[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 46 (Friday, March 7, 2008)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 12305-12312]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-4562]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Institute of Standards and Technology

15 CFR Part 296

[Docket No: 071106659-7661-01]
RIN 0693-AB59


Technology Innovation Program

AGENCY: National Institute of Standards and Technology, United States 
Department of Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Director of the National Institute of Standards and 
Technology (NIST), United States Department of Commerce, requests 
comments on proposed regulations which implement the Technology 
Innovation Program (TIP). The proposed rule prescribes policies and 
procedures for the award of financial assistance (grants and/or 
cooperative agreements) under TIP. In addition, NIST is revising the 
heading of Subchapter K of its regulations to accurately reflect the 
current contents of that subchapter.

DATES: Comments must be received no later than April 21, 2008.

ADDRESSES: Comments on the proposed regulations must be submitted in 
writing to: National Institute of Standards and Technology, Technology 
Innovation Program NPRM, 100 Bureau Drive, Mail Stop 4700, 
Gaithersburg, MD 20899-4700, or via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: 
www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Barbara Lambis via e-mail at 
[email protected] or telephone (301) 975-4447.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The America Creating Opportunities to

[[Page 12306]]

Meaningfully Promote Excellence in Technology, Education, and Sciences 
(COMPETES) Act, Public Law 110-69, was enacted on August 9, 2007, to 
invest in innovation through research and development and to improve 
the competitiveness of the United States. Section 3012 of the COMPETES 
Act established TIP for the purpose of assisting United States 
businesses and institutions of higher education or other organizations, 
such as national laboratories and nonprofit research institutions, to 
support, promote, and accelerate innovation in the United States 
through high-risk, high-reward research in areas of critical national 
need. High-risk, high-reward research is research that has the 
potential for yielding transformational results with far-ranging or 
wide-ranging implications; addresses areas of critical national need 
that support, promote, and accelerate innovation in the United States 
and is within NIST's areas of technical competence; and is too novel or 
spans too diverse a range of disciplines to fare well in the 
traditional peer review process. Section 3012(f) of the America 
COMPETES Act requires the NIST Director to promulgate regulations 
implementing the TIP.
    This notice solicits comments on proposed regulations for the TIP. 
When the comment period is concluded, NIST will analyze the comments 
received, incorporate comments as appropriate, and publish the final 
regulation.
    Examples of NIST's technical competencies are summarized on the 
NIST Web site at http://www.nist.gov/public_affairs/labs2.htm. 
However, this summary is not exhaustive and may not include all 
competencies required for NIST to respond to the diverse industry needs 
for measurement methods, tools, data, technology and standard reference 
materials. NIST competencies evolve as the recognition for the needs of 
measurement science in that area evolves. NIST competencies are more 
expansive than just the physical and engineering sciences. NIST 
translates its physical and engineering science competencies to meet 
the needs of emerging areas where scientific boundaries are advancing.
    For each TIP competition, the Program will solicit proposals 
through an announcement in the Federal Register. The notices will 
include a description of the areas of critical national need that will 
be addressed in that competition. Critical national need areas are 
those for which government attention is demanded because the magnitude 
of the problem is large and the societal challenges that need to be 
overcome are not being addressed. In determining which areas of 
critical national need will be addressed in a competition, TIP may 
solicit input from within NIST, from the TIP Advisory Board, and from 
the public. Information about the TIP Advisory Board may be found on 
the TIP Web site at http://www.nist.gov/tip. TIP may engage experts in 
scientific and technology policy to ensure that the areas of critical 
national need that will be considered are those that entail significant 
societal challenges that are not already being addressed by others and 
could be addressed through high-risk, high-reward research. Specific 
societal challenges within selected areas of critical national need 
will be the focus of TIP funding.
    In addition to information provided in the Federal Register 
announcement, TIP will post a Federal Funding Opportunity at the 
Grants.gov Web site at www.Grants.gov. TIP may also communicate 
information about the Program and the competition through means such as 
the publication of the Proposal Preparation Kit, public meetings, and 
posting information on the Program's Web site at http://www.nist.gov/tip. NIST notes the proposed rule, in section 296.22, requires that 
proposals must demonstrate that reasonable and thorough efforts have 
been made to secure funding from alternative funding sources and no 
other alternative funding sources are reasonably available. NIST seeks 
comment on how it should determine if such efforts have been made, what 
criteria NIST should examine in determining the reasonableness and 
thoroughness of such efforts, and what demonstrations applicants must 
make to satisfy such criteria.
    In addition, NIST is revising the heading of Subchapter K of its 
regulations to accurately reflect the current contents of that 
subchapter. The current heading of Subchapter K is ``Advanced 
Technology Program,'' but the subchapter contains regulations 
pertaining to that Program, the Hollings Manufacturing Extension 
Partnership Program, and now the TIP. The new heading of Subchapter K 
will be ``NIST Extramural Programs.''
    Request for Public Comment: Persons interested in commenting on the 
proposed regulations should submit their comments in writing to the 
above address. All comments received in response to this notice will 
become part of the public record and will be available for inspection 
and copying at the Department of Commerce Central Reference and Records 
Inspection Facility, Room 6228, Herbert C. Hoover Building, Washington, 
DC 20230.

