II

103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 1881

To establish and implement a technology investment policy for aeronautical

and space activities of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

MARCH 1 (legislative day, FEBRUARY 22), 1994

Mr. ROCKEFELLER (for himself and Mr. BURNS) introduced the following bill;

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce,

Science, and Transportation

A BILL

To establish and implement a technology investment policy

for aeronautical and space activities of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, 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,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Aeronautics

5 and Space Administration Technology Investment Act of

6 1994’’.

7 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

8 The Congress finds and declares the following:
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1 (1) Federal investment in research and tech2 nology development can enhance the competitiveness

3 of United States industry in global markets.

4 (2) Industry and government partnerships in

5 the development of technologies increase the effec6 tiveness of Federal investment in the United States

7 economy.

8 (3) Ongoing defense reductions impact the

9 aerospace industrial base and require greater effort

10 by the National Aeronautics and Space Administra11 tion to ensure technological advancements in support

12 of its missions as well as in support of competitive13 ness.

14 (4) Increased contribution to the health of the

15 United States economy by the National Aeronautics

16 and Space Administration is important to the long17 term support of civilian aeronautics and space activi18 ties.

19 (5) Investments in research and development at

20 the National Aeronautics and Space Administration

21 can be made to enhance the competitiveness of Unit22 ed States industry, as well as to promote develop23 ment of technologies for government and commercial

24 aeronautics and space missions.
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1 (6) The National Aeronautics and Space Ad2 ministration directs a large portion of its budget to3 ward the procurement of goods and services for its

4 aeronautical and space missions and can use such

5 procurement to advance technology development in

6 industry and academia.

7 SEC. 3. TECHNOLOGY INVESTMENT POLICY.

8 It is the policy of the United States that—

9 (1) improving the competitive capabilities of

10 United States industry in conjunction with imple11 menting aeronautics and space missions shall be a

12 fundamental goal of the National Aeronautics and

13 Space Administration;

14 (2) the Administrator of the National Aero15 nautics and Space Administration (hereinafter re16 ferred to as the ‘‘Administrator’’), in planning for

17 and implementing national programs in aeronautics

18 and space, shall advocate technology development

19 designed to foster competitiveness of United States

20 industry in global markets;

21 (3) the investment in technology by the Na22 tional Aeronautics and Space Administration shall

23 be coordinated closely with investment of other Fed24 eral agencies, the States, and local governments;
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1 (4) technology investments shall be identified in

2 concert with United States industry; and

3 (5) the establishment of industry-led consortia

4 shall be encouraged to enhance opportunities for

5 United States industry to develop and advance tech6 nologies.

7 TITLE I—ROLE OF NATIONAL AERO8 NAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRA9 TION IN TECHNOLOGY INVESTMENT

10 SEC. 101. AMENDMENTS TO NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND

11 SPACE ACT OF 1958.

12 Section 102 of the National Aeronautics and Space

13 Act of 1958 (42 U.S.C. 2451) is amended—

14 (1) by striking subsection (e) and inserting in

15 lieu thereof the following:

16 ‘‘(e) The aeronautical and space activities of the

17 United States shall be conducted so as to contribute mate18 rially to the economic growth, competitiveness, and pro19 ductivity of the Nation.’’;

20 (2) by striking subsection (f) and by redesignat21 ing subsections (g) and (h) as subsections (f) and

22 (g), respectively; and

23 (3) in subsection (g), as so redesignated, by

24 striking ‘‘(f), and (g)’’ and inserting in lieu thereof

25 ‘‘and (f)’’.
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1 SEC. 102. TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT AND COMMER2 CIALIZATION GOALS.

3 The Administrator shall ensure that, to the maximum

4 extent practicable, funded and planned aeronautical and

5 space projects of the National Aeronautics and Space Ad6 ministration—

7 (1) incorporate a technology plan that fosters

8 technological advances of value to both the mission

9 and the economy and reduces the life cycle costs of

10 such projects;

11 (2) promote commercial technology applications;

12 and

13 (3) measure and evaluate technology develop14 ment and the potential for commercialization.

