I 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 6003 

To provide for the establishment of the National Fab Lab Network to build 

out a network of community based, networked Fabrication Laboratories 

across the United States to foster a new generation with scientific and 

engineering skills and to provide a workforce capable of producing world 

class individualized and traditional manufactured goods. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 30, 2010 

Mr. FOSTER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on 

Science and Technology, for a period to be subsequently determined by 

the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To provide for the establishment of the National Fab Lab 

Network to build out a network of community based, 

networked Fabrication Laboratories across the United 

States to foster a new generation with scientific and 

engineering skills and to provide a workforce capable 

of producing world class individualized and traditional 

manufactured goods. 

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 ‘‘National Fab Lab Net3 work Act of 2010’’. 

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

5 Congress finds the following: 

6 (1) The United States is the world leader in sci7 entific research, discovery, and innovation. 

8 (2) There exists a strong social and economic 

9 incentive to create the fewest barriers to entry for 

10 those interested in furthering education, discovery, 

11 invention, and innovation in the scientific, techno12 logical, engineering, and mathematical fields. 

13 (3) The United States has a strong strategic in14 terest in promoting a robust, well trained, highly ca15 pable, and geographically diverse manufacturing 

16 base. 

17 (4) MIT’s Center for Bits and Atoms has con18 tributed significantly to the advancement of these 

19 goals through its work in creating and advancing 

20 Fabrication Laboratories (Fab Labs) in the United 

21 States and abroad. 

22 (5) A new kind of national infrastructure will 

23 be required in order to adequately take advantage of 

24 leading edge digital fabrication technologies to se25 cure the United States’ leading position in scientific 

26 fields and to promote a robust manufacturing base. 


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1 (6) A focused, dedicated national effort will be 

2 required in order to ensure the creation of such an 

3 infrastructure takes place as quickly and effectively 

4 as possible. 

5 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL FAB LAB NETWORK. 

6 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The National Fab Lab Net7 work incorporated by this Act (hereinafter in this section 

8 referred to as the ‘‘NFLN’’) is hereby authorized and em9 powered to receive either real or personal property and 

10 to hold the same absolutely or in trust, and to invest, rein11 vest, and manage the same in accordance with the provi12 sions of its constitution and to apply said property and 

13 the income arising therefrom to the objects of its creation 

14 and according to the instructions of its donors. 

15 (b) IN GENERAL.—The National Fab Lab Network 

16 (NFLN) shall exist as a nonprofit entity whose purpose 

17 is to facilitate the piece by piece construction of an actual 

18 network of connected labs. The NFLN itself shall not rep19 resent an overseeing, regulating, or coordinating body of 

20 this distributed network, but will merely exist to facilitate 

21 its construction. 

22 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the term ‘‘Fab23 rication Laboratory’’ also referred to as a ‘‘Fab Lab’’ 

24 means a facility containing a variety of manufacturing and 

25 other fabrication tools operable by means of digital input 


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1 as well as the software and computers required to design 

2 for and operate those tools. These labs serve a broad range 

3 of purposes, but each allow for clear guidelines for how 

4 members of the local community, local businesses, and 

5 academic or educational purposes can be pursued with the 

6 labs’ resources consistent with a charter to be established 

7 by the NFLN. 

8 (d) FUNCTIONS.—The functions of the NFLN shall 

9 be the following: 

10 (1) To serve as the coordinating body for all ef11 forts to create a coordinated, collaborative network 

12 of Fab Labs in the United States. 

13 (2) To serve as the first point of contact for or14 ganizations interested in constructing and operating 

15 a Fab Lab and to maintain a first-come first-serve 

16 wait list of those organizations. 

17 (3) To work out to the satisfaction of NFLN 

18 staff and board members the ability of interested or19 ganizations to successfully host a Fab Lab. In par20 ticular, the staff and board members of the NFLN 

21 shall examine the ability of the organization to sup22 ply a physical location for the lab, their financial 

23 ability to pay for sufficient staff to operate the lab 

24 and train its users, an ability to engage the local 


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1 community or other sufficient user base, and an 

2 awareness of those long term obligations. 

3 (4) To match those organizations who meet 

4 with the NFLN’s approval for those criteria speci5 fied in paragraph (3) with available sources of fund6 ing and individuals with personal experience in es7 tablishing and operating Labs in other organizations 

8 so as to expedite the process of making new Labs 

9 operational. In general, the NFLN should not bring 

10 to this stage or continue to engage with those orga11 nizations that do not meet the NFLN’s approval on 

12 those criteria described in paragraph (3). 

13 (5) To advertise or perform other outreach ac14 tivities to those organizations that might have inter15 est in or otherwise benefit from creating a Fab Lab, 

16 and to notify those organizations of the specific pur17 poses the NFLN can perform. 

18 (e) PURPOSES.—In carrying out its functions, the 

19 NFLN’s purposes and goals shall be— 

20 (1) to facilitate the construction of a new type 

21 of information and digital fabrication infrastructure; 

22 specifically, in all its actions to facilitate and encour23 age the construction of a decentralized network of 

24 connected Fab Labs; 


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1 (2) to promote the goals of greater science, 

2 technology, engineering, and math education, work3 force development in the areas of manufacturing and 

4 product design, increased innovation and invention 

5 in the private sector, as well as scientific and aca6 demic discovery through the use of distributed dig7 ital fabrication tools; and 

8 (3) to seek to establish at least one Fab Lab 

9 per every 700,000 individuals in the United States 

10 in the first ten years of its operation. 

11 (f) FUNDING.—The NFLN may accept donations 

12 from private individuals, corporations, government agen13 cies, or other organizations. 

Æ 


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