Additional Information

Executive Order 12866

    This rulemaking is a significant regulatory action under Sections 
3(f)(3) and 3(f)(4) of Executive Order 12866, as it materially alters 
the budgetary impact of a grant program and raises novel policy issues. 
This rulemaking, however, is not an ``economically significant'' 
regulatory action under Section 3(f)(1) of the Executive Order, as it 
does not have an effect on the economy of $100 million or more in any 
one year, and it does not have a material adverse effect on the 
economy, a sector of the economy, productivity, competition, jobs, the 
environment, public health or safety, or State, local, or tribal 
governments or communities.

Executive Order 13132

    This rule does not contain policies with Federalism implications as 
defined in Executive Order 13132.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    Because notice and comment are not required under 5 U.S.C. 553, or 
any other law, the analytical requirements of the Regulatory 
Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) are inapplicable. As such, a 
regulatory flexibility analysis is not required, and none has been 
prepared.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    Notwithstanding any other provision of the law, no person is 
required to, nor shall any person be subject to penalty for failure to 
comply with, a collection of information, subject to the requirements 
of the Paperwork Reduction Act, unless that collection of information 
displays a currently valid Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
Control Number.
    This proposed rule does not contain collection of information 
requirements subject to review and approval by OMB under the Paperwork 
Reduction Act (PRA). The TIP Proposal Preparation Kit, which contains 
all necessary forms and information requirements, will be submitted to 
OMB for approval. The OMB Control Number for the information collection 
requirements will be published in all Federal Register notices 
soliciting proposals under the Program.

National Environmental Policy Act

    This rule will not significantly affect the quality of the human 
environment. Therefore, an environmental assessment or Environmental 
Impact Statement is not required to be prepared under the

[[Page 12307]]

National Environmental Policy Act of 1969.

List of Subjects in 15 CFR Part 296

    Business and industry; grant programs--science and technology; 
Inventions and patents; Reporting and recordkeeping requirements; 
Research; Science and technology.

    Dated: March 3, 2008.
Richard F. Kayser,
Acting Deputy Director.
    For reasons set forth in the preamble, under the authority of 15 
U.S.C. 278n (Pub. L. 110-69 section 3012), it is proposed that title 15 
of the Code of Federal Regulations be amended as follows:
    1. The heading of chapter II, subchapter K is revised to read as 
follows:

Subchapter K--NIST Extramural Programs

    2. In 15 CFR chapter II, subchapter K, add a new part 296 as 
follows:

PART 296--TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION PROGRAM

Subpart A--General
Sec.
296.1 Purpose.
296.2 Definitions.
296.3 Types of assistance available.
296.4 Limitations on assistance.
296.5 Eligibility requirements for companies and joint ventures.
296.6 Valuation of transfers.
296.7 Joint venture registration.
296.8 Joint venture agreement.
296.9 Activities not permitted for joint ventures.
296.10 Third party in-kind contribution of research services.
296.11 Intellectual property rights.
296.12 Reporting and auditing requirements.
Subpart B--The Competition Process
296.20 The Selection process.
296.21 Evaluation criteria.
296.22 Award criteria.
Subpart C--Monitoring, Evaluation and Dissemination of Program Results
296.30 Monitoring and evaluation.
296.31 Dissemination of results.
296.32 Technical and educational services.
296.33 Annual report.

    Authority: 15 U.S.C. 278n (Pub. L.110-69 section 3012).

Subpart A--General


296.1  Purpose.

    (a) The purpose of the Technology Innovation Program (TIP) is to 
assist United States businesses and institutions of higher education or 
other organizations, such as national laboratories and nonprofit 
research institutes, to support, promote, and accelerate innovation in 
the United States through high-risk, high-reward research in areas of 
critical national need within NIST's areas of technical competence.
    (b) The rules in this part prescribe policies and procedures for 
the award and administration of financial assistance (grants and/or 
cooperative agreements) under the TIP. While the TIP is authorized to 
enter into grants, cooperative agreements, and contracts to carry out 
the TIP mission, the rules in this part address only the award of 
grants and/or cooperative agreements.


