113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 2996 

AN ACT 

To require the Secretary of Commerce to establish the Network for Manufacturing Innovation and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Revitalize American 

3 Manufacturing and Innovation Act of 2014’’. 

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

5 Congress finds the following: 

6 (1) In 2012, manufacturers contributed $2.03 

trillion to the economy, or 1 7 ⁄8 of United States Gross 

8 Domestic Product. 

9 (2) For every $1.00 spent in manufacturing, 

10 another $1.32 is added to the economy, the highest 

11 multiplier effect of any economic sector. 

12 (3) Manufacturing supports an estimated 

13 17,400,000 jobs in the United States—about 1 in 6 

14 private-sector jobs. More than 12,000,000 Ameri15 cans (or 9 percent of the workforce) are employed 

16 directly in manufacturing. 

17 (4) In 2012, the average manufacturing worker 

18 in the United States earned $77,505 annually, in19 cluding pay and benefits. The average worker in all 

20 industries earned $62,063. 

21 (5) Taken alone, manufacturing in the United 

22 States would be the 8th largest economy in the 

23 world. 

24 (6) Manufacturers in the United States perform 

25 two-thirds of all private-sector research and develop-
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1 ment in the United States, driving more innovation 

2 than any other sector. 

3 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF NETWORK FOR MANUFAC4 TURING INNOVATION. 

5 The National Institute of Standards and Technology 

6 Act (15 U.S.C. 271 et seq.) is amended— 

7 (1) by redesignating section 34 as section 35; 

8 and 

9 (2) by inserting after section 33 (15 U.S.C. 

10 278r) the following: 

11 ‘‘SEC. 34. NETWORK FOR MANUFACTURING INNOVATION. 

12 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF NETWORK FOR MANUFAC13 TURING INNOVATION PROGRAM.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall estab15 lish within the Institute a program to be known as 

16 the ‘Network for Manufacturing Innovation Pro17 gram’ (referred to in this section as the ‘Program’). 

18 ‘‘(2) PURPOSES OF PROGRAM.—The purposes of 

19 the Program are— 

20 ‘‘(A) to improve the competitiveness of 

21 United States manufacturing and to increase 

22 the production of goods manufactured predomi23 nantly within the United States; 
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1 ‘‘(B) to stimulate United States leadership 

2 in advanced manufacturing research, innova3 tion, and technology; 

4 ‘‘(C) to facilitate the transition of innova5 tive technologies into scalable, cost-effective, 

6 and high-performing manufacturing capabili7 ties; 

8 ‘‘(D) to facilitate access by manufacturing 

9 enterprises to capital-intensive infrastructure, 

10 including high-performance electronics and 

11 computing, and the supply chains that enable 

12 these technologies; 

13 ‘‘(E) to accelerate the development of an 

14 advanced manufacturing workforce; 

15 ‘‘(F) to facilitate peer exchange of and the 

16 documentation of best practices in addressing 

17 advanced manufacturing challenges; 

18 ‘‘(G) to leverage non-Federal sources of 

19 support to promote a stable and sustainable 

20 business model without the need for long-term 

21 Federal funding; and 

22 ‘‘(H) to create and preserve jobs. 

23 ‘‘(3) SUPPORT.—The Secretary, acting through 

24 the Director, shall carry out the purposes set forth 

25 in paragraph (2) by supporting— 
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1 ‘‘(A) the Network for Manufacturing Inno2 vation established under subsection (b); and 

3 ‘‘(B) the establishment of centers for man4 ufacturing innovation. 

5 ‘‘(4) DIRECTOR.—The Secretary shall carry out 

6 the Program through the Director. 

7 ‘‘(b) ESTABLISHMENT OF NETWORK FOR MANUFAC8 TURING INNOVATION.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—As part of the Program, 

10 the Secretary shall establish a network of centers for 

11 manufacturing innovation. 

12 ‘‘(2) DESIGNATION.—The network established 

13 under paragraph (1) shall be known as the ‘Network 

14 for Manufacturing Innovation’ (referred to in this 

15 section as the ‘Network’). 

16 ‘‘(c) CENTERS FOR MANUFACTURING INNOVATION.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this sec18 tion, a ‘center for manufacturing innovation’ is a 

19 center that— 

20 ‘‘(A) has been established by a person or 

21 group of persons to address challenges in ad22 vanced manufacturing and to assist manufac23 turers in retaining or expanding industrial pro24 duction and jobs in the United States; 
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1 ‘‘(B) has a predominant focus on a manu2 facturing process, novel material, enabling tech3 nology, supply chain integration methodology, 

4 or another relevant aspect of advanced manu5 facturing, such as nanotechnology applications, 

6 advanced ceramics, photonics and optics, com7 posites, biobased and advanced materials, flexi8 ble hybrid technologies, and tool development 

9 for microelectronics; 

10 ‘‘(C) as determined by the Secretary, has 

11 the potential— 

12 ‘‘(i) to improve the competitiveness of 

13 United States manufacturing, including 

14 key advanced manufacturing technologies 

15 such as nanotechnology, advanced ceram16 ics, photonics and optics, composites, 

