Information Dissemination and Research Accountability Act

short title

    Section 1. This Act may be cited as the ``Information Dissemination 
and Research Accountability Act''.

                          findings and purpose

    Sec. 2. (a) The Congress finds that--
            (1) the Federal Government must, for the public good, bear 
        the responsibility for making the results of biomedical 
        research readily and economically accessible in a form that 
        maximizes its usefulness to the research community, reviewers 
        of research proposals, and other individuals involved in the 
        Federal funding of research proposals;
            (2) with the present inefficient system of storage and 
        dissemination of biomedical information, most biomedical 
        researchers and Federal agencies cannot readily and 
        economically obtain the full-text results, current and 
        archival, of research that has been or is being performed;
            (3) the inability of the research community to obtain full-
        text results of such research promotes duplicative research;
            (4) overwhelming numbers of laboratory animals are used in 
        duplicative research because of the research community's 
        inability to determine what research has been performed;
            (5) because of a lack of funding, the National Library of 
        Medicine of the Department of Health and Human Services has not 
        met the needs of the biomedical research community;
            (6) the failure of the Federal Government to fund 
        adequately the National Library of Medicine has resulted in the 
        Library's inability to support effectively the creation of new 
        information for use in teaching and demonstrations, including 
        audiovisual aids and computer graphics;
            (7) the failure of the Federal Government to support 
        adequately the storage and dissemination of full-text 
        biomedical information has been devastating to the Nation's 
        medical libraries, forcing them to terminate the acquisition of 
        costly printed material;
            (8) the amount of biomedical information is so vast and is 
        increasing at such a rate that traditional methods of 
        information storage and dissemination are no longer efficient 
        or effective;
            (9) modern technology, including optical videodiscs, can be 
        used for storage of whole libraries of full-text biomedical 
        information in a relatively small space;
            (10) these modern technologies are easily and economically 
        reproducible for distribution to all of the Nation's medical 
        libraries for the immediate use of the scientific community; 
        and
            (11) the benefits of developing a modern, efficient, and 
        economical full-text biomedical information storage and 
        dissemination system are--
                    (A) the advancement of scientific knowledge;
                    (B) the savings to the taxpayers by preventing 
                duplicative research; and
                    (C) the sparing of millions of laboratory animals 
                from suffering, fear, and death in duplicative 
                research.
    (b) The purposes of this Act are to--
            (1) establish a National Center for Research 
        Accountability;
            (2) provide for a comprehensive, full-text literature 
        search before the approval of Federal funding for any research 
        proposal involving the use of live animals;
            (3) prevent duplicative experimentation or testing on live 
        animals;
            (4) promote the advancement and use of modern technologies 
        with respect to the storage and dissemination of biomedical 
        information;
            (5) provide, through grants, awards, and stipends, for 
        training of additional biomedical information specialists in 
        such modern technologies;
            (6) make available at a reasonable cost the full-text 
        results of biomedical research, current and archival, to the 
        Nation's medical libraries for use by the scientific community; 
        and
            (7) promote the creation and use of modern technologies, 
        including audiovisual aids and computer graphics, for teaching 
        and demonstrations.