296.2  Definitions.

    (a) The term award means Federal financial assistance made under a 
grant or cooperative agreement.
    (b) The term business or company means a for-profit organization, 
including sole proprietors, partnerships, limited liability companies 
(LLCs), and corporations.
    (c) The term contract means a procurement contract under an award 
or subaward, and a procurement subcontract under a recipient's or 
subrecipient's contract.
    (d) The term contractor means the legal entity to which a contract 
is made and which is accountable to the recipient, subrecipient, or 
contractor making the contract for the use of the funds provided.
    (e) The term cooperative agreement refers to a Federal assistance 
instrument used whenever the principal purpose of the relationship 
between the Federal government and the recipient is to transfer 
something of value, such as money, property, or services to the 
recipient to accomplish a public purpose of support or stimulation 
authorized by Federal statute instead of acquiring (by purchase, lease, 
or barter) property or services for the direct benefit or use of the 
Federal government; and substantial involvement is anticipated between 
the Federal government and the recipient during performance of the 
contemplated activity.
    (f) The term critical national need means an area that demands 
government attention because the magnitude of the problem is large and 
the societal challenges that need to be overcome are not being 
addressed, but could be addressed through high-risk, high-reward 
research.
    (g) The term direct costs means costs that can be identified 
readily with activities carried out in support of a particular final 
objective. A cost may not be allocated to an award as a direct cost if 
any other cost incurred for the same purpose in like circumstances has 
been assigned to an award as an indirect cost. Because of the diverse 
characteristics and accounting practices of different organizations, it 
is not possible to specify the types of costs which may be classified 
as direct costs in all situations. However, typical direct costs could 
include salaries of personnel working on the TIP project, travel, 
equipment, materials and supplies, subcontracts, and other costs not 
categorized in the preceding examples. NIST shall determine the 
allowability of direct costs in accordance with applicable Federal cost 
principles.
    (h) The term Director means the Director of the National Institute 
of Standards and Technology (NIST).
    (i) The term eligible company means a small-sized or medium-sized 
business or company that satisfies the ownership and other requirements 
stated in this part.
    (j) The term grant means a Federal assistance instrument used 
whenever the principal purpose of the relationship between the Federal 
government and the recipient is to transfer something of value, such as 
money, property, or services to the recipient to accomplish a public 
purpose of support or stimulation authorized by Federal statute instead 
of acquiring (by purchase, lease, or barter) property or services for 
the direct benefit or use of the Federal government; and no substantial 
involvement is anticipated between the Federal government and the 
recipient during performance of the contemplated activity.
    (k) The term high-risk, high-reward research means research that:
    (1) has the potential for yielding transformational results with 
far-ranging or wide-ranging implications;
    (2) addresses areas of critical national need that support, 
promote, and accelerate innovation in the United States and is within 
NIST's areas of technical competence; and
    (3) is too novel or spans too diverse a range of disciplines to 
fare well in the traditional peer-review process.
    (l) The term indirect costs means those costs incurred for common 
or joint objectives that cannot be readily identified with activities 
carried out in support of a particular final objective. A cost may not 
be allocated to an award as an indirect cost if any other cost incurred 
for the same purpose in like circumstances has been assigned to an 
award as a direct cost. Because of diverse characteristics and 
accounting practices it is not possible to specify the types of costs 
which may be classified as indirect costs in all situations.

[[Page 12308]]

