[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 131 (Wednesday, August 2, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4769-S4770]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. CORNYN (for himself and Mr. Wyden):
  S. 1701. A bill to provide for Federal agencies to develop public 
access policies relating to research conducted by employees of that 
agency or from funds administered by that agency; to the Committee on 
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
  Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of 
the bill be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                S. 1701

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

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Fair Access to Science and 
     Technology Research Act of 2017''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds that--
       (1) the Federal Government funds basic and applied research 
     with the expectation that new ideas and discoveries that 
     result from the research, if shared and effectively 
     disseminated, will advance science and improve the lives and 
     welfare of people of the United States and around the world;
       (2) the Internet makes it possible for this information to 
     be promptly available to every scientist, physician, 
     educator, and citizen at home, in school, or in a library;
       (3) the United States has a substantial interest in 
     maximizing the impact and utility of the research it funds by 
     enabling a wide range of reuses of the peer-reviewed 
     literature that reports the results of such research, 
     including by enabling computational analysis by state-of-the-
     art technologies;
       (4) the Office of Science and Technology Policy issued a 
     policy memorandum dated February 22, 2013, which established 
     the commitment of the executive branch of the Federal 
     Government to ensuring that ``the direct results of Federally 
     funded scientific research are made available to and useful 
     for the public, industry, and the scientific community''; and
       (5) the executive branch advises that such public access 
     should be implemented ``with the fewest constraints 
     possible''.

     SEC. 3. DEFINITION OF FEDERAL AGENCY.

       In this Act, the term ``Federal agency'' means an Executive 
     agency, as defined under section 105 of title 5, United 
     States Code.

     SEC. 4. FEDERAL RESEARCH PUBLIC ACCESS POLICY.

       (a) Requirement To Develop Policy.--
       (1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, each Federal agency with annual 
     extramural research expenditures of over $100,000,000 shall 
     develop a Federal research public access policy that is 
     consistent with and advances the purposes of the Federal 
     agency.
       (2) Common procedures.--To the extent practicable, Federal 
     agencies required to develop a policy under paragraph (1) 
     shall follow common procedures for the collection and 
     depositing of research papers.
       (b) Content.--Each Federal research public access policy 
     shall provide for--
       (1) submission to a digital repository designated or 
     maintained by the Federal agency of an electronic version of 
     the author's final manuscript of original research papers 
     that have been accepted for publication in peer-reviewed 
     journals and that result from research supported, in whole or 
     in part, from funding by the Federal Government;
       (2) the incorporation of all changes resulting from the 
     peer review publication process in the manuscript described 
     under paragraph (1);
       (3) the replacement of the final manuscript with the final 
     published version if--
       (A) the publisher consents to the replacement; and
       (B) the goals of the Federal agency for functionality and 
     interoperability are retained;

[[Page S4770]]

       (4) free online public access to such final peer-reviewed 
     manuscripts or published versions within a time period that 
     is appropriate for each type of research conducted or 
     sponsored by the Federal agency, not later than 12 months 
     after publication in peer-reviewed journals, preferably 
     sooner, or as adjusted under established mechanisms;
       (5) a means, using established mechanisms for making 
     requests to the applicable Federal agency, for members of the 
     public and other stakeholders to request to adjust the period 
     before such a final peer-reviewed manuscript or published 
     version is made publicly available by presenting evidence 
     demonstrating that the period is inconsistent with the 
     objectives of the Federal research public access policy or 
     the needs of the public, industry, or the scientific 
     community;
       (6) providing research papers as described in paragraph (4) 
     in formats and under terms that enable productive reuse of 
     the research and computational analysis by state-of-the-art 
     technologies;
       (7) improving the ability of the public to locate and 
     access research papers made accessible under the Federal 
     research public access policy; and
       (8) long-term preservation of, and free public access to, 
     published research findings--
       (A) in a stable digital repository maintained by the 
     Federal agency; or
       (B) if consistent with the purposes of the Federal agency, 
     in any repository meeting conditions determined favorable by 
     the Federal agency (including free public access), 
     interoperability, and long-term preservation.
       (c) Application of Policy.--Each Federal research public 
     access policy shall--
       (1) apply to--
       (A) researchers employed by the Federal agency whose works 
     remain in the public domain; and
       (B) researchers funded by the Federal agency;
       (2) provide that works described under paragraph (1)(A) 
     shall be--
       (A) marked as being public domain material when published; 
     and
       (B) made available at the same time such works are made 
     available under subsection (b)(4); and
       (3) make effective use of any law or guidance relating to 
     the creation and reservation of a Government license that 
     provides for the reproduction, publication, release, or other 
     uses of a final manuscript for Federal purposes.
       (d) Exclusions.--Each Federal research public access policy 
     shall not apply to--
       (1) research progress reports presented at professional 
     meetings or conferences;
       (2) laboratory notes, preliminary data analyses, notes of 
     the author, phone logs, or other information used to produce 
     final manuscripts;
       (3) classified research, research resulting in works that 
     generate revenue or royalties for authors (such as books) or 
     patentable discoveries, to the extent necessary to protect a 
     copyright or patent; or
       (4) authors who do not submit their work to a journal or 
     works that are rejected by journals.
       (e) Patent or Copyright Law.--Nothing in this Act shall be 
     construed to affect any right under the provisions of title 
     17 or 35, United States Code.
       (f) GAO Report.--Not later than 3 years after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, and every 5 years thereafter, the 
     Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to 
     Congress a report that--
       (1) includes an analysis of the period between the date on 
     which each paper becomes publicly available in a journal and 
     the date on which the paper is in the online repository of 
     the applicable Federal agency; and
       (2) examines the effectiveness of the Federal research 
     public access policy in providing the public with free online 
     access to papers on research funded by each Federal agency 
     required to develop a policy under subsection (a)(1), 
     including--
       (A) whether the terms of use applicable to such research 
     papers in effect are effective in enabling productive reuse 
     of the research and computational analysis by state-of-the-
     art technologies; and
       (B) examines whether such research papers should include a 
     royalty-free copyright license that is available to the 
     public and that permits the reuse of those research papers, 
     on the condition that attribution is given to the author or 
     authors of the research and any others designated by the 
     copyright owner.
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