17 biobased and advanced materials, flexible 

18 hybrid technologies, and tool development 

19 for microelectronics; 

20 ‘‘(ii) to accelerate non-Federal invest21 ment in advanced manufacturing produc22 tion capacity in the United States; or 

23 ‘‘(iii) to enable the commercial appli24 cation of new technologies or industry-wide 

25 manufacturing processes; and 
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1 ‘‘(D) includes active participation among 

2 representatives from multiple industrial entities, 

3 research universities, community colleges, and 

4 such other entities as the Secretary considers 

5 appropriate, which may include industry-led 

6 consortia, career and technical education 

7 schools, Federal laboratories, State, local, and 

8 tribal governments, businesses, educational in9 stitutions, and nonprofit organizations. 

10 ‘‘(2) ACTIVITIES.—Activities of a center for 

11 manufacturing innovation may include the following: 

12 ‘‘(A) Research, development, and dem13 onstration projects, including proof-of-concept 

14 development and prototyping, to reduce the 

15 cost, time, and risk of commercializing new 

16 technologies and improvements in existing tech17 nologies, processes, products, and research and 

18 development of materials to solve precompetitive 

19 industrial problems with economic or national 

20 security implications. 

21 ‘‘(B) Development and implementation of 

22 education, training, and workforce recruitment 

23 courses, materials, and programs. 

24 ‘‘(C) Development of innovative methodolo25 gies and practices for supply chain integration 
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1 and introduction of new technologies into sup2 ply chains. 

3 ‘‘(D) Outreach and engagement with small 

4 and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises, 

5 including women and minority owned manufac6 turing enterprises, in addition to large manu7 facturing enterprises. 

8 ‘‘(E) Such other activities as the Sec9 retary, in consultation with Federal depart10 ments and agencies whose missions contribute 

11 to or are affected by advanced manufacturing, 

12 considers consistent with the purposes described 

13 in subsection (a)(2). 

14 ‘‘(3) ADDITIONAL CENTERS FOR MANUFAC15 TURING INNOVATION.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The National Additive 

17 Manufacturing Innovation Institute and other 

18 manufacturing centers formally recognized as 

19 manufacturing innovation centers pursuant to 

20 Federal law or executive actions, or under pend21 ing interagency review for such recognition as 

22 of the date of enactment of the Revitalize 

23 American Manufacturing and Innovation Act of 

24 2014, shall be considered centers for manufac25 turing innovation, but such centers shall not re-
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1 ceive any financial assistance under subsection 

2 (d). 

3 ‘‘(B) NETWORK PARTICIPATION.—A manu4 facturing center that is substantially similar to 

5 those established under this subsection but that 

6 does not receive financial assistance under sub7 section (d) may, upon request of the center, be 

8 recognized as a center for manufacturing inno9 vation by the Secretary for purposes of partici10 pation in the Network. 

11 ‘‘(d) FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE TO ESTABLISH AND

12 SUPPORT CENTERS FOR MANUFACTURING INNOVA13 TION.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the Pro15 gram, the Secretary shall award financial assistance 

16 to a person or group of persons to assist the organi17 zation in planning, establishing, or supporting a cen18 ter for manufacturing innovation. 

19 ‘‘(2) APPLICATION.—A person or group of per20 sons seeking financial assistance under paragraph 

21 (1) shall submit to the Secretary an application 

22 therefor at such time, in such manner, and con23 taining such information as the Secretary may re24 quire. The application shall, at a minimum, describe 

25 the specific sources and amounts of non-Federal fi-
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1 nancial support for the center on the date financial 

2 assistance is sought, as well as the anticipated 

3 sources and amounts of non-Federal financial sup4 port during the period for which the center could be 

5 eligible for continued Federal financial assistance 

6 under this section. 

7 ‘‘(3) OPEN PROCESS.—In soliciting applications 

8 for financial assistance under paragraph (1), the 

9 Secretary shall ensure an open process that will 

10 allow for the consideration of all applications rel11 evant to advanced manufacturing regardless of tech12 nology area. 

13 ‘‘(4) SELECTION.— 

14 ‘‘(A) COMPETITIVE, MERIT REVIEW.—In 

15 awarding financial assistance under paragraph 

16 (1), the Secretary shall use a competitive, merit 

17 review process that includes peer review by a di18 verse group of individuals with relevant exper19 tise from both the private and public sectors. 

20 ‘‘(B) PARTICIPATION IN PROCESS.— 

21 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—No political ap22 pointee may participate on a peer review 

23 panel. The Secretary shall implement a 

24 conflict of interest policy that ensures pub25 lic transparency and accountability, and re-
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1 quires full disclosure of any real or poten2 tial conflicts of interest on the parts of in3 dividuals that participate in the merit se4 lection process. 