However, typical examples of indirect costs include general 
administration expenses, such as the salaries and expenses of executive 
officers, personnel administration, maintenance, library expenses, and 
accounting. NIST shall determine the allowability of indirect costs in 
accordance with applicable Federal cost principles.
    (m) The term institution of higher education means an educational 
institution in any State that--
    (1) admits as regular students only persons having a certificate of 
graduation from a school providing secondary education, or the 
recognized equivalent of such a certificate;
    (2) is legally authorized within such State to provide a program of 
education beyond secondary education;
    (3) provides an educational program for which the institution 
awards a bachelor's degree or provides not less than a 2-year program 
that is acceptable for full credit toward such a degree;
    (4) is a public or other nonprofit institution; and
    (5) is accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency or 
association, or if not so accredited, is an institution that has been 
granted preaccreditation status by such an agency or association that 
has been recognized by the Secretary of Education for the granting of 
preaccreditation status, and the Secretary of Education has determined 
that there is satisfactory assurance that the institution will meet the 
accreditation standards of such an agency or association within a 
reasonable time (20 U.S.C. 1001). For the purpose of this paragraph (l) 
only, the term State includes, in addition to the several States of the 
United States, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the District of 
Columbia, Guam, American Samoa, the United States Virgin Islands, the 
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Freely Associated 
States. The term Freely Associated States means the Republic of the 
Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Republic 
of Palau.
    (n) The term intellectual property means an invention patentable 
under title 35, United States Code, or any patent on such an invention, 
or any work for which copyright protection is available under title 17, 
United States Code.
    (o) The term joint venture means a business arrangement that:
    (1) includes either:
    (i) at least two separately owned companies that are both 
substantially involved in the project and both of which are 
contributing to the cost-sharing required under the TIP statute, with 
the lead company of the joint venture being an eligible company; or
    (ii) at least one eligible company and one institution of higher 
education or other organization, such as a national laboratory, 
governmental laboratory (not including NIST), or nonprofit research 
institute, that are both substantially involved in the project and both 
of which are contributing to the cost-sharing required under the TIP 
statute, with the lead entity of the joint venture being either the 
eligible company or the institution of higher education; and
    (2) may include additional for-profit companies, institutions of 
higher education, and other organizations, such as national 
laboratories and nonprofit research institutes, that may or may not 
contribute non-Federal funds to the project.
    (p) The term large-sized business means any business, including any 
parent company plus related subsidiaries, having annual revenues in 
excess of the amount published by the Program in the relevant Federal 
Register notice of availability of funds in accordance with Sec.  
296.20. In establishing this amount, the Program may consider the 
dollar value of the total revenues of the 1000th company in Fortune 
magazine's Fortune 1000 listing.
    (q) The term matching funds or cost sharing means that portion of 
project costs not borne by the Federal government. Sources of revenue 
to satisfy the required cost share include cash and third party in-kind 
contributions. Cash may be contributed by any non-Federal source, 
including but not limited to recipients, state and local governments, 
companies, and nonprofits (except contractors working on a TIP 
project). Third party in-kind contributions include but are not limited 
to equipment, research tools, software, supplies, and/or services. The 
value of in-kind contributions shall be determined in accordance with 
Sec.  14.23 of this title and will be prorated according to the share 
of total use dedicated to the TIP project. NIST shall determine the 
allowability of matching share costs in accordance with applicable 
Federal cost principles.
    (r) The term medium-sized business means any business that does not 
qualify as a small-sized business or a large-sized business under the 
definitions in this section.
    (s) The term member means any entity that is identified as a joint 
venture member in the award and is a signatory on the joint venture 
agreement required by Sec.  296.8.
    (t) The term nonprofit research institute means a nonprofit 
research and development entity or association organized under the laws 
of any state for the purpose of carrying out research and development.
    (u) The term participant means any entity that is identified as a 
recipient, subrecipient, or contractor on an award to a joint venture 
under the Program.
    (v) The term person will be deemed to include corporations and 
associations existing under or authorized by the laws of the United 
States, the laws of any of the Territories, the laws of any State, or 
the laws of any foreign country.
    (w) The term Program or TIP means the Technology Innovation 
Program.
    (x) The term recipient means an organization receiving an award 
directly from NIST under the Program.
    (y) The term small-sized business means a business that is 
independently owned and operated, is organized for profit, has fewer 
than 500 employees, and meets the other requirements found in 13 CFR 
part 121.
    (z) The term societal challenge means a problem or issue confronted 
by society that when not addressed could negatively affect the overall 
function and quality of life of the nation, and as such demands 
government attention.
    (aa) Except for the use of the term State for the limited purpose 
described in paragraph (l) of this section, the term State means any of 
the several States of the United States, the District of Columbia, the 
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and any territory or possession of the 
United States, or any agency or instrumentality of a State exclusive of 
local governments. The term does not include any public and Indian 
housing agency under the United States Housing Act of 1937.
    (bb) The term subaward means an award of financial assistance made 
under an award by a recipient to an eligible subrecipient or by a 
subrecipient to a lower tier subrecipient. The term includes financial 
assistance when provided by any legal agreement, even if the legal 
agreement is called a contract, but does not include procurement of 
goods and services.
    (cc) The term subrecipient means the legal entity to which a 
subaward is made and which is accountable to the recipient for the use 
of the funds provided.
    (dd) The term transformational results means potential project 
outcomes that enable disruptive changes over and above current methods 
and strategies. Transformational results have the potential to 
radically improve our understanding of systems and technologies, 
challenging the status quo

[[Page 12309]]

of research approaches and applications.
    (ee) The term United States owned company means a for-profit 
organization, including sole proprietors, partnerships, limited 
liability companies (LLCs), and corporations, that has a majority 
ownership by individuals who are citizens of the United States.


