I 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5120 

To improve management of the National Laboratories, enhance technology 

commercialization, facilitate public-private partnerships, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 16, 2014 

Mr. HULTGREN (for himself, Mr. KILMER, Mr. SMITH of Texas, Ms. EDDIE

BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas, Mrs. LUMMIS, Mr. SWALWELL of California, Mr. NUNNELEE, and Mr. FATTAH) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology 

A BILL 

To improve management of the National Laboratories, enhance technology commercialization, facilitate public-private partnerships, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Department of Energy Laboratory Modernization and 

6 Technology Transfer Act of 2014’’. 

7 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 

8 this Act is as follows: 


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Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 

Sec. 3. Savings clause. 

TITLE I—INNOVATION MANAGEMENT AT DEPARTMENT OF 

ENERGY 

Sec. 101. Under Secretary for Science and Energy. 

Sec. 102. Technology transfer assessment. 

Sec. 103. Sense of Congress. 

TITLE II—CROSS-SECTOR PARTNERSHIPS AND GRANT 

COMPETITIVENESS 

Sec. 201. Agreements for Commercializing Technology pilot program. 

Sec. 202. Public-private partnerships for commercialization. 

Sec. 203. Inclusion of early-stage technology demonstration in authorized technology transfer activities. 

Sec. 204. Funding competitiveness for institutions of higher education and 

other nonprofit institutions. 

Sec. 205. Participation in the Innovation Corps program. 

TITLE III—ASSESSMENT OF IMPACT 

Sec. 301. Report by Government Accountability Office. 

1 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

2 In this Act: 

3 (1) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’ 

4 means the Department of Energy. 

5 (2) NATIONAL LABORATORIES.—The term ‘‘Na6 tional Laboratory’’ means a Department of Energy 

7 nonmilitary national laboratory, including— 

8 (A) Ames Laboratory; 

9 (B) Argonne National Laboratory; 

10 (C) Brookhaven National Laboratory; 

11 (D) Fermi National Accelerator Labora12 tory; 

13 (E) Idaho National Laboratory; 


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1 (F) Lawrence Berkeley National Labora2 tory; 

3 (G) National Energy Technology Labora4 tory; 

5 (H) National Renewable Energy Labora6 tory; 

7 (I) Oak Ridge National Laboratory; 

8 (J) Pacific Northwest National Labora9 tory; 

10 (K) Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory; 

11 (L) Savannah River National Laboratory; 

12 (M) Stanford Linear Accelerator Center; 

13 (N) Thomas Jefferson National Accel14 erator Facility; and 

15 (O) any laboratory operated by the Na16 tional Nuclear Security Administration, but 

17 only with respect to the civilian energy activities 

18 thereof. 

19 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

20 the Secretary of Energy. 

21 SEC. 3. SAVINGS CLAUSE. 

22 Nothing in this Act or an amendment made by this 

23 Act abrogates or otherwise affects the primary responsibil24 ities of any National Laboratory to the Department. 


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1 TITLE I—INNOVATION MANAGE2 MENT AT DEPARTMENT OF 

3 ENERGY 

4 SEC. 101. UNDER SECRETARY FOR SCIENCE AND ENERGY. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 202(b) of the Department 

6 of Energy Organization Act (42 U.S.C. 7132(b)) is 

7 amended— 

8 (1) by striking ‘‘Under Secretary for Science’’ 

9 each place it appears and inserting ‘‘Under Sec10 retary for Science and Energy’’; and 

11 (2) in paragraph (4)— 

12 (A) in subparagraph (F), by striking 

13 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

14 (B) in subparagraph (G), by striking the 

15 period at the end and inserting a semicolon; 

16 and 

17 (C) by inserting after subparagraph (G) 

18 the following: 

19 ‘‘(H) establish appropriate linkages be20 tween offices under the jurisdiction of the 

21 Under Secretary; and 

22 ‘‘(I) perform such functions and duties as 

23 the Secretary shall prescribe, consistent with 

24 this section.’’. 