5 ‘‘(ii) DEFINITION.—For purposes of 

6 this subparagraph, the term ‘political ap7 pointee’ means any individual who— 

8 ‘‘(I) is employed in a position de9 scribed under sections 5312 through 

10 5316 of title 5, United States Code, 

11 (relating to the Executive Schedule); 

12 ‘‘(II) is a limited term appointee, 

13 limited emergency appointee, or non14 career appointee in the Senior Execu15 tive Service, as defined under para16 graphs (5), (6), and (7), respectively, 

17 of section 3132(a) of title 5, United 

18 States Code; or 

19 ‘‘(III) is employed in a position 

20 in the executive branch of the Govern21 ment of a confidential or policy-deter22 mining character under schedule C of 

23 subpart C of part 213 of title 5 of the 

24 Code of Federal Regulations. 
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1 ‘‘(C) PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT, 

2 TRANSPARENCY, AND ACCOUNTABILITY.—For 

3 each award of financial assistance under para4 graph (1), the Secretary shall— 

5 ‘‘(i) make publicly available at the 

6 time of the award a description of the 

7 bases for the award, including an expla8 nation of the relative merits of the winning 

9 applicant as compared to other applica10 tions received, if applicable; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) develop and implement metrics12 based performance measures to assess the 

13 effectiveness of the activities funded. 

14 ‘‘(D) COLLABORATION.—In awarding fi15 nancial assistance under paragraph (1), the 

16 Secretary shall, acting through the National 

17 Program Office established under subsection 

18 (f)(1), collaborate with Federal departments 

19 and agencies whose missions contribute to or 

20 are affected by advanced manufacturing. 

21 ‘‘(E) CONSIDERATIONS.—In selecting a 

22 person who submitted an application under 

23 paragraph (2) for an award of financial assist24 ance under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall 

25 consider, at a minimum, the following: 
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1 ‘‘(i) The potential of the center for 

2 manufacturing innovation to advance do3 mestic manufacturing and the likelihood of 

4 economic impact, including the creation or 

5 preservation of jobs, in the predominant 

6 focus areas of the center for manufac7 turing innovation. 

8 ‘‘(ii) The commitment of continued fi9 nancial support, advice, participation, and 

10 other contributions from non-Federal 

11 sources, to provide leverage and resources 

12 to promote a stable and sustainable busi13 ness model without the need for long-term 

14 Federal funding. 

15 ‘‘(iii) Whether the financial support 

16 provided to the center for manufacturing 

17 innovation from non-Federal sources sig18 nificantly exceeds the requested Federal fi19 nancial assistance. 

20 ‘‘(iv) How the center for manufac21 turing innovation will increase the non22 Federal investment in advanced manufac23 turing research in the United States. 

24 ‘‘(v) How the center for manufac25 turing innovation will engage with small 
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1 and medium-sized manufacturing enter2 prises, to improve the capacity of such en3 terprises to commercialize new processes 

4 and technologies. 

5 ‘‘(vi) How the center for manufac6 turing innovation will carry out educational 

7 and workforce activities that meet indus8 trial needs related to the predominant 

9 focus areas of the center. 

10 ‘‘(vii) How the center for manufac11 turing innovation will advance economic 

12 competitiveness and generate substantial 

13 benefits to the Nation that extend beyond 

14 the direct return to participants in the 

15 Program. 

16 ‘‘(viii) Whether the predominant focus 

17 of the center for manufacturing innovation 

18 is a manufacturing process, novel material, 

19 enabling technology, supply chain integra20 tion methodology, or other relevant aspect 

21 of advanced manufacturing that has not 

22 already been commercialized, marketed, 

23 distributed, or sold by another entity. 
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1 ‘‘(ix) How the center for manufac2 turing innovation will strengthen and lever3 age the assets of a region. 

4 ‘‘(x) How the center for manufac5 turing will encourage the education and 

6 training of veterans and individuals with 

7 disabilities. 

8 ‘‘(5) LIMITATIONS ON AWARDS.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—No award of financial 

10 assistance may be made under paragraph (1) to 

11 a center of manufacturing innovation after the 

12 7-year period beginning on the date on which 

13 the Secretary first awards financial assistance 

14 to that center under that paragraph. 

15 ‘‘(B) MATCHING FUNDS AND PREF16 ERENCES.—The total Federal financial assist17 ance awarded to a center of manufacturing in18 novation, including the financial assistance 

19 under paragraph (1), in a given year shall not 

20 exceed 50 percent of the total funding of the 

21 center in that year, except that the Secretary 

22 may make an exception in the case of large cap23 ital facilities or equipment purchases. The Sec24 retary shall give weighted preference to appli-
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1 cants seeking less than the maximum Federal 

2 share of funds allowed under this paragraph. 

3 ‘‘(C) FUNDING DECREASE.—The amount 

4 of financial assistance provided to a center of 

5 manufacturing innovation under paragraph (1) 

6 shall decrease after the second year of funding 

7 for the center, and shall continue to decrease 

8 thereafter in each year in which financial assist9 ance is provided, unless the Secretary deter10 mines that— 

11 ‘‘(i) the center is otherwise meeting 

12 its stated goals and metrics under this sec13 tion; 

14 ‘‘(ii) unforeseen circumstances have 

15 altered the center’s anticipated funding; 

16 and 

17 ‘‘(iii) the center can identify future 

18 non-Federal funding sources that would 

19 warrant a temporary exemption from the 

20 limitations established in this subpara21 graph. 