Sec.  296.3  Types of assistance available.

    Subject to the limitations of this section and Sec.  296.4, 
assistance under this part is available to eligible companies or joint 
ventures that request either of the following:
    (a) Single Company Awards: No award given to a single company shall 
exceed a total of $3,000,000 over a total of 3 years.
    (b) Joint Venture Awards: No award given to a joint venture shall 
exceed a total of $9,000,000 over a total of 5 years.


Sec.  296.4  Limitations on assistance.

    (a) The Federal share of a project funded under the Program shall 
not be more than 50 percent of total project costs.
    (b) Federal funds awarded under this Program may be used only for 
direct costs and not for indirect costs, profits, or management fees.
    (c) No large-sized business may receive funding as a recipient or 
subrecipient of an award under the Program. When procured in accordance 
with procedures established under the Procurement Standards required by 
part 14 of chapter I of this title, recipients may procure supplies and 
other expendable property, equipment, real property and other services 
from any party, including large-sized businesses.
    (d) If a project ends before the completion of the period for which 
an award has been made, after all allowable costs have been paid and 
appropriate audits conducted, the unspent balance of the Federal funds 
shall be returned by the recipient to the Program.


Sec.  296.5  Eligibility requirements for companies and joint ventures.

    Companies and joint ventures must be eligible in order to receive 
funding under the Program and must remain eligible throughout the life 
of their awards.
    (a) A company shall be eligible to receive an award from the 
Program only if:
    (1) The company is a small-sized or medium-sized business that is 
incorporated in the United States and does a majority of its business 
in the United States; and
    (2) Either
    (i) The company is a United States owned company; or
    (ii) The company is owned by a parent company incorporated in 
another country and the Program finds that:
    (A) the company's participation in TIP would be in the economic 
interest of the United States, as evidenced by investments in the 
United States in research, development, and manufacturing (including, 
for example, the manufacture of major components or subassemblies in 
the United States); significant contributions to employment in the 
United States; and agreement with respect to any technology arising 
from assistance provided by the Program to promote the manufacture 
within the United States of products resulting from that technology, 
and to procure parts and materials from competitive United States 
suppliers; and
    (B) that the parent company is incorporated in a country which 
affords to United States-owned companies opportunities, comparable to 
those afforded to any other company, to participate in any joint 
venture similar to those authorized to receive funding under the 
Program; affords to United States-owned companies local investment 
opportunities comparable to those afforded to any other company; and 
affords adequate and effective protection for the intellectual property 
rights of United States-owned companies.
    (b) NIST may suspend a company or joint venture from continued 
assistance if it determines that the company, the country of 
incorporation of the company or a parent company, or any member of the 
joint venture has failed to satisfy any of the criteria contained in 
paragraph (a) of this section, and that it is in the national interest 
of the United States to do so.
    (c) Members of joint ventures that are companies must be 
incorporated in the United States and do a majority of their business 
in the United States and must comply with the requirements of paragraph 
(a)(2) of this section. For a joint venture to be eligible for 
assistance, it must be comprised as defined in Sec.  296.2(o).


Sec.  296.6  Valuation of transfers.

    (a) This section applies to transfers of goods, including computer 
software, and services provided by the transferor related to the 
maintenance of those goods, when those goods or services are 
transferred from one joint venture member to another separately-owned 
joint venture member.
    (b) The greater amount of the actual cost of the transferred goods 
and services as determined in accordance with applicable Federal cost 
principles, or 75 percent of the best customer price of the transferred 
goods and services, shall be deemed to be allowable costs. Best 
customer price means the GSA schedule price, or if such price is 
unavailable, the lowest price at which a sale was made during the last 
twelve months prior to the transfer of the particular good or service.


Sec.  296.7  Joint venture registration.

    Joint ventures selected for assistance under the Program must 
notify the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission under 
section 6 of the National Cooperative Research Act of 1984, as amended 
(15 U.S.C. 4305). No funds will be released prior to receipt by the 
Program of copies of such notification.


Sec.  296.8  Joint venture agreement.

