energy.

TITLE V--OCEAN AND ATMOSPHERIC PROGRAMS

Section 1501. Ocean and Atmospheric Research and Development
Program
Section 1501 would require the Administrator of the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), in
consultation with the Director of NSF and the Administrator
of NASA, to establish a coordinated program of ocean and
atmospheric research and development to promote United States
leadership in ocean and atmospheric science.
Section 1502. NOAA Ocean and Atmospheric Science Education
Programs
Section 1502 would require the Administrator of NOAA to
conduct, develop, support, promote, and coordinate formal and
informal educational activities at all levels to enhance
public awareness and understanding of ocean, coastal, and
atmospheric science and stewardship by the general public. In
conducting those activities the administrator shall build
upon the existing educational programs and activities of the
agency.
Subsection (b) would require the Administrator of NOAA,
appropriate NOAA programs, ocean and atmospheric science and
education experts, and interested members of the public to
develop a science education plan that would set forth
education goals and strategies for NOAA, as well as
programmatic actions to carry out such goals and priorities
over the next 20 years. This plan would be reevaluated and
updated every 5 years.

DIVISION B--DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Section 2001. Short Title
Section 2001 would specify that this Division may be
referred to as the, ``Protecting America's Competitive Edge
Act through Energy (PACE-Energy) Act.''
Section 2002. Definitions
Section 2002 would provide definitions for purposes of the
Division.
Section 2003. Mathematics, Science and Engineering Education
at the Department of Energy
Section 2003 would create a, ``Director of Mathematics,
Science and Engineering Education Programs'' at the
Department of Energy to coordinate all Mathematics, Science,
and Engineering Education Department-wide. The Director would
report to the Undersecretary of Science. Section 2003 would
also amend the Department of Energy Science Education
Enhancement Act to establish new programs in science,
mathematics, and engineering education, including:
Specialty Schools for Math and Science--This portion of
Section 2003 would create a competitive grant program to
assist States in establishing or expanding public, statewide
specialty schools that provide comprehensive mathematics,
science, and engineering education. In addition, this portion
of Section 2003 would authorize scientific and engineering
staff of the National Laboratories to assist in teaching
courses in statewide specialty schools in mathematics and
science education, and to use National Laboratory scientific
equipment in the teaching of courses. This portion of Section
2003 would authorize $140 million over 4 years for these
schools.
Experiential-Based Learning Opportunities--This portion of
Section 2003 would establish summer internships, including
internships at the National Laboratories, for middle and high
school students to promote experiential, hands-on learning in
math and science. This portion of Section 2003 would
authorize $15 million annually for this program from Fiscal
Year 2008 through Fiscal Year 2011.
National Laboratories Centers of Excellence in Mathematics
and Science Education--This portion of Section 2003 would
establish a program at each of the National Laboratories to
support a Center of Excellence in Mathematics and Science at
one public secondary school located in the region of the
national laboratory. This portion of Section 2003 would also
require the Secretary to consider the performance of these
Centers in determining the contract award fee for the
management and operations contractor of each national
laboratory.
Summer Institutes--This portion of Section 2003 would
establish a program of summer institutes at each of the
National Laboratories, and through grants to universities and
other nonprofit entities, to strengthen the math and science
teaching skills of K-12 teachers. This portion of Section
2003 would authorize $190 million over 4 years for these
institutes.
Nuclear Science Education--This portion of Section 2003
would create a program for competitive, merit-based grants to
universities that establish or expand nuclear science and
engineering degree programs. This portion of Section 2003
would authorize approximately $140 million over 4 years for
these grants.
Section 2004. Department of Energy Early Career Research
Grants
Section 2004 would authorize research grants for early-
career scientists and engineers pursuing innovative,
independent research. Eligible individuals must have
completed a doctorate within the previous 10 years, and must
show promise in a field of science or technology. Grants
awarded under this section would be for 5 years at a level of
up to $100,000 per year during the grant period. Section 2004
would authorize $91 million over 4 years for this program.
Section 2005. Advanced Research Projects Authority--Energy
Section 2005 would establish the Advanced Research Projects
Authority--Energy (ARPA-E) as a new agency within the
Department of Energy. The mission of ARPA-E would be to
support research with the potential to overcome long-term,
high-risk technological barriers in the development of
applied energy technologies (including carbon neutral
technologies). The Director of ARPA-E would report to the
Undersecretary of Science. An external advisory board would
recommend to the Director, on an annual basis, key areas of
energy research to include in the ARPA-E research portfolio.
Section 2006. Authorization of Appropriations for the
Department of Energy Office of Science
Section 2006 would authorize a doubling of Office of
Science funding over ten years. This rate of increase matches
that in the President's American Competitiveness Initiative.
The Fiscal Year 2008 request for the Office of Science was
$4.4 billion. The authorization is $4.6 billion.
Section 2007. Discovery Science and Engineering Innovation
Institutes
Section 2007 would establish multi-disciplinary institutes
centered at National Laboratories to apply fundamental
science and engineering discoveries to technological
innovations related to the missions of the Department and the
global competitiveness of the United States. Each Institute
would be authorized to receive $10 million in federal
funding annually.
Section 2008. PACE Graduate Fellowship Program
Section 2008 would establish a competitive graduate
fellowship program for up to 700 students pursuing doctoral
degrees in mission areas of the Department. The section
requires that students be selected for the fellowship program
through a competitive merit review process (involving written
and oral interviews) that will result in a wide distribution
of awards throughout the United States. This section would
authorize $93 million over 4 years for these fellowships.
Section 2009. Title IX Compliance
Section 2009 would require the Department of Energy to
conduct compliance reviews of two grant recipients to
determine compliance with the provisions of Title IX of the
Education Amendments of 1972. Title IX of the Education
Amendments of 1972 required government agencies to ensure
that female students had equal access to the programs
supported by federal grants.
Section 2010. High-Risk, High-Reward Research
Section 2010 would require the Secretary of Energy to
establish a grant program to encourage the conduct of high-
risk, high-reward research at the Department of Energy.
Section 2011. Distinguished Scientists Program
Section 2011 would establish a joint program between
universities and national laboratories to support up to 100
distinguished scientists positions. These scientists would
hold joint appointments at the labs and their universities,
and would promote academic and scientific excellence
cooperation between the two institutions. Section 2011 would
authorize $290 million over 4 years for these appointments.