22 ‘‘(e) FUNDING.— 

23 ‘‘(1) GENERAL RULE.—Except as provided in 

24 paragraph (2), no funds are authorized to be appro25 priated by the Revitalize American Manufacturing 
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1 and Innovation Act of 2014 for carrying out this 

2 section. 

3 ‘‘(2) AUTHORITY.— 

4 ‘‘(A) NIST INDUSTRIAL TECHNICAL SERV5 ICES ACCOUNT.—To the extent provided for in 

6 advance by appropriations Acts, the Secretary 

7 may use not to exceed $5,000,000 for each of 

8 the fiscal years 2015 through 2024 to carry out 

9 this section from amounts appropriated to the 

10 Institute for Industrial Technical Services. 

11 ‘‘(B) ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND RENEW12 ABLE ENERGY ACCOUNT.—To the extent pro13 vided for in advance by appropriations Acts, the 

14 Secretary of Energy may transfer to the Insti15 tute not to exceed $250,000,000 for the period 

16 encompassing fiscal years 2015 through 2024 

17 for the Secretary to carry out this section from 

18 amounts appropriated for advanced manufac19 turing research and development within the En20 ergy Efficiency and Renewable Energy account 

21 for the Department of Energy. 

22 ‘‘(f) NATIONAL PROGRAM OFFICE.— 

23 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall es24 tablish, within the Institute, the National Office of 

25 the Network for Manufacturing Innovation Program 
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1 (referred to in this section as the ‘National Program 

2 Office’), which shall oversee and carry out the Pro3 gram. 

4 ‘‘(2) FUNCTIONS.—The functions of the Na5 tional Program Office are— 

6 ‘‘(A) to oversee the planning, management, 

7 and coordination of the Program; 

8 ‘‘(B) to enter into memorandums of under9 standing with Federal departments and agen10 cies whose missions contribute to or are af11 fected by advanced manufacturing, to carry out 

12 the purposes described in subsection (a)(2); 

13 ‘‘(C) to develop, not later than 1 year after 

14 the date of enactment of the Revitalize Amer15 ican Manufacturing and Innovation Act of 

16 2014, and update not less frequently than once 

17 every 3 years thereafter, a strategic plan to 

18 guide the Program; 

19 ‘‘(D) to establish such procedures, proc20 esses, and criteria as may be necessary and ap21 propriate to maximize cooperation and coordi22 nate the activities of the Program with pro23 grams and activities of other Federal depart24 ments and agencies whose missions contribute 

25 to or are affected by advanced manufacturing; 
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1 ‘‘(E) to establish a clearinghouse of public 

2 information related to the activities of the Pro3 gram; and 

4 ‘‘(F) to act as a convener of the Network. 

5 ‘‘(3) RECOMMENDATIONS.—In developing and 

6 updating the strategic plan under paragraph (2)(C), 

7 the Secretary shall solicit recommendations and ad8 vice from a wide range of stakeholders, including in9 dustry, small and medium-sized manufacturing en10 terprises, research universities, community colleges, 

11 and other relevant organizations and institutions on 

12 an ongoing basis. 

13 ‘‘(4) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Upon completion, 

14 the Secretary shall transmit the strategic plan re15 quired under paragraph (2)(C) to the Committee on 

16 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Sen17 ate and the Committee on Science, Space, and Tech18 nology of the House of Representatives. 

19 ‘‘(5) HOLLINGS MANUFACTURING EXTENSION

20 PARTNERSHIP.—The Secretary shall ensure that the 

21 National Program Office incorporates the Hollings 

22 Manufacturing Extension Partnership into Program 

23 planning to ensure that the results of the Program 

24 reach small and medium-sized entities. 
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1 ‘‘(6) DETAILEES.—Any Federal Government 

2 employee may be detailed to the National Program 

3 Office without reimbursement. Such detail shall be 

4 without interruption or loss of civil service status or 

5 privilege. 

6 ‘‘(g) REPORTING AND AUDITING.— 

7 ‘‘(1) ANNUAL REPORTS TO THE SECRETARY.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 

9 require each recipient of financial assistance 

10 under subsection (d)(1) to annually submit a 

11 report to the Secretary that describes the fi12 nances and performance of the center for man13 ufacturing innovation for which such assistance 

14 was awarded. 

15 ‘‘(B) ELEMENTS.—Each report submitted 

16 under subparagraph (A) shall include— 

17 ‘‘(i) an accounting of expenditures of 

18 amounts awarded to the recipient under 

19 subsection (d)(1); and 

20 ‘‘(ii) consistent with the metrics-based 

21 performance measures developed and im22 plemented by the Secretary under this sec23 tion, a description of the performance of 

24 the center for manufacturing innovation 

25 with respect to— 
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1 ‘‘(I) its goals, plans, financial 

2 support, and accomplishments; and 

3 ‘‘(II) how the center for manu4 facturing innovation has furthered the 

5 purposes described in subsection 

6 (a)(2). 