    NIST shall not issue a TIP award to a joint venture and no costs 
shall be incurred under a TIP project by the joint venture members 
until such time as a joint venture agreement has been executed by all 
of the joint venture members and approved by NIST.


Sec.  296.9  Activities not permitted for joint ventures.

    The following activities are not permissible for TIP-funded joint 
ventures:
    (a) exchanging information among competitors relating to costs, 
sales, profitability, prices, marketing, or distribution of any 
product, process, or service that is not reasonably required to conduct 
the research and development that is the purpose of such venture;
    (b) entering into any agreement or engaging in any other conduct 
restricting, requiring, or otherwise involving the marketing, 
distribution, or provision by any person who is a party to such joint 
venture of any product, process, or service, other than the 
distribution among the parties to such venture, in accordance with such 
venture, of a product, process, or service produced by such venture, 
the marketing of proprietary information, such as patents and trade 
secrets, developed through such venture, or the licensing, conveying, 
or transferring of intellectual property, such as patents and trade 
secrets, developed through such venture; and
    (c) entering into any agreement or engaging in any other conduct:
    (1) to restrict or require the sale, licensing, or sharing of 
inventions or developments not developed through such venture; or

[[Page 12310]]

    (2) To restrict or require participation by such party in other 
research and development activities, that is not reasonably required to 
prevent misappropriation of proprietary information contributed by any 
person who is a party to such venture or of the results of such 
venture.


Sec.  296.10  Third party in-kind contribution of research services.

    NIST shall not issue a TIP award to a single recipient or joint 
venture whose proposed budget includes the use of third party in-kind 
contribution of research as cost share, and no costs shall be incurred 
under such a TIP project, until such time as an agreement between the 
recipient and the third party contributor of in-kind research has been 
executed by both parties and approved by NIST.


Sec.  296.11  Intellectual property rights and procedures.

    (a) Rights in Data. Except as otherwise specifically provided for 
in an award, authors may copyright any work that is subject to 
copyright and was developed under an award. When claim is made to 
copyright, the applicable copyright notice of 17 U.S.C. 401 or 402 and 
acknowledgment of Federal government sponsorship shall be affixed to 
the work when and if the work is delivered to the Federal government, 
is published, or is deposited for registration as a published work in 
the U.S. Copyright Office. The copyright owner shall grant to the 
Federal government, and others acting on its behalf, a paid up, 
nonexclusive, irrevocable, worldwide license for all such works to 
reproduce, publish, or otherwise use the work for Federal purposes.
    (b) Invention Rights. (1) Ownership of inventions developed from 
assistance provided by the Program under Sec.  296.3(a) shall be 
governed by the requirements of chapter 18 of title 35 of the United 
States Code.
    (2) Ownership of inventions developed from assistance provided by 
the Program under Sec.  296.3(b) may vest in any participant in the 
joint venture, as agreed by the members of the joint venture, 
notwithstanding Sec.  202 (a) and (b) of Title 35, United States Code. 
Title to any such invention shall not be transferred or passed, except 
to a participant in the joint venture, until the expiration of the 
first patent obtained in connection with such invention. In accordance 
with Sec.  296.8, joint ventures will provide to NIST a copy of their 
written agreement that defines the disposition of ownership rights 
among the participants of the joint venture, including the principles 
governing the disposition of intellectual property developed by 
contractors and subcontractors, as appropriate, and that complies with 
these regulations.
    (3) The United States reserves a nonexclusive, nontransferable, 
irrevocable paid-up license, to practice or have practiced for or on 
behalf of the United States any inventions developed using assistance 
under this section, but shall not in the exercise of such license 
publicly disclose proprietary information related to the license. 
Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to prohibit the licensing 
to any company of intellectual property rights arising from assistance 
provided under this section.
    (4) Should the participants in a joint venture cease to exist prior 
to the expiration of the first patent obtained in connection with any 
invention developed from assistance provided under the Program, in the 
course of the bankruptcy or other dissolution process for the last 
participant of the joint venture, title to such patent may be 
transferred or passed to a United States entity that can commercialize 
the technology in a timely fashion.
    (c) Patent Procedures. Each award by the Program will include 
provisions assuring the retention of a governmental use license in each 
disclosed invention, and the government's retention of march-in rights. 
In addition, each award by the Program will contain procedures 
regarding reporting of subject inventions by the recipient through the 
Interagency Edison extramural invention reporting system (iEdison), 
including the subject inventions of recipients, including members of 
the joint venture (if applicable), subrecipients, and contractors of 
the recipient or joint venture members.