15 SEC. 103. TECHNOLOGY INVESTMENT PROGRAM WITH IN16 DUSTRY.

17 (a) COMPETITION; ELIGIBILITY.—The Administrator

18 shall establish a competitive program under which the Ad19 ministrator invests in any project proposed by an eligibile

20 firm where the Administrator determines that—

21 (1) the project will—

22 (A) advance the competitiveness of United

23 States industry;

24 (B) advance the technologies required for

25 aeronautical and space missions; and
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1 (C) encourage industry-led consortia to de2 velop those of the technologies described in sub3 paragraph (B) that have been identified as a

4 priority by industry in concert with the Admin5 istrator; and

6 (2) the participation by the eligible firm would

7 be in the economic interest of the United States as

8 evidenced by the conduct of a significant level of its

9 research, development, engineering, or manufactur10 ing activities in the United States.

11 (b) CRITERIA.—In selecting projects for Federal in12 vestment under this section, the Administrator shall weigh

13 and consider—

14 (1) the extent of funding provided by industry

15 for such project;

16 (2) each project’s potential to advance tech17 nologies that enhance the competitiveness of United

18 States industry in global markets;

19 (3) such project’s scientific and technical merit;

20 (4) the potential of the project to advance mis21 sion needs of the National Aeronautics and Space

22 Administration; and

23 (5) such other criteria as the Administrator

24 considers appropriate to carry out the purposes of

25 the this section.
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1 (c) COST-SHARING.—The Administrator shall ensure

2 that the amount of the funds provided by the Federal Gov3 ernment under this section for a project does not exceed

4 the total amount provided by non-Federal participants for

5 that project. Of the amount provided by non-Federal par6 ticipants, the Administrator shall ensure that not less than

7 25 percent of total funding for any project for which Fed8 eral investment is made available under this section is pro9 vided by industry.

10 (d) FINANCING MECHANISMS.—In funding the

11 projects selected under this section, the Administrator is

12 encouraged to—

13 (1) use the authority of the National Aero14 nautics and Space Administration under section

15 203(c)(5) of the National Aeronautics and Space

16 Act of 1958 (42 U.S.C. 2473(c)(5)) especially when

17 applied to non-aerospace firms; and

18 (2) enter into innovative procurement, financ19 ing, and management arrangements, consistent with

20 existing statutes.

21 (e) REGULATIONS.—The Administrator shall issue

22 regulations to implement the technology investment pro23 gram established under this section. The regulations shall

24 include—
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1 (1) procedures for making application to the

2 Administrator for investment under this section;

3 (2) guidelines for cost-sharing pursuant to sub4 section (c); and

5 (3) procedures to be followed by the Adminis6 trator in selecting projects for investment under this

7 section.

8 (f) COORDINATION WITH FEDERAL AGENCIES.—In

9 carrying out this section, the Administrator shall consult

10 with the Secretaries of Commerce, Defense, Energy, and

11 Transportation and with such other Federal agency heads

12 as the Administrator considers appropriate.

13 (g) AUTHORIZATION.—There is authorized to be ap14 propriated to the Administrator $20,000,000 for each of

15 the fiscal years 1994 and 1995, for the purpose of carry16 ing out the program established under this section. Sums

17 appropriated under this section shall remain available

18 until expended.

19 SEC. 104. ROLE OF PROCUREMENT IN TECHNOLOGY IN20 VESTMENT.

21 The Administrator, in meeting aeronautical and

22 space mission needs, shall coordinate and direct resources

23 of the National Aeronautics and Space administration in

24 the area of procurement to—

25 (1) advance state-of-the-art technologies;
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1 (2) assess and procure, where appropriate, com2 mercially available technologies from the market3 place;

4 (3) use performance specifications; and

5 (4) reduce the paperwork requirements associ6 ated with procurement.