[[Page S4801]]

DIVISION C--EDUCATION

Section 3001. Findings
Section 3001 presents findings that the United States needs
to build on and expand the impact of existing education
programs that work to ensure a well-educated populace to
remain competitive in the global economy.
Section 3002. Definitions
Section 3002 contains definitions that are used throughout
the Education Division.

TITLE I--TEACHER ASSISTANCE

SUBTITLE A--TEACHERS FOR A COMPETITIVE TOMORROW

Section 3111. Purpose
Section 3111 would provide that the purpose of this
subtitle is to develop and implement undergraduate programs
leading to a baccalaureate degree with concurrent teacher
certification that provide integrated courses of study in
mathematics, science, engineering, or critical foreign
languages and teacher education, and master's degree programs
in mathematics, science, or critical foreign language
education for current teachers to enhance their content
knowledge and pedagogical skills.
Section 3112. Definitions
Section 3112 contains definitions that are used in this
subtitle.
Section 3113. Programs for Baccalaureate Degrees in
Mathematics, Science, Engineering, or Critical Foreign
Languages, with Concurrent Teacher Certification.
Section 3113 would authorize competitive grants for
partnerships to develop and implement programs that integrate
programs of study for undergraduate students majoring in
mathematics, engineering, science or a critical foreign
language with teacher education, so that students can obtain
baccalaureate degrees with concurrent teacher certification.
These partnerships would consist of institutions of higher
education, departments of mathematics, engineering, science
or critical foreign languages, teacher preparation programs
and high-need local educational agencies and their schools.
Section 3114. Programs for Master's Degrees in Mathematics,
Science, or Critical Foreign Languages Education
Section 3114 would authorize competitive grants for
partnerships to develop and implement 2- or 3-year part-time
master's degree programs in mathematics, science, or critical
foreign language education for current teachers to improve
their content knowledge and pedagogical skills. These
partnerships would consist of institutions of higher
education, departments of mathematics, engineering,
science or critical foreign languages, teacher preparation
programs and high-need local educational agencies and
their schools.
Section 3115. General Provisions
Section 3115 contains provisions that would be applicable
to both the baccalaureate and master's degree programs. Under
both programs, grants would be for five years; matching funds
would be required; and grant funds could be used only to
supplement, not supplant, other Federal or State funds. The
Secretary would be required to evaluate the programs and
provide an annual report to Congress.
Section 3116. Authorization of Appropriations
Section 3116 would authorize to be appropriated a total for
both programs of $210,000,000 for Fiscal Year 2008, and such
sums as may be necessary for each of the three succeeding
fiscal years, and specify the proportion of the total funding
that is to be spent carrying out each of the two programs.

