I 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4413 

To provide grants and loan guarantees for the development and construction 

of science parks to promote the clustering of innovation through high 

technology activities. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 12, 2010 

Ms. GIFFORDS (for herself and Mr. HEINRICH) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Science and Technology 

A BILL 

To provide grants and loan guarantees for the development 

and construction of science parks to promote the clustering of innovation through high technology activities. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Science Parks Re5 search and Innovative New Technologies Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEVELOPMENT OF SCIENCE PARKS. 

7 (a) FINDING.—Section 2 of the Stevenson-Wydler 

8 Technology Innovation Act of 1980 (15 U.S.C. 3701) is 

9 amended by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(12) It is in the best interests of the Nation 

2 to encourage the formation of science parks to pro3 mote the clustering of innovation through high tech4 nology activities.’’. 

5 (b) DEFINITION.—Section 4 of such Act (15 U.S.C. 

6 3703) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(12) ‘Brownfield’ means abandoned, idled, or 

8 underused industrial or commercial real property on 

9 which expansion or redevelopment is complicated by 

10 real or perceived environmental contamination. 

11 ‘‘(13) ‘Business or industrial park’ means a pri12 marily for-profit real estate venture of businesses or 

13 industries which do not necessarily reinforce each 

14 other through supply chain or technology transfer 

15 mechanisms. 

16 ‘‘(14) ‘Cluster’ means a group of competing, 

17 collaborating, and interdependent businesses that— 

18 ‘‘(A) work in a common industry; 

19 ‘‘(B) are concentrated in a geographic re20 gion; 

21 ‘‘(C) draw on shared infrastructure and a 

22 pool of skilled workers; and 

23 ‘‘(D) represent the specialization and com24 parative advantage of the region. 

25 ‘‘(15) ‘Science park’— 


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1 ‘‘(A) means a centralized or regionally dis2 tributed group of interrelated companies and 

3 institutions, including suppliers, service pro4 viders, institutions of higher education, Federal 

5 or State laboratories, start-up incubators, clus6 ters, and trade associations that— 

7 ‘‘(i) foster knowledge flow and con8 tribute to regional economic growth and 

9 development; 

10 ‘‘(ii) cooperate and compete with each 

11 other through physical connectivity or 

12 networked virtual parks where technologies 

13 cluster, including companies, researchers, 

14 and community college workforce training 

15 activities; and 

16 ‘‘(iii) are located in a specific area or 

17 region that promotes real estate develop18 ment or knowledge-based enterprises, tech19 nology transfer, and partnerships between 

20 such companies and institutions; 

21 ‘‘(B) includes a science park, research 

22 park, technology park, research and develop23 ment park, research and technology park, and 

24 science and technology park; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) does not include a business or indus2 trial park. 

3 ‘‘(16) ‘Science park infrastructure’ means facili4 ties that support the daily economic activity of a 

5 science park.’’. 

6 (c) SCIENCE PARKS.—The Stevenson-Wydler Tech7 nology Innovation Act of 1980 (15 U.S.C. 3701 et seq.) 

8 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘SEC. 24. SCIENCE PARKS. 

10 ‘‘(a) DEVELOPMENT OF PLANS FOR CONSTRUCTION

11 OF SCIENCE PARKS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall award 

13 grants for the development of feasibility studies and 

14 plans for the construction of new science parks or 

15 the expansion, including renovation and moderniza16 tion, of existing science parks. 

17 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION ON AMOUNT OF GRANTS.— 

18 The amount of a grant awarded under this sub19 section may not exceed $750,000. 

20 ‘‘(3) AWARD.— 

21 ‘‘(A) COMPETITION REQUIRED.—The Sec22 retary shall award grants under this subsection 

23 pursuant to a full and open competition. 

24 ‘‘(B) GEOGRAPHIC DISPERSION.—The Sec25 retary is encouraged to divide the grants awardVerDate Nov 24 2008 04:05 Jan 13, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4413.IH H4413

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1 ed under this subsection among low-, medium2 , and high-population density States. 

3 ‘‘(C) ADVERTISING.—The Secretary shall 

4 advertise any competition under this paragraph 

5 in the Commerce Business Daily. 