7 SEC. 105. COORDINATION WITH OTHER FEDERAL PRO8 GRAMS.

9 (a) TECHNOLOGY PROGRAMS AND TECHNOLOGY

10 TRANSFER PROGRAMS.—To ensure a consistent Federal

11 investment policy and to preclude multiple awards for a

12 single proposal, the Administrator shall ensure that the

13 technology investment activities established under this

14 title are coordinated closely with existing and future—

15 (1) Federal technology programs such as the

16 Technology Reinvestment Program of the Advanced

17 Research Projects Agency and the Advanced Tech18 nology Program of the National Institute of Stand19 ards and Technology; and

20 (2) Federal technology transfer programs and

21 activities established to promote and advocate the

22 use of technologies developed in the Federal labora23 tories.

24 (b) IDENTIFICATION OF FUNDING RECEIVED FROM

25 OTHER AGENCIES.—The Administrator shall identify, as
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1 part of the annual budget submission to Congress, all

2 funding received by the National Aeronautics and Space

3 Administration from other Federal agencies to manage

4 and carry out technology investment and development.

5 SEC. 106. INTERAGENCY TECHNOLOGY INITIATIVES.

6 As part of the National Aeronautics and Space Ad7 ministration’s annual budget submission to Congress, the

8 Administrator shall identify funding requirements, project

9 milestones, and 5-year budget projections, for the portion

10 undertaken by the National Aeronautics and Space Ad11 ministration of each interagency technology projects.

12 SEC. 107. COORDINATION WITH OTHER NASA PROGRAMS.

13 (A) SMALL BUSINESS INNOVATION RESEARCH.—The

14 Administrator shall coordinate the technology investment

15 activities under this title with the Small Business Innova16 tion Research activities of the National Aeronautics and

17 Space Administration to increase the effectiveness of fund18 ing to small businesses, to the maximum extent permitted

19 by law.

20 (b) INDEPENDENT RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

21 FUNDS.—The Administrator shall identify all funds reim22 bursed to contractors of the National Aeronautics and

23 Space Administration for activities commonly referred to

24 as ‘‘Independent Research and Development’’ and coordi-
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1 nate such funds with the technology investment activities

2 under this title.

3 (c) TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER AND COMMERCIAL PRO4 GRAMS.—The Administrator shall coordinate the activities

5 of ongoing and future technology transfer, innovation, and

6 commercial programs of the National Aeronautics and

7 Space Administration with the technology investment ac8 tivities under this title.

9 SEC. 108. PERSONNEL INCENTIVES.

10 To encourage the personnel of the National Aero11 nautics and Space Administration to pursue technology in12 novation and development, the Administrator shall provide

13 personnel incentives, including—

14 (1) promotions and within-grade increases;

15 (2) bonuses and cash awards under the inven16 tions and contributions system and senior executive

17 service; and

18 (3) paid leave, sabbaticals, or intergovernmental

19 personnel transfers to other Federal agencies or the

20 private sector to pursue technology innovations and

21 development, as the Administrator deems appro22 priate.

23 SEC. 109. ANNUAL REPORT TO CONGRESS.

24 The Administrator shall assess the technology invest25 ment activities established under this title and shall sub-
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1 mit a report to Congress on the results of such assessment

2 of activities. The report shall accompany the annual budg3 et submission to Congress.

4 SEC. 110. APPLICATION OF ANTITRUST LAWS.

5 Nothing in this title shall be construed to create an

6 immunity from any civil or criminal action under any Fed7 eral or State antitrust law, or to alter or restrict in any

8 manner the applicability of any Federal or State antitrust

9 law.

10 SEC. 111. DEFINITIONS.

11 For the purposes of this title, the term—

12 (1) ‘‘eligible firm’’ means a business entity that

13 is either—

14 (A) a company that has majority owner15 ship or control by individuals who are citizens

16 of the United States; or

17 (B) a company that is incorporated in the

18 United States and has a parent company which

19 is incorporated in a country whose govern20 ment—

21 (i) permits companies described under

22 subparagraph (A) to participate in re23 search and development consortia to which

24 such government provides funding directly,
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1 or indirectly through one or more inter2 national organizations; and

3 (ii) affords adequate and effective pro4 tection for the intellectual property rights

5 of companies described under subpara6 graph (A);

7 (2) ‘‘Federal laboratory’’ has the meaning given

8 such term in section 4(6) or the Stevenson-Wydler

9 Technology Innovation Act of 1980 (15 U.S.C.

10 3703(6)); and

11 (3) ‘‘United States’’ means the several States,

12 the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Is13 lands, Guam, American Samoa, the Northern Mari14 ana Islands, and any other territory or possession of

15 the United States.