            the national center for research accountability

    Sec. 3. (a)(1) In order to create an independent center to assist 
in eliminating duplication of effort in Federal research proposals 
involving live animals, there is hereby established a National Center 
for Research Accountability.
    (2) Such Center shall be located at the National Library of 
Medicine and utilize the facilities of the Library in accordance with 
subsection (d).
    (b)(1) The President shall appoint twenty persons to serve as 
members of the Center and carry out the responsibilities of the Center 
as described in subsection (f). The terms of such appointments shall be 
for a period of time which the President determines is necessary to 
assure that the members will serve long enough to provide adequate 
continuity of effort within the Center but also provide for periodic 
appointment of new persons as members.
    (2) Such appointments shall be made without regard to political 
affiliation and solely on the basis of demonstrated ability to carry 
out the responsibilities of the Center.
    (3) A person appointed to the Center may be removed only by the 
President.
    (4) Such persons shall be experts in the biomedical information 
sciences and, at the time of such appointment, be employed by a Federal 
agency in a capacity which qualifies them to make determinations with 
respect to whether research proposals involving live animals are 
duplicative of other research efforts. In making such appointments, the 
President shall, to the extent practicable, appoint representatives 
from each Federal agency which funds research on live animals.
    (5) Such persons shall perform their duties at the Center on a 
full-time basis and, while performing such duties, shall be considered 
to be employees of the Federal agencies which employed them at the time 
of their appointment to the Center.
    (c)(1) The President shall appoint as the Director of the Center a 
qualified biomedical information science expert who, at the time of 
such appointment, serves in an administrative position as a Federal 
employee.
    (2) Such person shall perform his or her duties on a full-time 
basis, and while performing such duties, shall be considered to be an 
employee of the Federal agency which employed him or her at the time of 
the appointment to the Center.
    (3) Such appointment shall be made for a term established by the 
President and shall be made without regard to political affiliation and 
solely on the basis of demonstrated ability to serve as a chief 
administrative officer.
    (4) The Director may be removed only by the President.
    (5) The Director may, to the extent approved by the President and 
in appropriation Acts, appoint a clerical staff, or to the extent 
approved by the President after consultation with the Secretary of 
Health and Human Services, the Director may utilize the clerical staff 
of the National Library of Medicine.
    (d) The President shall, after consultation with the Secretary of 
Health and Human Services, provide for adequate office space for the 
Center within the facilities of the National Library of Medicine and, 
to the extent approved in appropriation Acts, provide for such 
equipment, office supplies, and communications facilities and services 
as may be necessary for the operation of the Center.
    (e)(1) No Federal agency may carry out or fund any research 
proposal involving live animals unless the proposal is submitted to the 
Center in accordance with paragraph (2).
    (2) Following approval by a Federal agency of a research proposal 
involving live animals, but prior to the agency's carrying out or 
making a commitment to award funding for such proposal, such proposal 
shall be submitted by the agency to the Center to ascertain whether 
such proposal is essentially duplicative of other research completed or 
in process.
    (f) If the members of the Center determine, in accordance with 
guidelines prescribed by the President, that such proposal is 
essentially duplicative of other research completed or in process, no 
Federal funding may be utilized with respect to such project.
    (g) To assist in carrying out its responsibilities for conducting 
comprehensive full-text literature searches, as it makes determinations 
under subsection (f), the Center may, to the extent approved in 
appropriation Acts, award contracts to private entities. The President 
shall establish rules for the purpose of precluding any conflict of 
interest with respect to the awarding of such contracts.
    (h) The President may appoint persons to serve, without 
compensation, as advisors to the members of the Center.
    (i) The Center shall transmit an annual report to the President and 
to both Houses of the Congress summarizing action it has taken in 
fulfilling its responsibilities under this Act.

 modernization of biomedical information storage and dissemination by 
                    the national library of medicine

    Sec. 4. (a) The National Library of Medicine shall, to the extent 
of funds appropriated for such purposes--
            (1) acquire, in full-text form, all biomedical information 
        owned by each Federal agency or available for use by Federal 
        agencies, except information which is already in the Library or 
        which is classified for reasons of national security;
            (2) transcribe and store, in full-text form, all such 
        biomedical information acquired by the Library after January 1, 
        1960;
            (3) using modern technologies, make available, upon request 
        and at cost, to medical libraries all full-text biomedical 
        information in its collection;
            (4) support, by grants and contracts, the creation of new 
        information for teaching and demonstrations, including 
        audiovisual aids and computer graphics technologies;
            (5) make available, upon request and at cost, such new 
        teaching and demonstration information to research and teaching 
        institutions for the use of the scientific community; and
            (6) increase the number of persons trained in modern 
        methods of biomedical information storage and dissemination 
        technologies by making available stipends, awards, and grants 
        to persons engaged in such training.
    (b) For purposes of paragraphs (3) and (5) of subsection (a), the 
term ``cost'' shall mean an amount which is established by the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services in order to assure that the 
Federal Government is reimbursed for expenses incurred in acquiring and 
making available the information supplied pursuant to those paragraphs.
    (c) To assist in fulfilling its responsibilities, the Library may, 
to the extent approved in appropriation Acts, award contracts to the 
private-sector data recording industry to improve--
            (1) the development of modern information technologies used 
        for storage and dissemination of full-text biomedical 
        information; and
            (2) the dissemination of full-text biomedical information 
        to medical libraries for the use of the research community.
    (d) The Secretary of Health and Human Services may appoint persons 
to serve, without compensation, as advisers to the Library in carrying 
out this section.
    (e) The Library shall transmit an annual report to the Congress 
summarizing the progress it has made in carrying out the provisions of 
this Act and providing a statement and analysis of action to be taken 
by the Library during the year following such report.

                              definitions

    Sec. 5. For the purposes of this Act--
            (1) the term ``animal'' means any nonhuman, vertebrate 
        animal, whether warm-blooded, or coldblooded;
            (2) the term ``agency'' has the same meaning given such 
        term in section 551 of title 5, United States Code;
            (3) the term ``Center'' means the National Center for 
        Research Accountability established by section 3(a);
            (4) the term ``Library'' means the National Library of 
        Medicine; and
            (5) the term ``research proposal'' means any proposal 
        utilizing a scientific method of inquiry or examination in 
        seeking or establishing facts and principles.

                    authorization of appropriations

    Sec. 6. There are authorized to be appropriated for fiscal years 
beginning after September 30, 1993, such sums as may be necessary for 
the purpose of carrying out this Act.

Summary: Information Dissemination and Research Accountability Act - Establishes in the National Library of Medicine a National Center for Research Accountability to assist in eliminating duplication of effort in Federal research proposals involving live animals. Requires referral of all such proposals to the Center for approval prior to funding. Provides for the modernization of biomedical information storage and dissemination by the National Library of Medicine.