6 ‘‘(D) SELECTION CRITERIA.—The Sec7 retary shall publish the criteria to be utilized in 

8 any competition under this paragraph for the 

9 selection of recipients of grants under this sub10 section, which shall include requirements relat11 ing to— 

12 ‘‘(i) the effect the science park will 

13 have on regional economic growth and de14 velopment; 

15 ‘‘(ii) the number of jobs to be created 

16 at the science park and in the surrounding 

17 regional community each year during its 

18 first 5 years; 

19 ‘‘(iii) the funding to be required to 

20 construct or expand, including renovating 

21 or modernizing, the science park during its 

22 first 5 years; 

23 ‘‘(iv) the amount and type of financ24 ing and access to capital available to the 

25 applicant; 


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1 ‘‘(v) the types of businesses and re2 search entities expected in the science park 

3 and in the surrounding regional commu4 nity; 

5 ‘‘(vi) letters of intent by businesses 

6 and research entities to locate in the 

7 science park; 

8 ‘‘(vii) the quality of life for employees 

9 at the science park; 

10 ‘‘(viii) the capability to attract a well 

11 trained workforce to the science park; 

12 ‘‘(ix) the management of the science 

13 park; 

14 ‘‘(x) expected financial risks in the 

15 construction and operation of the science 

16 park and the risk mitigation strategy; 

17 ‘‘(xi) physical infrastructure available 

18 to the science park, including roads, utili19 ties, and telecommunications; 

20 ‘‘(xii) the utilization of energy effi21 cient building technology, including nation22 ally recognized green building design prac23 tices, renewable energy, cogeneration, and 

24 other methods that increase energy effi25 ciency and conservation; 


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1 ‘‘(xiii) consideration of the trans2 formation of military bases affected by the 

3 base realignment and closure process 

4 (BRAC) or the redevelopment of existing 

5 buildings, structures, or brownfield sites 

6 that are abandoned, idled, or underused 

7 into single or multiple building facilities for 

8 science and technology companies and in9 stitutions; 

10 ‘‘(xiv) the ability to collaborate with 

11 other science parks throughout the world; 

12 and 

13 ‘‘(xv) other criteria prescribed by the 

14 Secretary. 

15 ‘‘(4) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

16 There are authorized to be appropriated $7,500,000 

17 for each of the fiscal years 2011 through 2015 to 

18 carry out this subsection. 

19 ‘‘(b) LOAN GUARANTEES FOR SCIENCE PARK INFRA20 STRUCTURE.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

22 the Secretary may guarantee up to 80 percent of the 

23 loan amount for projects for the construction or ex24 pansion, including renovation and modernization, of 

25 science park infrastructure. 


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1 ‘‘(2) LIMITATIONS ON GUARANTEE AMOUNTS.— 

2 The maximum amount of loan principal guaranteed 

3 under this subsection may not exceed— 

4 ‘‘(A) $50,000,000 with respect to any sin5 gle project; and 

6 ‘‘(B) $500,000,000 with respect to all 

7 projects. 

8 ‘‘(3) SELECTION OF GUARANTEE RECIPI9 ENTS.—The Secretary shall select recipients of loan 

10 guarantees under this subsection based upon the 

11 ability of the recipient to collateralize the loan 

12 amount through bonds, equity, property, and other 

13 such criteria as the Secretary shall prescribe. Enti14 ties receiving a grant under subsection (a) are not 

15 eligible for a loan guarantee during the period of 

16 such grant. 

17 ‘‘(4) TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR LOAN GUAR18 ANTEES.—The loans guaranteed under this sub19 section shall be subject to such terms and conditions 

20 as the Secretary may prescribe, except that— 

21 ‘‘(A) the final maturity of such loans made 

22 or guaranteed may not exceed the lesser of— 

23 ‘‘(i) 30 years and 32 days; or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) 90 percent of the useful life of 

2 any physical asset to be financed by such 

3 loan; 

4 ‘‘(B) a loan made or guaranteed under this 

5 subsection may not be subordinated to another 

6 debt contracted by the borrower or to any other 

7 claims against the borrowers in the case of de8 fault; 

9 ‘‘(C) a loan may not be guaranteed under 

10 this subsection unless the Secretary determines 

11 that the lender is responsible and that adequate 

12 provision is made for servicing the loan on rea13 sonable terms and protecting the financial in14 terest of the United States; 

15 ‘‘(D) a loan may not be guaranteed under 

16 this subsection if— 

17 ‘‘(i) the income from such loan is ex18 cluded from gross income for purposes of 

19 chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 

20 1986; or 

21 ‘‘(ii) the guarantee provides signifi22 cant collateral or security, as determined 

23 by the Secretary, for other obligations the 

24 income from which is so excluded; 


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1 ‘‘(E) any guarantee provided under this 

2 subsection shall be conclusive evidence that— 

3 ‘‘(i) the guarantee has been properly 

4 obtained; 

5 ‘‘(ii) the underlying loan qualified for 

6 such guarantee; and 

7 ‘‘(iii) absent fraud or material mis8 representation by the holder, the guarantee 

9 is presumed to be valid, legal, and enforce10 able; 

11 ‘‘(F) the Secretary shall prescribe explicit 

12 standards for use in periodically assessing the 

13 credit risk of new and existing direct loans or 

14 guaranteed loans; 

15 ‘‘(G) the Secretary may not extend credit 

16 assistance unless the Secretary has determined 

17 that there is a reasonable assurance of repay18 ment; and 

19 ‘‘(H) new loan guarantees may not be com20 mitted except to the extent that appropriations 

21 of budget authority to cover their costs are 

22 made in advance, as required under section 504 

23 of the Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990 (2 

24 U.S.C. 661c). 

25 ‘‘(5) PAYMENT OF LOSSES.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If, as a result of a de2 fault by a borrower under a loan guaranteed 

3 under this subsection, after the holder has 

4 made such further collection efforts and insti5 tuted such enforcement proceedings as the Sec6 retary may require, the Secretary determines 

7 that the holder has suffered a loss, the Sec8 retary shall pay to such holder the percentage 

9 of such loss specified in the guarantee contract. 