25 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 


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1 (1) Section 3164(b)(1) of the Department of 

2 Energy Science Education Enhancement Act (42 

3 U.S.C. 7381a(b)(1)) is amended by striking ‘‘Under 

4 Secretary for Science’’ and inserting ‘‘Under Sec5 retary for Science and Energy’’. 

6 (2) Section 641(h)(2) of the United States En7 ergy Storage Competitiveness Act of 2007 (42 

8 U.S.C. 17231(h)(2)) is amended by striking ‘‘Under 

9 Secretary for Science’’ and inserting ‘‘Under Sec10 retary for Science and Energy’’. 

11 SEC. 102. TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER ASSESSMENT. 

12 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 

13 of this Act, the Secretary shall transmit to the Committee 

14 on Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Rep15 resentatives and the Committee on Energy and Natural 

16 Resources of the Senate a report which shall include— 

17 (1) an assessment of the Department’s current 

18 ability to carry out the goals of section 1001 of the 

19 Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16391), in20 cluding an assessment of the role and effectiveness 

21 of the Technology Transfer Coordinator position; 

22 and 

23 (2) recommended departmental policy changes 

24 and legislative changes to section 1001 of the En25 ergy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16391) to imVerDate Mar 15 2010 23:19 Jul 17, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5120.IH H5120

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1 prove the Department’s ability to successfully trans2 fer new energy technologies to the private sector. 

3 SEC. 103. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

4 It is the sense of the Congress that— 

5 (1) the establishment of the independent Com6 mission to Review the Effectiveness of the National 

7 Energy Laboratories under section 319 of title III of 

8 division D of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 

9 2014, is an important step towards developing a co10 ordinated strategy for the National Laboratories in 

11 the 21st century; 

12 (2) Congress looks forward to— 

13 (A) receiving the findings and conclusions 

14 of the Commission; and 

15 (B) engaging with the Administration— 

16 (i) in strengthening the mission of the 

17 National Laboratories; and 

18 (ii) to reform and modernize the oper19 ations and management of the National 

20 Laboratories; and 

21 (3) the Secretary should encourage the National 

22 Laboratories and federally funded research and de23 velopment centers to inform small businesses of the 

24 opportunities and resources that exist pursuant to 

25 this Act. 


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1 TITLE II—CROSS-SECTOR PART2 NERSHIPS AND GRANT COM3 PETITIVENESS 

4 SEC. 201. AGREEMENTS FOR COMMERCIALIZING TECH5 NOLOGY PILOT PROGRAM. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry out the 

7 Agreements for Commercializing Technology pilot pro8 gram of the Department, as announced by the Secretary 

9 on December 8, 2011, in accordance with this section. 

10 (b) TERMS.—Each agreement entered into pursuant 

11 to the pilot program referred to in subsection (a) shall 

12 provide to the contractor of the applicable National Lab13 oratory, to the maximum extent determined to be appro14 priate by the Secretary, increased authority to negotiate 

15 contract terms, such as intellectual property rights, in16 demnification, payment structures, performance guaran17 tees, and multiparty collaborations. 

18 (c) ELIGIBILITY.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

20 provision of law (including regulations), any Na21 tional Laboratory may enter into an agreement pur22 suant to the pilot program referred to in subsection 

23 (a). 

24 (2) AGREEMENTS WITH NON-FEDERAL ENTI25 TIES.—To carry out paragraph (1) and subject to 


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1 paragraph (3), the Secretary shall permit the direc2 tors of the National Laboratories to execute agree3 ments with a non-Federal entity, including a non4 Federal entity already receiving Federal funding 

5 that will be used to support activities under agree6 ments executed pursuant to paragraph (1), provided 

7 that such funding is solely used to carry out the 

8 purposes of the Federal award. 

9 (3) RESTRICTION.—The requirements of chap10 ter 18 of title 35, United States Code (commonly 

11 known as the ‘‘Bayh-Dole Act’’) shall apply if— 

12 (A) the agreement is a funding agreement 

13 (as that term is defined in section 201 of that 

14 title); and 

15 (B) at least 1 of the parties to the funding 

16 agreement is eligible to receive rights under 

17 that chapter. 

18 (d) SUBMISSION TO SECRETARY.—Each affected di19 rector of a National Laboratory shall submit to the Sec20 retary, with respect to each agreement entered into under 

21 this section— 

22 (1) a summary of information relating to the 

23 relevant project; 

24 (2) the total estimated costs of the project; 


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1 (3) estimated commencement and completion 

2 dates of the project; and 

3 (4) other documentation determined to be ap4 propriate by the Secretary. 

5 (e) CERTIFICATION.—The Secretary shall require the 

6 contractor of the affected National Laboratory to certify 

7 that each activity carried out under a project for which 

8 an agreement is entered into under this section— 

9 (1) is not in direct competition with the private 

10 sector; and 

11 (2) does not present, or minimizes, any appar12 ent conflict of interest, and avoids or neutralizes any 

13 actual conflict of interest, as a result of the agree14 ment under this section. 