7 ‘‘(2) ANNUAL REPORTS TO CONGRESS.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not less frequently 

9 than once each year until December 31, 2024, 

10 the Secretary shall submit a report to Congress 

11 that describes the performance of the Program 

12 during the most recent 1-year period. 

13 ‘‘(B) ELEMENTS.—Each report submitted 

14 under subparagraph (A) shall include, for the 

15 period covered by the report— 

16 ‘‘(i) a summary and assessment of the 

17 reports received by the Secretary under 

18 paragraph (1); 

19 ‘‘(ii) an accounting of the funds ex20 pended by the Secretary under the Pro21 gram, including any temporary exemptions 

22 granted from the requirements of sub23 section (d)(5)(C); 

24 ‘‘(iii) an assessment of the participa25 tion in, and contributions to, the Network 
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1 by any centers for manufacturing innova2 tion not receiving financial assistance 

3 under subsection (d)(1); and 

4 ‘‘(iv) an assessment of the Program 

5 with respect to meeting the purposes de6 scribed in subsection (a)(2). 

7 ‘‘(3) ASSESSMENTS BY GAO.— 

8 ‘‘(A) ASSESSMENTS.—Not less frequently 

9 than once every 2 years, the Comptroller Gen10 eral shall submit to Congress an assessment of 

11 the operation of the Program during the most 

12 recent 2-year period. 

13 ‘‘(B) FINAL ASSESSMENT.—Not later than 

14 December 31, 2024, the Comptroller General 

15 shall submit to Congress a final report regard16 ing the overall success of the Program. 

17 ‘‘(C) ELEMENTS.—Each assessment sub18 mitted under subparagraph (A) or (B) shall in19 clude, for the period covered by the report— 

20 ‘‘(i) a review of the management, co21 ordination, and industry utility of the Pro22 gram; 

23 ‘‘(ii) an assessment of the extent to 

24 which the Program has furthered the pur25 poses described in subsection (a)(2); 
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1 ‘‘(iii) such recommendations for legis2 lative and administrative action as the 

3 Comptroller General considers appropriate 

4 to improve the Program; and 

5 ‘‘(iv) an assessment as to whether any 

6 prior recommendations for improvement 

7 made by the Comptroller General have 

8 been implemented or adopted. 

9 ‘‘(h) ADDITIONAL AUTHORITIES.— 

10 ‘‘(1) APPOINTMENT OF PERSONNEL AND CON11 TRACTS.—The Secretary may appoint such per12 sonnel and enter into such contracts, financial as13 sistance agreements, and other agreements as the 

14 Secretary considers necessary or appropriate to 

15 carry out the Program, including support for re16 search and development activities involving a center 

17 for manufacturing innovation. 

18 ‘‘(2) TRANSFER OF FUNDS.—Of amounts avail19 able under the authority provided by subsection (e), 

20 the Secretary may transfer to other Federal agencies 

21 such sums as the Secretary considers necessary or 

22 appropriate to carry out the Program. No funds so 

23 transferred may be used to reimburse or otherwise 

24 pay for the costs of financial assistance incurred or 

25 commitments of financial assistance made prior to 
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1 the date of enactment of the Revitalize American 

2 Manufacturing and Innovation Act of 2014. 

3 ‘‘(3) AUTHORITY OF OTHER AGENCIES.—In the 

4 event that the Secretary exercises the authority to 

5 transfer funds to another agency under paragraph 

6 (2), such agency may accept such funds to award 

7 and administer, under the same conditions and con8 straints applicable to the Secretary, all aspects of fi9 nancial assistance awards under this section. 

10 ‘‘(4) USE OF RESOURCES.—In furtherance of 

11 the purposes of the Program, the Secretary may use, 

12 with the consent of a covered entity and with or 

13 without reimbursement, the land, services, equip14 ment, personnel, and facilities of such covered entity. 

15 ‘‘(5) ACCEPTANCE OF RESOURCES.—In addition 

16 to amounts appropriated to carry out the Program, 

17 the Secretary may accept funds, services, equipment, 

18 personnel, and facilities from any covered entity to 

19 carry out the Program, subject to the same condi20 tions and constraints otherwise applicable to the 

21 Secretary under this section and such funds may 

22 only be obligated to the extent provided for in ad23 vance by appropriations Acts. 

24 ‘‘(6) COVERED ENTITY.—For purposes of this 

25 subsection, a covered entity is any Federal depart-
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1 ment, Federal agency, instrumentality of the United 

2 States, State, local government, tribal government, 

3 territory, or possession of the United States, or of 

4 any political subdivision thereof, or international or5 ganization, or any public or private entity or indi6 vidual. 