10 Upon making any such payment, the Secretary 

11 shall be subrogated to all the rights of the re12 cipient of the payment. The Secretary shall be 

13 entitled to recover from the borrower the 

14 amount of any payments made pursuant to any 

15 guarantee entered into under this section. 

16 ‘‘(B) ENFORCEMENT OF RIGHTS.—The At17 torney General shall take such action as may be 

18 appropriate to enforce any right accruing to the 

19 United States as a result of the issuance of any 

20 guarantee under this section. 

21 ‘‘(C) FORBEARANCE.—Nothing in this sec22 tion may be construed to preclude any forbear23 ance for the benefit of the borrower which may 

24 be agreed upon by the parties to the guaranteed 

25 loan and approved by the Secretary, if budget 


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1 authority for any resulting subsidy costs (as de2 fined in section 502(5) of the Federal Credit 

3 Reform Act of 1990) is available. 

4 ‘‘(D) MANAGEMENT OF PROPERTY.—Not5 withstanding any other provision of law relating 

6 to the acquisition, handling, or disposal of prop7 erty by the United States, the Secretary may 

8 complete, recondition, reconstruct, renovate, re9 pair, maintain, operate, or sell any property ac10 quired by the Secretary pursuant to this sec11 tion. 

12 ‘‘(6) REVIEW.—Not later than 2 years after the 

13 date of the enactment of this section, the Comp14 troller General of the United States shall— 

15 ‘‘(A) conduct a review of the subsidy esti16 mates for the loan guarantees under this sub17 section; and 

18 ‘‘(B) submit to Congress a report on the 

19 review conducted under this paragraph. 

20 ‘‘(7) TERMINATION.—A loan may not be guar21 anteed under this subsection after September 30, 

22 2015. 

23 ‘‘(8) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

24 There are authorized to be appropriated— 


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1 ‘‘(A) $35,000,000 for the cost (as defined 

2 in section 502(5) of the Federal Credit Reform 

3 Act of 1990) of guaranteeing $500,000,000 in 

4 loans under this subsection; and 

5 ‘‘(B) such sums as may be necessary for 

6 administrative expenses in fiscal year 2011 and 

7 thereafter. 

8 ‘‘(c) NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES EVALUA9 TION.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 18 months 

11 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec12 retary shall enter into an agreement with the Board 

13 on Science, Technology, and Economic Policy of the 

14 National Academy of Sciences under which the 

15 Board shall— 

16 ‘‘(A) conduct an evaluation of the activities 

17 under this section; and 

18 ‘‘(B) review and recommend best practices 

19 for the development of United States science 

20 parks, including metrics for their success. 

21 ‘‘(2) REPORT.—Under the agreement described 

22 in paragraph (1), the Board shall submit a report to 

23 the Secretary that— 


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1 ‘‘(A) includes the Board’s evaluation of 

2 science park development under this section; 

3 and 

4 ‘‘(B) may include such recommendations 

5 as the Board considers appropriate for addi6 tional activities to promote and facilitate the de7 velopment of science parks in the United 

8 States. 

9 ‘‘(d) TRI-ANNUAL REPORT.—Not later than March 

10 31, 2014, and every third year thereafter, the Secretary 

11 shall submit a report to Congress that— 

12 ‘‘(1) describes the activities under this section 

13 during the preceding 3 years; 

14 ‘‘(2) includes any recommendations made by 

15 the Board on Science, Technology, and Economic 

16 Policy under subsection (c)(2)(B) during such pe17 riod; and 

18 ‘‘(3) may include such recommendations for leg19 islative or administrative action as the Secretary 

20 considers appropriate to further promote and facili21 tate the development of science parks in the United 

22 States. 

23 ‘‘(e) RULEMAKING.—Not later than 1 year after the 

24 date of the enactment of this section, the Secretary shall 

25 promulgate regulations to carry out this section in accordVerDate Nov 24 2008 04:05 Jan 13, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4413.IH H4413

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1 ance with Office of Management and Budget Circular A– 

2 129, entitled ‘Policies for Federal Credit Programs and 

3 Non-Tax Receivables’.’’. 

Æ 


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