Sec.  296.12  Reporting and auditing requirements.

    Each award by the Program shall contain procedures regarding 
technical, business, and financial reporting and auditing requirements 
to ensure that awards are being used in accordance with the Program's 
objectives and applicable Federal cost principles. The purpose of the 
technical reporting is to monitor ``best effort'' progress toward 
overall project goals. The purpose of the business reporting is to 
monitor project performance against the Program's mission as required 
by the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) mandate for 
program evaluation. The purpose of the financial reporting is to 
monitor the status of project funds. The audit standards to be applied 
to TIP awards are the ``Government Auditing Standards'' (GAS) issued by 
the Comptroller General of the United States and any Program-specific 
audit guidelines or requirements prescribed in the award terms and 
conditions. To implement paragraph (f) of Sec.  14.25, Revision of 
budget and program plans, of this title, audit standards and award 
terms may stipulate that ``total Federal and non-Federal funds 
authorized by the Grants Officer'' means the total Federal and non-
Federal funds authorized by the Grants Officer annually.

Subpart B--The Competition Process


Sec.  296.20  The selection process.

    (a) To begin a competition, the Program will solicit proposals 
through an announcement in the Federal Register, which will contain 
information regarding that competition, including the areas of critical 
national need that proposals must address. An Evaluation Panel(s) will 
be established to evaluate proposals and ensure that all proposals 
receive careful consideration.
    (b) A preliminary review will be conducted to determine whether the 
proposal:
    (1) Is in accordance with Sec.  296.3, Types of Assistance 
Available;
    (2) Complies with either paragraph (a) or paragraph (c) of Sec.  
296.5, Eligibility Requirements for Companies and Joint Ventures;
    (3) Addresses the award criteria of paragraphs (a) through (c) of 
Sec.  296.22, Award Criteria;
    (4) Was submitted to a previous TIP competition and if so, has been 
substantially revised; and
    (5) Is complete.
    Complete proposals that meet the preliminary review requirements 
described above will be considered further. Proposals that are 
incomplete or do not meet any one of these preliminary review 
requirements will normally be eliminated.
    (c) The Evaluation Panel(s) will then conduct a multi-disciplinary 
peer review of the remaining proposals based on the evaluation criteria 
listed in Sec.  296.21 and the award criteria listed in Sec.  296.22. 
In some cases NIST may conduct oral reviews and/or site visits. The 
Evaluation Panel(s) will present funding recommendations to the 
Selecting Official in rank order for further consideration. The 
Evaluation Panel(s) will not recommend for further consideration any 
proposal determined not to meet all of the eligibility and award 
requirements of this part and the Federal Register notice announcing 
the availability of funds.
    (d) In making final selections, the Selecting Official will select 
funding

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recipients based upon the Evaluation Panel's rank order of the 
proposals and the following selection factors: assuring an appropriate 
distribution of funds among technologies and their applications, 
availability of funds, and/or Program priorities. The selection of 
proposals by the Selecting Official is final.
    (e) NIST reserves the right to negotiate the cost and scope of the 
proposed work with the proposers that have been selected to receive 
awards. This may include requesting that the proposer delete from the 
scope of work a particular task that is deemed by NIST to be 
inappropriate for support against the evaluation criteria. NIST also 
reserves the right to reject a proposal where information is uncovered 
that raises a reasonable doubt as to the responsibility of the 
proposer. The final approval of selected proposals and award of 
assistance will be made by the NIST Grants Officer as described in the 
Federal Register notice announcing the competition. The award decision 
of the NIST Grants Officer is final.


Sec.  296.21  Evaluation criteria.

    A proposal must be determined to be competitive against the 
Evaluation Criteria set forth in this section to receive funding under 
the Program. Additionally, no proposal will be funded unless the 
Program determines that it has scientific and technical merit and that 
the proposed research has strong potential for meeting identified areas 
of critical national need.
    (a) The proposer(s) adequately addresses the scientific and 
technical merit and how the research may result in intellectual 
property vesting in a United States entity including evidence that:
    (1) The proposed research is novel;
    (2) The proposed research is high-risk, high-reward;
    (3) The proposer(s) demonstrates a high level of relevant 
scientific/technical expertise for key personnel, including contractors 
and/or informal collaborators, and have access to the necessary 
resources, for example research facilities, equipment, materials, and 
data, to conduct the research as proposed;
    (4) The research result(s) has the potential to address the 
technical needs associated with a major societal challenge not 
currently being addressed; and
    (5) The proposed research plan is scientifically sound with tasks, 
milestones, timeline, decision points and alternate strategies.
    Total weight of (a)(1) through (5) is 50%.
    (b) The proposer(s) adequately establishes that the proposed 
research has strong potential for advancing the state-of-the-art and 
contributing significantly to the United States science and technology 
base and to address areas of critical national need through 
transforming the Nation's capacity to deal with a major societal 
challenge(s) that is not currently being addressed, and generate 
substantial benefits to the Nation that extend significantly beyond the 
direct return to the proposer including an explanation in the proposal:
    (1) Of the potential magnitude of transformational results upon the 
Nation's capabilities in an area;
    (2) Of how and when the ensuing transformational results will be 
useful to the Nation; and
    (3) Of the capacity and commitment of each award participant to 
enable or advance the transformation to the proposed research results 
(technology).
    Total weight of (b)(1) through (3) is 50%.