SUBTITLE B--ADVANCED PLACEMENT AND INTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE PROGRAMS

Section 3121. Purpose
Section 3121 would provide that the purpose of this
subtitle is to raise academic achievement through Advanced
Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) programs
by increasing the number of teachers serving high-need
schools who are qualified to teach AP or IB courses in
mathematics, science, and critical foreign languages;
increasing the availability of such courses in high-need
schools, including courses that prepare students to enroll
and succeed in AP and IB; and increasing the number of
students attending high-need schools who take such courses
and take and pass the examinations.
Section 3122. Definitions
Section 3121 contains definitions that are used in this
subtitle.
Section 3123. Advanced Placement and International
Baccalaureate Programs
Section 3123 would authorize competitive grants to achieve
the purposes of this subtitle and would authorize to be
appropriated $58,000,000 for Fiscal Year 2008, and such sums
as may be necessary for each of the three succeeding fiscal
years.

TITLE II--MATH NOW

Section 3201. Math Now for Elementary School and Middle
School Students Program
Section 3201 would authorize a grant program to improve
instruction in mathematics for elementary school and middle
school students, and to provide targeted help to students
struggling with mathematics, to enable all students to reach
or exceed grade-level academic achievement standards. Grants
would be awarded to implement mathematics instructional
materials and interventions, provide professional development
activities, and conduct continuous progress monitoring of
students in mathematics. State educational agencies would be
awarded grants on a competitive basis to enable them to award
grants to eligible local educational agencies. Priority would
be given to applications for projects that would implement
statewide strategies for improving mathematics instruction
and raising the mathematics achievement of students,
particularly those in grades 4 through 8. There would be a
matching requirement, but the Secretary would have the
authority to waive all or part of it in cases of serious
hardship. The section would authorize to be appropriated
$146,700,000 for Fiscal Year 2008, and such sums as may be
necessary for each of the 3 succeeding fiscal years.

TITLE III--FOREIGN LANGUAGE PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM

Section 3301. Findings and Purpose
Section 3301 presents findings that the United States faces
a shortage of skilled professionals with higher levels of
proficiency in foreign language and that the ability of
students to become proficient can be addressed by starting
language learning at a younger age and expanding
opportunities for continuous foreign language education from
elementary school through postsecondary education. The
purpose of this title is to increase significantly both the
opportunities to study critical foreign languages programs
and the number of students who become proficient in critical
foreign languages.
Section 3302. Definitions
Section 3302 contains definitions that are used in this
title.
Section 3303. Program Authorized
Section 3303 would authorize a competitive grant program to
enable institutions of higher education and local educational
agencies working in partnership to establish articulated
programs of study in critical foreign languages so that
students from elementary school through postsecondary
education can advance their knowledge successfully and
achieve higher levels of proficiency in a critical foreign
language.
Section 3304. Authorization of Appropriations
Section 3304 would authorize to be appropriated $22,000,000
for Fiscal Year 2008, and such sums as may be necessary for
each of the three succeeding fiscal years.

TITLE IV--ALIGNMENT OF EDUCATION PROGRAMS

Section 3401. Alignment of Secondary School Graduation
Requirements with the Demands of 21st Century
Postsecondary Endeavors and Support for P-16 Education
Data Systems
Section 3401 would provide that this title would authorize
competitive grants to States to promote better alignment of
elementary and secondary education with the knowledge and
skills needed to succeed in academic credit-bearing
coursework in institutions of higher education, in the 21st
century workforce and in the Armed Forces. The title would
also authorize competitive grants to support the
establishment or improvement of statewide P-16 education
longitudinal data systems to assist States in improving the
rigor and quality of content knowledge requirements and
assessments, ensure that students are prepared to succeed in
postsecondary endeavors, and enable States to have valid and
reliable information to inform education policy and practice.
The section would authorize to be appropriated $100,000,000
for Fiscal Year 2008, and such sums as may be necessary for
Fiscal Year 2009.