7 ‘‘(i) PATENTS.—Chapter 18 of title 35, United States 

8 Code, shall apply to any funding agreement (as defined 

9 in section 201 of that title) awarded to new or existing 

10 centers for manufacturing innovation.’’. 

11 SEC. 4. NATIONAL STRATEGIC PLAN FOR ADVANCED MANU12 FACTURING. 

13 Section 102 of the America COMPETES Reauthor14 ization Act of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 6622) is amended— 

15 (1) in subsection (a), by adding at the end the 

16 following: ‘‘In furtherance of the Committee’s work, 

17 the Committee shall consult with the National Eco18 nomic Council.’’; 

19 (2) in subsection (b), by striking paragraph (7) 

20 and inserting the following: 

21 ‘‘(7) develop and update a national strategic 

22 plan for advanced manufacturing in accordance with 

23 subsection (c).’’; and 

24 (3) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the 

25 following: 
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1 ‘‘(c) NATIONAL STRATEGIC PLAN FOR ADVANCED

2 MANUFACTURING.— 

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The President shall submit 

4 to Congress, and publish on an Internet website that 

5 is accessible to the public, the strategic plan devel6 oped under paragraph (2). 

7 ‘‘(2) DEVELOPMENT.—The Committee shall de8 velop, and update as required under paragraph (4), 

9 in coordination with the National Economic Council, 

10 a strategic plan to improve Government coordination 

11 and provide long-term guidance for Federal pro12 grams and activities in support of United States 

13 manufacturing competitiveness, including advanced 

14 manufacturing research and development. 

15 ‘‘(3) CONTENTS.—The strategic plan described 

16 in paragraph (2) shall— 

17 ‘‘(A) specify and prioritize near-term and 

18 long-term objectives, including research and de19 velopment objectives, the anticipated time frame 

20 for achieving the objectives, and the metrics for 

21 use in assessing progress toward the objectives; 

22 ‘‘(B) describe the progress made in achiev23 ing the objectives from prior strategic plans, in24 cluding a discussion of why specific objectives 

25 were not met; 
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1 ‘‘(C) specify the role, including the pro2 grams and activities, of each relevant Federal 

3 agency in meeting the objectives of the strategic 

4 plan; 

5 ‘‘(D) describe how the Federal agencies 

6 and Federally funded research and development 

7 centers supporting advanced manufacturing re8 search and development will foster the transfer 

9 of research and development results into new 

10 manufacturing technologies and United States11 based manufacturing of new products and proc12 esses for the benefit of society to ensure na13 tional, energy, and economic security; 

14 ‘‘(E) describe how such Federal agencies 

15 and centers will strengthen all levels of manu16 facturing education and training programs to 

17 ensure an adequate, well-trained workforce; 

18 ‘‘(F) describe how such Federal agencies 

19 and centers will assist small and medium-sized 

20 manufacturers in developing and implementing 

21 new products and processes; 

22 ‘‘(G) analyze factors that impact innova23 tion and competitiveness for United States ad24 vanced manufacturing, including— 
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1 ‘‘(i) technology transfer and commer2 cialization activities; 

3 ‘‘(ii) the adequacy of the national se4 curity industrial base; 

5 ‘‘(iii) the capabilities of the domestic 

6 manufacturing workforce; 

7 ‘‘(iv) export opportunities and trade 

8 policies; 

9 ‘‘(v) financing, investment, and tax10 ation policies and practices; 

11 ‘‘(vi) emerging technologies and mar12 kets; 

13 ‘‘(vii) advanced manufacturing re14 search and development undertaken by 

15 competing nations; and 

16 ‘‘(viii) the capabilities of the manufac17 turing workforce of competing nations; and 

18 ‘‘(H) elicit and consider the recommenda19 tions of a wide range of stakeholders, including 

20 representatives from diverse manufacturing 

21 companies, academia, and other relevant orga22 nizations and institutions. 

23 ‘‘(4) UPDATES.—Not later than May 1, 2018, 

24 and not less frequently than once every 4 years 

25 thereafter, the President shall submit to Congress, 
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1 and publish on an Internet website that is accessible 

2 to the public, an update of the strategic plan sub3 mitted under paragraph (1). Such updates shall be 

4 developed in accordance with the procedures set 

5 forth under this subsection. 

6 ‘‘(5) REQUIREMENT TO CONSIDER STRATEGY IN

7 THE BUDGET.—In preparing the budget for a fiscal 

8 year under section 1105(a) of title 31, United States 

9 Code, the President shall include information re10 garding the consistency of the budget with the goals 

11 and recommendations included in the strategic plan 

12 developed under this subsection applying to that fis13 cal year. 

14 ‘‘(6) AMP STEERING COMMITTEE INPUT.—The 

15 Advanced Manufacturing Partnership Steering Com16 mittee of the President’s Council of Advisors on 

17 Science and Technology shall provide input, perspec18 tive, and recommendations to assist in the develop19 ment and updates of the strategic plan under this 

20 subsection.’’. 

