National Institute of Standards and Technology Authorization Act of 1999

Summary: National Institute of Standards and Technology Authorization Act of 1999 - Authorizes appropriations for FY 2000 and 2001 to the Secretary of Commerce for: (1) the Scientific and Technical Research and Services laboratory activities of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST); (2) the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Program; (3) construction and maintenance of NIST facilities; (4) activities of the Under Secretary for Technology and the Office of Technology Policy; and (5) Industrial Technology Services activities of NIST.  Prohibits funds authorized for construction of NIST facilities in FY 2001 from being obligated unless the Secretary of Commerce has certified to the House Science Committee and the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee that the obligation of funds is consistent with a plan for meeting NIST's facility needs that the Secretary has transmitted to those committees. 
Authorizes appropriations for FY 2000 to the Secretary of Commerce for the National Technical Information Service. 
Amends the National Institute of Standards and Technology Act with respect to the Advanced Technology Program (ATP), including to: (1) allow the Secretary, acting through the NIST Director (the Director), to participate in industry-led U.S. joint research and development ventures (joint ventures) if such participation is appropriate (current law) and the non-Federal participants in such a joint venture agree to pay at least 60 percent of the total costs during a Federal participation period that shall not exceed five years; (2) eliminate provisions providing that Federal participation by means of grants, cooperative agreements, or contracts may include provision of a minority share of such joint ventures costs for up to five years; (3) require that grant recipients (other than small businesses) provide at least 60 percent of project costs; and (4) require research projects to be of a nature and scope that would not be pursued in a timely manner without Federal assistance.  Authorizes the Secretary, acting through the Director, to vest title to tangible personal property in any recipient of financial assistance under the ATP if: (1) the property is purchased with ATP funds; and (2) the vesting of such property furthers NIST's objectives. 
Vests title to intellectual property arising from ATP assistance in a company or companies incorporated in the United States (current law) or any other participant in a joint venture receiving financial assistance under the ATP, as agreed by the parties. 
Requires the Director to exclude from consideration for grant agreements made by NIST after FY 1999 any person who received funds (other than due to membership in a class specified by law for which assistance is awarded to class members according to a formula) appropriated for a fiscal year after FY 1999 under a grant agreement from any Federal funding source for a project that was not subjected to a competitive, merit-based award process, except as specifically authorized by this Act.  Makes such an exclusion effective for a period of five years after receipt of such Federal funds.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``National Institute of Standards and 
Technology Authorization Act of 1999''.

SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL 
              RESEARCH AND SERVICES.

    (a) Laboratory Activities.--There are authorized to be appropriated 
to the Secretary of Commerce for the Scientific and Technical Research 
and Services laboratory activities of the National Institute of 
Standards and Technology--
            (1) $274,513,000 for fiscal year 2000, of which--
                    (A) $39,960,000 shall be for Electronics and 
                Electrical Engineering;
                    (B) $17,916,000 shall be for Manufacturing 
                Engineering;
                    (C) $34,061,000 shall be for Chemical Science and 
                Technology;
                    (D) $29,569,000 shall be for Physics;
                    (E) $53,093,000 shall be for Material Science and 
                Engineering;
                    (F) $13,817,000 shall be for Building and Fire 
                Research;
                    (G) $37,058,000 shall be for Computer Science and 
                Applied Mathematics;
                    (H) $17,636,000 shall be for Technical Assistance; 
                and
                    (I) $31,403,000 shall be for Research Support; and
            (2) $285,152,000 for fiscal year 2001.
    (b) Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Program.--There are 
authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Commerce for the 
Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Program under section 17 of the 
Stevenson-Wydler Technology Innovation Act of 1980 (15 U.S.C. 3711a)--
            (1) $5,100,000 for fiscal year 2000; and
            (2) $5,100,000 for fiscal year 2001.
    (c) Construction and Maintenance.--(1) There are authorized to be 
appropriated to the Secretary of Commerce for construction and 
maintenance of facilities of the National Institute of Standards and 
Technology--
            (A) $106,800,000 for fiscal year 2000; and
            (B) $31,800,000 for fiscal year 2001.
    (2) None of the funds authorized by paragraph (1)(B) for 
construction of facilities may be obligated unless the Secretary of 
Commerce has certified to the Committee on Science of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate that the obligation of funds is consistent 
with a plan for meeting the facilities needs of the National Institute 
of Standards and Technology that the Secretary has transmitted to those 
committees.

SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE OFFICE OF THE UNDER 
              SECRETARY FOR TECHNOLOGY.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of 
Commerce for the activities of the Under Secretary for Technology and 
the Office of Technology Policy--
            (1) $7,500,000 for fiscal year 2000; and
            (2) $7,500,000 for fiscal year 2001.

SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR INDUSTRIAL TECHNOLOGY 
              SERVICES.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of 
Commerce for the Industrial Technology Services activities of the 
National Institute of Standards and Technology--
            (1) $297,500,000 for fiscal year 2000, of which--
                    (A) $190,700,000 shall be for the Advanced 
                Technology Program under section 28 of the National 
                Institute of Standards and Technology Act (15 U.S.C. 
                278n); and
                    (B) $106,800,000 shall be for the Manufacturing 
                Extension Partnerships program under sections 25 and 26 
of the National Institute of Standards and Technology Act (15 U.S.C. 
278k and 278l); and
            (2) $256,700,000 for fiscal year 2001, of which--
                    (A) $149,900,000 shall be for the Advanced 
                Technology Program under section 28 of the National 
                Institute of Standards and Technology Act (15 U.S.C. 
                278n); and
                    (B) $106,800,000 shall be for the Manufacturing 
                Extension Partnerships program under sections 25 and 26 
                of the National Institute of Standards and Technology 
                Act (15 U.S.C. 278k and 278l).

SEC. 5. NATIONAL TECHNICAL INFORMATION SERVICE.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of 
Commerce for the National Technical Information Service $2,000,000 for 
fiscal year 2000.

SEC. 6. NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF STANDARDS AND TECHNOLOGY ACT AMENDMENTS.

    (a) Amendments.--Section 28 of the National Institute of Standards 
and Technology Act (15 U.S.C. 278n) is amended--
            (1) by inserting ``and if the non-Federal participants in 
        the joint venture agree to pay at least 60 percent of the total 
        costs of the joint venture during the Federal participation 
        period under this section, which shall not exceed 5 years,'' in 
        subsection (b)(1)(B) after ``participation to be 
        appropriate,'';
            (2) by striking ``(ii) provision of a minority share of the 
        cost of such joint ventures for up to 5 years, and (iii)'' in 
        subsection (b)(1)(B), and inserting in lieu thereof ``and 
        (ii)'';
            (3) by striking ``, provided that emphasis is'' in 
        subsection (b)(2) and inserting in lieu thereof ``on the 
        condition that grant recipients (other than small businesses 
        within the meaning of the Small Business Act) provide at least 
        60 percent of the costs of the project, with emphasis'';
            (4) in subsection (d)(1), by inserting ``and be of a nature 
        and scope that would not be pursued in a timely manner without 
        Federal assistance'' after ``technical merit''; and
            (5) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(k) The Secretary, acting through the Director, may vest title to 
tangible personal property in any recipient of financial assistance 
under this section if--
            ``(1) the property is purchased with funds provided under 
        this section; and
            ``(2) the Secretary, acting through the Director, 
        determines that the vesting of such property furthers the 
        objectives of the Institute.
Vesting under this subsection shall be subject to such limitations as 
are prescribed by the Secretary, acting through the Director, and shall 
be made without further obligation to the United States Government.''.
    (b) Additional Amendment.--(1) Section 28 of the National Institute 
of Standards and Technology Act (15 U.S.C. 278n) is further amended by 
striking the period at the end of the first sentence of subsection 
(d)(11)(A) and inserting in lieu thereof the following: ``or any other 
participant in a joint venture receiving financial assistance under 
this section, as agreed by the parties, notwithstanding the 
requirements of section 202 (a) and (b) of title 35, United States 
Code.''.
    (2) The amendment made by this subsection shall be effective only 
with respect to assistance for which solicitations for proposals are 
made after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 7. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.

    (a) Research Fellowships.--Section 18 of the National Institute of 
Standards and Technology Act (15 U.S.C. 278g-1) is amended by striking 
``up to 1 per centum of the''.
    (b) Outdated Specifications.--Section 2 of the Act entitled ``An 
Act to authorize the Use of the Metric System of Weights and Measures'' 
enacted July 28, 1866 (15 U.S.C. 205) is amended to read as follows:
    ``Sec. 2. The metric system of measurement shall be defined as the 
International System of Units as established in 1960, and subsequently 
maintained, by the General Conference of Weights and Measures, and as 
interpreted or modified for the United States by the Secretary of 
Commerce.''.

SEC. 8. ELIGIBILITY FOR AWARDS.

    (a) In General.--The Director of the National Institute of 
Standards and Technology shall exclude from consideration for grant 
agreements made by the Institute after fiscal year 1999 any person who 
received funds, other than those described in subsection (b), 
appropriated for a fiscal year after fiscal year 1999, under a grant 
agreement from any Federal funding source for a project that was not 
subjected to a competitive, merit-based award process, except as 
specifically authorized by this Act. Any exclusion from consideration 
pursuant to this section shall be effective for a period of 5 years 
after the person receives such Federal funds.
    (b) Exception.--Subsection (a) shall not apply to the receipt of 
Federal funds by a person due to the membership of that person in a 
class specified by law for which assistance is awarded to members of 
the class according to a formula provided by law.
    (c) Definition.--For purposes of this section, the term ``grant 
agreement'' means a legal instrument whose principal purpose is to 
transfer a thing of value to the recipient to carry out a public 
purpose of support or stimulation authorized by a law of the United 
States, and does not include the acquisition (by purchase, lease, or 
barter) of property or services for the direct benefit or use of the 
United States Government. Such term does not include a cooperative 
agreement (as such term is used in section 6305 of title 31, United 
States Code) or a cooperative research and development agreement (as 
such term is defined in section 12(d)(1) of the Stevenson-Wydler 
Technology Innovation Act of 1980 (15 U.S.C. 3710a(d)(1))).