DIVISION D--NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION

Section 4001. Authorization of Appropriations
Subsection (a) would authorize appropriations for the
National Science Foundation (NSF) at the following levels for
4 ears.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
FY 2008 FY 2009 FY 2010 FY 2011
------------------------------------------------------------------------
NSF......................... $6.808 $7.433 $8.446 $11.200
------------------------------------------------------------------------
All amounts are in $ billion.

Subsection (b) would require the Director of NSF to create
a plan for spending this increased funding within 180 days of
enactment, taking into account the priorities established by
the Science Summit authorized under Section 101(c) of this
Act.
Section 4002. Strengthening of Education and Human Resources
Directorate through Equitable Distribution of New Funds
Section 4002 would provide for annual funding increases for
the education and human resources programs of the National
Science Foundation to ensure the continued involvement of
experts at the National Science Foundation in improving
science, technology, engineering and mathematics education at
the elementary, secondary and postsecondary level. As
appropriations for the National Science Foundation increase,
funds for the education and human resources programs would
increase by a proportional amount.
Section 4003. Graduate Fellowships and Graduate Traineeships
Section 4003 would require the Director of NSF to expand
both the Graduate Research Fellowship Program and the
Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship
Program for an additional 1,250 students each over the next 5
years. Within the amounts authorized under Section 4001,

[[Page S4802]]

this section would authorize appropriations at the following
levels in Fiscal Years 2008 through 2011 to support the
expansion of the Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRF)
and the Integrative Graduate Education and Research
Traineeship Program (IGERT).

------------------------------------------------------------------------
FY 2008 FY 2009 FY 2010 FY 2011
------------------------------------------------------------------------
GRF......................... $24 $36 $48 $60
IGERT....................... $22 $33 $44 $55
------------------------------------------------------------------------
All amounts are in $ million.

Section 4004. Professional Science Master's Degree Programs
Section 4004 would require the Director of NSF to establish
an NSF clearinghouse to share program elements used in
professional science master's degree (PSMD) programs and
other advanced degree programs related to science,
mathematics, technology, and engineering, to help
institutions of higher education establish professional
science master's programs. The clearinghouse would be
established in conjunction with 4-year institutions of higher
education, graduate schools, industry, and federal agencies.
Subsection (b) would require the Director to award grants
to 4-year institutions of higher education to facilitate the
institutions' creation or improvement of professional science
master's degrees programs. The program would make awards to a
maximum of 200 4-year institutions of higher institutions for
a 3 year period. Any grant renewals would be for a maximum of
2 additional years. The Director would be required to give
preference in making awards to 4-year institutions of higher
education seeking federal funding to support pilot
professional science master's degree programs to applicants
that secure more than \2/3\ of their funding for such
professional science masters degree programs from sources
other than the Federal Government.
Within the amounts authorized under Section 4001,
Subsection (d) would authorize appropriations at the
following levels in Fiscal Years 2008 through 2011 to carry
out this section.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
FY 2008 FY 2009 FY 2010 FY 2011
------------------------------------------------------------------------
PSMD........................ $15 $18 $20 $20
------------------------------------------------------------------------
All amounts are in $ million.

Section 4005. Increased Support for Science Education through
the National Science Foundation
Within the amounts authorized under Section 4001, Section
4005 would authorize appropriations for the science,
mathematics, engineering, and technology talent program
established in section 8(7) of the National Science
Foundation Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-368) at the following levels
in Fiscal Years 2008 through 2011.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
FY 2008 FY 2009 FY 2010 2011
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tech Talent................. $40 $45 $50 $55
------------------------------------------------------------------------
All amounts are in $ million.