16 TITLE II—NATIONAL AERONAUTICS

17 FACILITIES

18 SEC. 201. FINDINGS.

19 The Congress finds and declares the following:

20 (1) Aerospace technologies contribute substan21 tially to the balance of trade and the competitiveness

22 of United States industry.

23 (2) The international market share of the

24 United States aerospace industry has eroded steadily

25 due to competition from foreign consortia that re-
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1 ceive substantial direct subsidies from their govern2 ments.

3 (3) The United States aerospace industry con4 tinues to be impacted negatively by the reduced in5 vestment in national defense.

6 (4) The national civil and military aeronautics

7 facilities of the United States are aging and, with

8 few exceptions, cannot be modified to test new tech9 nologies in aircraft and engine design.

10 (5) Inadequate domestic facilities force the

11 United States aerospace industry to use the aero12 nautics facilities of foreign countries, increasing the

13 likelihood that technologies will be transferred to

14 competing foreign industries.

15 SEC. 202. POLICY.

16 It is the policy of the United States that—

17 (1) Federal investment in domestic aerospace

18 technologies shall be a priority of the United States

19 to safeguard the international market share of the

20 United States aerospace industry;

21 (2) maintaining world class aeronautics facili22 ties in the United States shall be a major element

23 of Federal investment in aeronautics research and

24 development;
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1 (3) the National Aeronautics and Space Admin2 istration shall work closely with industry to identify

3 and address aeronautics technology and facility is4 sues; and

5 (4) industry and government cost-sharing for

6 facilities construction and use shall be investigated

7 to achieve aeronautics research and technology goals

8 within a constrained Federal budget.

9 SEC. 203. WORLDWIDE FACILITIES ASSESSMENT.

10 The President shall conduct an assessment of all aer11 onautics facilities in the United States and in other coun12 tries and report to Congress the results of this assessment

13 not later than January 1, 1995. The assessment shall in14 clude—

15 (1) identification of all existing and planned

16 aeronautics research and development facilities in

17 the United States and in other countries;

18 (2) analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of

19 each aeronautics facility that impact aeronautical re20 search and technology objectives of the United

21 States Government and domestic industries;

22 (3) determination of the cost-savings achievable

23 by closing non-essential aeronautics facilities of the

24 National Aeronautics and Space Administration and

25 other Federal agencies; and
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1 (4) determination of the current use and plans

2 for use of foreign aeronautics facilities for research

3 and technology activities of the United States Gov4 ernment and domestic industries.

5 SEC. 204. AERONAUTICS FACILITIES STRATEGY.

6 (a) STRATEGY.—The President shall work closely

7 with domestic industries to coordinate, develop, and imple8 ment a strategy for Federal investment in aeronautics re9 search and technology and aeronautics facilities. This

10 strategy shall establish—

11 (1) priorities for Federal investment in aero12 nautics facilities;

13 (2) a facilities implementation schedule to meet

14 research and technology project milestones and aero15 space industry market requirements;

16 (3) the projected cost of constructing and oper17 ating new facilities; and

18 (4) options and recommendations to provide

19 funding (including cost-sharing and risk-sharing

20 with industries and among Federal agencies and in21 novative procurement, financing, or management ar22 rangements) for the construction of new aeronautics

23 facilities and for the operation of new aeronautics

24 facilities.
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1 (b) DEADLINE.—The strategy required by subsection

2 (a), and budget requirements associated with implement3 ing such strategy, shall be submitted to Congress not later

4 than January 1, 1995.

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