21 SEC. 5. REGIONAL INNOVATION PROGRAM. 

22 Section 27 of the Stevenson-Wydler Technology Inno23 vation Act of 1980 (15 U.S.C. 3722) is amended to read 

24 as follows: 
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1 ‘‘SEC. 27. REGIONAL INNOVATION PROGRAM. 

2 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall estab3 lish a regional innovation program to encourage and sup4 port the development of regional innovation strategies, in5 cluding regional innovation clusters. 

6 ‘‘(b) CLUSTER GRANTS.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—As part of the program es8 tablished under subsection (a), the Secretary may 

9 award grants on a competitive basis to eligible re10 cipients for activities relating to the formation and 

11 development of regional innovation clusters. 

12 ‘‘(2) PERMISSIBLE ACTIVITIES.—Grants award13 ed under this subsection may be used for activities 

14 determined appropriate by the Secretary, including 

15 the following: 

16 ‘‘(A) Feasibility studies. 

17 ‘‘(B) Planning activities. 

18 ‘‘(C) Technical assistance. 

19 ‘‘(D) Developing or strengthening commu20 nication and collaboration between and among 

21 participants of a regional innovation cluster. 

22 ‘‘(E) Attracting additional participants to 

23 a regional innovation cluster. 

24 ‘‘(F) Facilitating market development of 

25 products and services developed by a regional 

26 innovation cluster, including through dem-
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1 onstration, deployment, technology transfer, 

2 and commercialization activities. 

3 ‘‘(G) Developing relationships between a 

4 regional innovation cluster and entities or clus5 ters in other regions. 

6 ‘‘(H) Interacting with the public and State 

7 and local governments to meet the goals of the 

8 cluster. 

9 ‘‘(3) ELIGIBLE RECIPIENT DEFINED.—In this 

10 subsection, the term ‘eligible recipient’ means— 

11 ‘‘(A) a State; 

12 ‘‘(B) an Indian tribe; 

13 ‘‘(C) a city or other political subdivision of 

14 a State; 

15 ‘‘(D) an entity that— 

16 ‘‘(i) is a nonprofit organization, an in17 stitution of higher education, a public-pri18 vate partnership, a science or research 

19 park, a Federal laboratory, or an economic 

20 development organization or similar entity; 

21 and 

22 ‘‘(ii) has an application that is sup23 ported by a State or a political subdivision 

24 of a State; or 
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1 ‘‘(E) a consortium of any of the entities 

2 described in subparagraphs (A) through (D). 

3 ‘‘(4) APPLICATION.— 

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An eligible recipient 

5 shall submit an application to the Secretary at 

6 such time, in such manner, and containing such 

7 information and assurances as the Secretary 

8 may require. 

9 ‘‘(B) COMPONENTS.—The application shall 

10 include, at a minimum, a description of the re11 gional innovation cluster supported by the pro12 posed activity, including a description of— 

13 ‘‘(i) whether the regional innovation 

14 cluster is supported by the private sector, 

15 State and local governments, and other rel16 evant stakeholders; 

17 ‘‘(ii) how the existing participants in 

18 the regional innovation cluster will encour19 age and solicit participation by all types of 

20 entities that might benefit from participa21 tion, including newly formed entities and 

22 those rival existing participants; 

23 ‘‘(iii) the extent to which the regional 

24 innovation cluster is likely to stimulate in-
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•HR 2996 EH

1 novation and have a positive impact on re2 gional economic growth and development; 

3 ‘‘(iv) whether the participants in the 

4 regional innovation cluster have access to, 

5 or contribute to, a well-trained workforce; 

6 ‘‘(v) whether the participants in the 

7 regional innovation cluster are capable of 

8 attracting additional funds from non-Fed9 eral sources; and 

10 ‘‘(vi) the likelihood that the partici11 pants in the regional innovation cluster will 

12 be able to sustain activities once grant 

13 funds under this subsection have been ex14 pended. 

15 ‘‘(C) SPECIAL CONSIDERATION.—The Sec16 retary shall give special consideration to appli17 cations from regions that contain communities 

18 negatively impacted by trade. 

19 ‘‘(5) SPECIAL CONSIDERATION.—The Secretary 

20 shall give special consideration to an eligible recipi21 ent who agrees to collaborate with local workforce 

22 investment area boards. 

23 ‘‘(6) COST SHARE.—The Secretary may not 

24 provide more than 50 percent of the total cost of 

25 any activity funded under this subsection. 
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1 ‘‘(7) OUTREACH TO RURAL COMMUNITIES.— 

2 The Secretary shall conduct outreach to public and 

3 private sector entities in rural communities to en4 courage those entities to participate in regional inno5 vation cluster activities under this subsection. 

6 ‘‘(8) FUNDING.—The Secretary may accept 

7 funds from other Federal agencies to support grants 

8 and activities under this subsection. 

