[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 199 (Monday, December 4, 2023)]
[House]
[Pages H6090-H6092]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
DOE AND NSF INTERAGENCY RESEARCH ACT
Mr. LUCAS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill
(H.R. 2980) to provide for Department of Energy and National Science
Foundation research and development coordination, and for other
purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 2980
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 ``DOE and NSF Interagency
Research Act''.
SEC. 2. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY AND NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT COORDINATION.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of Energy (in this section
referred to as the ``Secretary'') and the Director of the
National Science Foundation (in this section referred to as
the ``Director'') shall carry out cross-cutting and
collaborative research and development activities focused on
the joint advancement of Department of Energy and National
Science Foundation mission requirements and priorities.
(b) Memorandum of Understanding.--The Secretary and the
Director shall coordinate the activities under subsection (a)
through the establishment of a memorandum of understanding,
or other appropriate interagency agreement. Such memorandum
or agreement, as the case may be, shall require the use of a
competitive, merit-reviewed
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process, which considers applications from Federal agencies,
National Laboratories, institutions of higher education, non-
profit institutions, and other appropriate entities.
(c) Coordination.--In carrying out the activities under
subsection (a), the Secretary and the Director may--
(1) conduct collaborative research in a variety of focus
areas, such as--
(A) basic plasma science and engineering, including
applications in astrophysics, materials science, fusion
science, and accelerator science;
(B) fundamental biological and computational science and
engineering, including computational neuroscience and
neuromorphic computing, including in collaboration with the
program authorized under section 306 of the Department of
Energy Research and Innovation Act (42 U.S.C. 18644);
(C) modeling and simulation, machine learning, artificial
intelligence, data assimilation, large-scale data analytics,
predictive analysis, and advanced computational, storage, and
networking capabilities in order to optimize algorithms for
purposes related to energy and climate;
(D) quantum information sciences, including quantum
computing and quantum network infrastructure, including in
collaboration with the programs authorized under sections 403
and 404 of the National Quantum Initiative Act (15 U.S.C.
8853 and 8854);
(E) energy and materials science and engineering, including
artificial photosynthesis, plasma, solar fuels, and fusion,
including in collaboration with the programs authorized under
sections 303 and 307 of the Department of Energy Research and
Innovation Act (42 U.S.C. 18641 and 18645), and section 973
of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16313);
(F) advanced manufacturing technologies, including
efficient storage systems and alternatives to high-
temperature processing, for the purposes of optimizing energy
consumption, including in collaboration with the program
authorized under section 975 of the Department of Energy
Research and Innovation Act (42 U.S.C. 16315);
(G) microelectronics, including novel chip architectures,
memory systems, and interconnects; and
(H) advanced physics, including high energy and particle
physics, accelerator research and development, and high
performance computational tools, including in collaboration
with the programs authorized under section 303 of the
Department of Energy Research and Innovation Act (42 U.S.C.
18641);
(2) promote collaboration, open community-based
development, and data and information sharing between Federal
agencies, National Laboratories, institutions of higher
education, nonprofit institutions, and other appropriate
entities by providing the necessary access and secure data
and information transfer capabilities;
(3) support research infrastructure, including new
facilities and equipment, as the Secretary and Director
determine necessary; and
(4) organize education, training, and research initiatives
relating to STEM education and workforce development,
including--
(A) internships, fellowships, and other research or work-
based learning opportunities;
(B) educational programming for students at all levels,
especially experiential and project-based learning
opportunities; and
(C) professional development opportunities for educators
and researchers.
(d) Agreements.--In carrying out the activities under
subsection (a), the Secretary and the Director are authorized
to--
(1) carry out reimbursable agreements between the
Department of Energy, the National Science Foundation, and
other entities in order to maximize the effectiveness of
research and development; and
(2) collaborate with other Federal agencies, as
appropriate.
(e) Report.--Not later than two years after the date of the
enactment of this section, the Secretary and the Director
shall submit to the Committee on Science, Space, and
Technology of the House of Representatives and the Committee
on Energy and Natural Resources and the Committee on
Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report
detailing the following:
(1) Interagency coordination between each Federal agency
involved in the research and development activities carried
out under this section.
(2) Potential opportunities to expand the technical
capabilities of the Department of Energy and the National
Science Foundation.
(3) Collaborative research achievements.
(4) Areas of future mutually beneficial successes.
(5) Continuation of coordination activities between the
Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation.
(f) Research Security.--The activities authorized under
this section shall be applied in a manner consistent with
subtitle D of title VI of the Research and Development,
Competition, and Innovation Act (enacted as division B of
Public Law 117-167; 42 U.S.C. 19231 et seq.).
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Oklahoma (Mr. Lucas) and the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lofgren)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Oklahoma.
General Leave
Mr. LUCAS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and
include extraneous material on H.R. 2980, the bill now under
consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Oklahoma?
There was no objection.
Mr. LUCAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2980, the DOE and NSF
Interagency Research Act. This bill supports the longstanding
partnership between the Department of Energy and the National Science
Foundation, allowing them to work on cutting-edge and research
technology challenges.
DOE is our Nation's largest supporter of basic research in the
physical sciences, while NSF is the backbone of the collaborative
research environment between government and academia.
Together, they can tackle some of the Nation's toughest challenges in
physics, quantum information sciences, artificial intelligence, and
material science.
The bill enhances both DOE and NSF's capacities and leverages each
other's investments in research and development, maximizing the impact
of our taxpayer dollars.
There has never been a more important time for this kind of
breakthrough research. The Chinese Communist Party has made no secret
of their goal to surpass us as the world leader in science and
technology.
They are attempting to outspend us, out-educate us, and outpace us in
everything from quantum computing to advanced manufacturing.