Sec.  296.22  Award criteria.

    NIST must determine that a proposal successfully meets all of the 
Award Criteria set forth in this section for the proposal to receive 
funding under the Program. The Award Criteria are:
    (a) The proposal explains why TIP support is necessary, including 
evidence that the research will not be conducted within a reasonable 
time period in the absence of financial assistance from TIP;
    (b) The proposal demonstrates that reasonable and thorough efforts 
have been made to secure funding from alternative funding sources and 
no other alternative funding sources are reasonably available to 
support the proposal;
    (c) The proposal explains the novelty of the research (technology) 
and demonstrates that other entities have not already developed, 
commercialized, marketed, distributed, or sold similar research results 
(technologies);
    (d) The proposal establishes that the research has strong potential 
for advancing the state-of-the-art and contributing significantly to 
the United States science and technology knowledge base;
    (e) The proposal has scientific and technical merit and may result 
in intellectual property vesting in a United States entity that can 
commercialize the technology in a timely manner; and
    (f) The proposal establishes that the proposed transformational 
research (technology) has strong potential to address areas of critical 
national need through transforming the Nation's capacity to deal with 
major societal challenges that are not currently being addressed, and 
generate substantial benefits to the Nation that extend significantly 
beyond the direct return to the proposer.

Subpart C--Dissemination of Program Results


Sec.  296.30  Monitoring and evaluation.

    The Program will provide monitoring and evaluation of areas of 
critical national need and its investments through periodic analyses. 
It will develop methods and metrics for assessing impact at all stages. 
These analyses will contribute to the establishment and adoption of 
best practices.


Sec.  296.31  Dissemination of results.

    Results stemming from the analyses required by Sec.  296.30 will be 
disseminated in periodic working papers, fact sheets, and meetings, 
which will address the progress that the Program has made from both a 
project and a portfolio perspective. Such disseminated results will 
serve to educate both external constituencies as well as internal 
audiences on research results, best practices, and recommended changes 
to existing operations based on solid analysis.


Sec.  296.32  Technical and educational services.

    (a) Under the Federal Technology Transfer Act of 1986, NIST has the 
authority to enter into cooperative research and development agreements 
with non-Federal parties to provide personnel, services, facilities, 
equipment, or other resources except funds toward the conduct of 
specified research or development efforts which are consistent with the 
missions of the laboratory. In turn, NIST has the authority to accept 
funds, personnel, services, facilities, equipment and other resources 
from the non-Federal party or parties for the joint research effort. 
Cooperative research and development agreements do not include 
procurement contracts or cooperative agreements as those terms are used 
in sections 6303, 6304, and 6305 of Title 31, United States Code.
    (b) In no event will NIST enter into a cooperative research and 
development agreement with a recipient of an award under the Program 
which provides for the payment of Program funds from the award 
recipient to NIST.
    (c) From time to time, TIP may conduct public workshops and 
undertake other educational activities to foster the collaboration of 
funding Recipients with other funding resources

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for purposes of further development and diffusion of TIP-related 
technologies. In no event will TIP provide recommendations, 
endorsements, or approvals of any TIP funding Recipients to any outside 
party.


Sec.  296.33  Annual report.

    The Director shall submit annually to the Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Science 
and Technology of the House of Representatives a report describing the 
Technology Innovation Program's activities, including a description of 
the metrics upon which award funding decisions were made in the 
previous fiscal year, any proposed changes to those metrics, metrics 
for evaluating the success of ongoing and completed awards, and an 
evaluation of ongoing and completed awards. The first annual report 
shall include best practices for management of programs to stimulate 
high-risk, high-reward research.

[FR Doc. E8-4562 Filed 3-6-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-13-P