9 ‘‘(c) REGIONAL INNOVATION RESEARCH AND INFOR10 MATION PROGRAM.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—As part of the program es12 tablished under subsection (a), the Secretary shall 

13 establish a regional innovation research and infor14 mation program— 

15 ‘‘(A) to gather, analyze, and disseminate 

16 information on best practices for regional inno17 vation strategies (including regional innovation 

18 clusters), including information relating to how 

19 innovation, productivity, and economic develop20 ment can be maximized through such strategies; 

21 ‘‘(B) to provide technical assistance, in22 cluding through the development of technical 

23 assistance guides, for the development and im24 plementation of regional innovation strategies 

25 (including regional innovation clusters); 
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1 ‘‘(C) to support the development of rel2 evant metrics and measurement standards to 

3 evaluate regional innovation strategies (includ4 ing regional innovation clusters), including the 

5 extent to which such strategies stimulate inno6 vation, productivity, and economic development; 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(D) to collect and make available data on 

9 regional innovation cluster activity in the 

10 United States, including data on— 

11 ‘‘(i) the size, specialization, and com12 petitiveness of regional innovation clusters; 

13 ‘‘(ii) the regional domestic product 

14 contribution, total jobs and earnings by 

15 key occupations, establishment size, nature 

16 of specialization, patents, Federal research 

17 and development spending, and other rel18 evant information for regional innovation 

19 clusters; and 

20 ‘‘(iii) supply chain product and service 

21 flows within and between regional innova22 tion clusters. 

23 ‘‘(2) RESEARCH GRANTS.—The Secretary may 

24 award research grants on a competitive basis to sup-
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•HR 2996 EH

1 port and further the goals of the program estab2 lished under this subsection. 

3 ‘‘(3) DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION.—Data 

4 and analysis compiled by the Secretary under the 

5 program established in this subsection shall be made 

6 available to other Federal agencies, State and local 

7 governments, and nonprofit and for-profit entities. 

8 ‘‘(4) REGIONAL INNOVATION GRANT PRO9 GRAM.—The Secretary shall incorporate data and 

10 analysis relating to any grant under subsection (b) 

11 into the program established under this subsection. 

12 ‘‘(d) INTERAGENCY COORDINATION.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To the maximum extent 

14 practicable, the Secretary shall ensure that the ac15 tivities carried out under this section are coordinated 

16 with, and do not duplicate the efforts of, other pro17 grams at the Department of Commerce or other 

18 Federal agencies. 

19 ‘‘(2) COLLABORATION.— 

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 

21 explore and pursue collaboration with other 

22 Federal agencies, including through multi23 agency funding opportunities, on regional inno24 vation strategies. 
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1 ‘‘(B) SMALL BUSINESSES.—The Secretary 

2 shall ensure that such collaboration with Fed3 eral agencies prioritizes the needs and chal4 lenges of small businesses. 

5 ‘‘(e) EVALUATION.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 3 years 

7 after the date of enactment of the Revitalize Amer8 ican Manufacturing and Innovation Act of 2014, the 

9 Secretary shall enter into a contract with an inde10 pendent entity, such as the National Academy of 

11 Sciences, to conduct an evaluation of the program 

12 established under subsection (a). 

13 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.—The evaluation shall in14 clude— 

15 ‘‘(A) whether the program is achieving its 

16 goals; 

17 ‘‘(B) any recommendations for how the 

18 program may be improved; and 

19 ‘‘(C) a recommendation as to whether the 

20 program should be continued or terminated. 

21 ‘‘(f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

22 ‘‘(1) REGIONAL INNOVATION CLUSTER.—The 

23 term ‘regional innovation cluster’ means a geo24 graphically bounded network of similar, synergistic, 

25 or complementary entities that— 
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1 ‘‘(A) are engaged in or with a particular 

2 industry sector and its related sectors; 

3 ‘‘(B) have active channels for business 

4 transactions and communication; 

5 ‘‘(C) share specialized infrastructure, labor 

6 markets, and services; and 

7 ‘‘(D) leverage the region’s unique competi8 tive strengths to stimulate innovation and cre9 ate jobs. 

10 ‘‘(2) STATE.—The term ‘State’ means one of 

11 the several States, the District of Columbia, the 

12 Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, 

13 Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the 

14 Northern Mariana Islands, or any other territory or 

15 possession of the United States. 

16 ‘‘(g) FUNDING.— 

17 ‘‘(1) GENERAL RULE.—Except as provided in 

18 paragraph (2), no funds are authorized to be appro19 priated by the Revitalize American Manufacturing 

20 and Innovation Act of 2014 for carrying out this 

21 section. 

22 ‘‘(2) AUTHORITY.—To the extent provided for 

23 in advance by appropriations Acts, the Secretary 

24 may use not to exceed $10,000,000 for each of the 

25 fiscal years 2015 through 2019 to carry out this sec-
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•HR 2996 EH

1 tion from amounts appropriated for economic devel2 opment assistance programs.’’. 

Passed the House of Representatives September 15, 

2014. 

Attest: 

Clerk. 
113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 2996 

AN ACT 

To require the Secretary of Commerce to establish 

for other purposes. the Network for Manufacturing Innovation and