They know that the Nation that leads the way in technological
development sets the rules of the road and determines how that
technology will be used.
We simply cannot afford to live in a world where China is
technologically ahead of us. It is bad for our economy and dangerous
for our national security.
We must ensure our investments in research and development go as far
as possible. This bill helps us to do that.
By authorizing the collaboration between DOE and NSF, we are
maximizing our return on investments and ensuring we can stay on the
cutting edge of technological development.
I thank my colleagues, Representatives Stevens and Baird, for
introducing this important legislation and shepherding it through the
Science Committee where it passed unanimously.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I reserve
the balance of my time.
Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this bipartisan bill introduced by
Ms. Stevens and Mr. Baird authorizing collaborative research between
the Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation in
critical areas of our national competitiveness.
It builds on the longstanding partnership between these agencies to
leverage each other's investments and expertise in a wide range of
fields, including quantum science, artificial intelligence, fusion
energy, and advanced manufacturing.
Alongside these research partnerships, it also authorizes
collaborative initiatives in education and training and development of
a strong STEM workforce. We will not be able to succeed unless we have
the talented workforce to get the job done.
Lastly, it promotes secure data and information transfer capabilities
between both agencies to develop a shared, agile data ecosystem.
In a time when many emerging technologies are on our doorstep, it is
important that we empower our leading science agencies to work with
each other to capture these interdisciplinary opportunities.
Both NSF and DOE have an extensive history of joint activities such
as support for the development of the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, a
world-class tool for scientific discovery in astronomy.
The DOE and NSF Interagency Research Act strengthens the legislative
foundation that was set in the CHIPS and Science Act, and this enables
both agencies to foster a more collaborative
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research environment to maximize their collective impacts on our
Nation.
Mr. Speaker, for all of these reasons, I strongly urge all of my
colleagues to support this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. LUCAS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I reserve the
balance of my time.
Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, the Science Committee is blessed to have
many talented Members of Congress dedicated to science and our future.
One of them is one of the coauthors of this bill, a senior Member of
the committee and a talented Member of Congress.
Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman
from Michigan (Ms. Stevens).
Ms. STEVENS. Mr. Speaker, I thank Ranking Member Lofgren for her very
kind and generous words. I can only hope that my constituents in
Michigan hear the praise from the ranking member from the great State
of California for the work that we do together on the Science
Committee.
Certainly, it is a sincere privilege to be also joined on the floor
today with our chairman, Mr. Lucas, as he reminded us with the TRANQ
legislation that Ms. Caraveo and Mr. Williams will be the first Members
of the freshman class to get a bill signed into law for this term in
Congress.
It wasn't all too long ago when Dr. Baird and myself shared that same
distinction for the Building Blocks of STEM Act, the bill that we
passed through the Science Committee, through the House floor, and
alongside our colleagues in the Senate, getting it signed into law
on December 24th, 2019.
Suffice it to say, Dr. Baird and I were not at the White House for
the signing of the Building Blocks of STEM Act.
Today, Dr. Baird and I are pleased to offer the DOE and NSF Research
Interagency Act to the House floor, a bill that has already passed
through the Science Committee.
The Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation
represent some of our Nation's most cutting-edge research activities,
as has been shared by our committee leadership, supporting the
innovation that we require to solve our most pressing issues and remain
competitive on the world stage.
The DOE and NSF employees, in particular, are not necessarily in two
buildings that are right next to each other. They are in a similar
geographic area, but they do not share building space.
The employees and the funded researchers are world-renowned
scientific minds, and they are pushing on the door of what we think is
possible.
They are making science fiction a reality every single day, and we
encourage and implore their activities to proliferate, to manifest, and
to continue to come together, particularly on the heels of the CHIPS
and Science Act, a bill that many of us, including myself on the
Science Committee, helped to author and pass through into law just a
little over a year ago.
If we are going to achieve the goals of the CHIPS and Science Act
without the full funding, particularly for the NSF, we need this
legislation. We need the interagency efforts of DOE and NSF to come
together.
We will continue to promote cross functionality of research if it is
with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in fusion science, or if it
is combining the DOE's expertise in computational sciences, including
the scientific potential of the fastest supercomputers in the world.
What NSF is doing with artificial intelligence and machine learning
will continue to be key to unlocking the metrics needed to create safe
and trustworthy AI applications so the United States can continue to
lead in this innovation sector.
Combining NSF's material science expertise, which the United States
is in a phenomenal race to lead on, with the work being done across the
Department of Energy and the Ames National Laboratory on critical
minerals will be key not only to untangling our supply chains but in
creating a circular economy that promotes worker safety and
environmental protections while securing our economic prosperity,
energy independence, and national security for decades to come.
Lastly, combining the work that both agencies are doing with quantum
technologies will be key to unlocking the potential of this
revolutionary emerging technology, including for our manufacturers and
applications for cybersecurity.
These are just some of the examples of the amazing potential that
fostering a partnership between the Department of Energy and the
National Science Foundation will mean for our Nation and the next
generation, proving once again that Federal sciences are the key to our
Nation's future.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to
support this bill to push forward our Nation's scientific ecosystem and
bolster our competitiveness on the world stage.
Mr. LUCAS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I am
prepared to close.
Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. LUCAS. Mr. Speaker, once again, I rise in support of H.R. 2980,
the DOE and NSF Interagency Research Act.
This will accelerate U.S. competitiveness in emerging technology
areas and key economic sectors while enabling taxpayer dollars to be
used more efficiently, allowing more to be done with less.
I appreciate all the work done by my colleagues, Representatives
Stevens and Baird, and I urge my colleagues to support this bill.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Lucas) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, H.R. 2980, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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