Section 4006. Meeting Critical National Science Needs
Section 4006, subsection (a) would require the Director of
NSF to include consideration of the degree to which NSF
awards and research activities assist in meeting critical
national needs in innovation, competitiveness, the physical
and natural sciences, technology, engineering, and
mathematics.
Subsection (b) would require the Director of NSF to give
priority in the selection of awards and the allocation of NSF
resources under the Research and Related Activities budgetary
account to those projects that can be expected to make
contributions in physical and natural sciences, technology,
engineering, and mathematics, or which can be expected to
enhance competitiveness or innovation in the United States.
Subsection (c) would clarify that the priority
consideration required by Section 4006 does not restrict or
bias the grant selection process against other areas of
research consistent with the mandate of the Foundation.
Section 4007. Reaffirmation of the Merit-Review Process of
the National Science Foundation
Section 4007 would clarify that nothing in this Act shall
be interpreted to require or recommend that NSF change its
(1) merit-review system or (2) peer review process. These
processes should continue to be used in determining what
grants NSF will fund.
Section 4008. Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive
Research
Section 4008 would authorize the NSF's Experimental Program
to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) at $125 million
for Fiscal Year 2008, of the funds authorized in Section
4001, increasing each year from Fiscal Year 2009 to Fiscal
Year 2011 by the same percentage by which NSF's overall
funding increases.
Section 4009. Encouraging Participation
Subsection (a) would require the Director of NSF to
establish a program to provide mentors for women who are
interested in careers in science, technology, engineering,
and mathematics by paring such women with mentors who are
working in industry.
Subsection (b) would require the Director of NSF to
establish a program to provide grants to community colleges
to provide apprenticeships and other appropriate training to
allow women to enter higher-paying technical jobs in fields
related to science, technology, engineering, or mathematics.
Subsections (c) and (d) establish the requirements for
application and the evaluation criteria of this program.
Section 4010. Cyberinfrastructure
Section 4010 would require the Director of NSF to develop
and publish a plan that describes the current status of
broadband access for scientific research purposes in EPSCoR-
eligible jurisdictions and outlines actions that could be
taken to ensure that broadband connections are available to
enable participation in NSF programs that rely heavily on
highspeed networking and collaborations across institutions
and regions.
Section 4011. Federal Information and Communications
Technology Research
Section 4011 would require the Director of NSF to establish
a grant program for basic research in advanced information
and communications technologies focused on enhancing or
facilitating the availability and affordability of advanced
communications services to all Americans. In developing this
program, the Director shall consult with a Federal Advanced
Information and Communications Technology Research Board
composed of individuals with expertise in information and
communications technologies, including representatives from
the National Telecommunications and Information
Administration, the Federal Communications Commission, the
NIST, the Department of Defense, and representatives from
industry and educational institutions. Within the amounts
authorized by Section 4001, Section 4011 would authorize
appropriations to carry out this section at the following
levels in Fiscal Years 2008 through 2011

------------------------------------------------------------------------
FY 2008 FY 2009 FY 2010 FY 2011
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Telecommunications Basic $45 $50 $55 $60
Research...................
------------------------------------------------------------------------
All amounts are in $ million.

Section 4012. Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program
Section 4012 would increase support for the Robert Noyce
Scholarship Program to recruit and train individuals to
become math and science teachers in high need local
educational agencies. It would increase the undergraduate
scholarship amount from $7,500 to $10,000 per year for a
maximum of two years (in exchange for teaching service) and
add a summer internship component for freshmen and sophomores
interested in the program. Provisions that require repayment
of scholarship or stipend by recipients who do not complete
their service requirement would be amended to require
repayment through a federal student loan with terms
consistent with provisions in parts B and D of title IV of
the Higher Education Act. Within the amounts authorized by
Section 4001, Section 4012 would authorize appropriations to
carry out this section at the following levels in Fiscal
Years 2008 through 2011

------------------------------------------------------------------------
FY 2008 FY 2009 FY 2010 FY 2011
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Noyce Program............... $117 $130 $148 $200
------------------------------------------------------------------------
All amounts are in $ million.

Section 4013. Sense of the Senate Regarding the Mathematics
and Science Partnership Programs of the Department of
Education and The National Science Foundation
Section 4013 would provide a sense of the Senate that
mathematics and science partnership programs operated by the
Department of Education and the National Science Foundation
are complementary not duplicative, and the two agencies
should have ongoing collaboration to ensure the two
components continue to work in concert.
Section 4014. National Science Foundation Teacher Institutes
for the 21st Century
Section 4014 would specifically authorize and increase
support for the Teacher Institutes for the 21st Century
summer institute program at the National Science Foundation
to provide cutting-edge professional development for
elementary and secondary school math and science teachers who
teach in high need schools. It would provide for follow-up
training and support during the academic year for
participating teachers. Within the amounts authorized by
Section 4001, Section 4014 would authorize appropriations to
carry out this section at the following levels in Fiscal
Years 2008 through 2011.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
FY 2008 FY 2009 FY 2010 FY 2011
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Teacher Institutes.......... $84 $94 $106 $140
------------------------------------------------------------------------
All amounts are in $ million.

Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, I see no other Senator on the floor and
suggest the absence of a quorum.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will call the roll.
The bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The majority leader is recognized.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for
the quorum call be rescinded.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so
ordered.

____________________