15 (f) EXTENSION.—The pilot program referred to in 

16 subsection (a) shall be extended for a term of 2 years after 

17 the date of enactment of this Act. 

18 (g) REPORTS.— 

19 (1) OVERALL ASSESSMENT.—Not later than 60 

20 days after the date described in subsection (f), the 

21 Secretary, in coordination with directors of the Na22 tional Laboratories, shall submit to the Committee 

23 on Science, Space, and Technology of the House of 

24 Representatives and the Committee on Energy and 

25 Natural Resources of the Senate a report that— 


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1 (A) assesses the overall effectiveness of the 

2 pilot program referred to in subsection (a); 

3 (B) identifies opportunities to improve the 

4 effectiveness of the pilot program; 

5 (C) assesses the potential for program ac6 tivities to interfere with the responsibilities of 

7 the National Laboratories to the Department; 

8 and 

9 (D) provides a recommendation regarding 

10 the future of the pilot program. 

11 (2) TRANSPARENCY.—The Secretary, in coordi12 nation with directors of the National Laboratories, 

13 shall submit to the Committee on Science, Space, 

14 and Technology of the House of Representatives and 

15 the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of 

16 the Senate an annual report that accounts for all 

17 incidences of, and provides a justification for, non18 Federal entities using funds derived from a Federal 

19 contract or award to carry out agreements pursuant 

20 to this section. 

21 SEC. 202. PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS FOR COMMER22 CIALIZATION. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsections (b) and (c), 

24 the Secretary shall delegate to directors of the National 

25 Laboratories signature authority with respect to any 


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1 agreement described in subsection (b) the total cost of 

2 which (including the National Laboratory contributions 

3 and project recipient cost share) is less than $1,000,000. 

4 (b) AGREEMENTS.—Subsection (a) applies to— 

5 (1) a cooperative research and development 

6 agreement; 

7 (2) a non-Federal work-for-others agreement; 

8 and 

9 (3) any other agreement determined to be ap10 propriate by the Secretary, in collaboration with the 

11 directors of the National Laboratories. 

12 (c) ADMINISTRATION.— 

13 (1) ACCOUNTABILITY.—The director of the af14 fected National Laboratory and the affected con15 tractor shall carry out an agreement under this sec16 tion in accordance with applicable policies of the De17 partment, including by ensuring that the agreement 

18 does not compromise any national security, eco19 nomic, or environmental interest of the United 

20 States. 

21 (2) CERTIFICATION.—The director of the af22 fected National Laboratory and the affected con23 tractor shall certify that each activity carried out 

24 under a project for which an agreement is entered 

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1 mizes, any apparent conflict of interest, and avoids 

2 or neutralizes any actual conflict of interest, as a re3 sult of the agreement under this section. 

4 (3) AVAILABILITY OF RECORDS.—On entering 

5 an agreement under this section, the director of a 

6 National Laboratory shall submit to the Secretary 

7 for monitoring and review all records of the National 

8 Laboratory relating to the agreement. 

9 (4) RATES.—The director of a National Lab10 oratory may charge higher rates for services per11 formed under a partnership agreement entered into 

12 pursuant to this section, regardless of the full cost 

13 of recovery, if such funds are used exclusively to 

14 support further research and development activities 

15 at the respective National Laboratory. 

16 (d) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 12 of the 

17 Stevenson-Wydler Technology Innovation Act of 1980 (15 

18 U.S.C. 3710a) is amended— 

19 (1) in subsection (a)— 

20 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and 

21 (2) as subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively, 

22 and indenting the subparagraphs appropriately; 

23 (B) by striking ‘‘Each Federal agency’’ 

24 and inserting the following: 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para2 graph (2), each Federal agency’’; and 

3 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—Notwithstanding paragraph 

5 (1), in accordance with section 202(a) of the Depart6 ment of Energy Laboratory Modernization and 

7 Technology Transfer Act of 2014, approval by the 

8 Secretary of Energy shall not be required for any 

9 technology transfer agreement proposed to be en10 tered into by a National Laboratory of the Depart11 ment of Energy, the total cost of which (including 

12 the National Laboratory contributions and project 

13 recipient cost share) is less than $1,000,000.’’; and 

14 (2) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘subsection 

15 (a)(1)’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘sub16 section (a)(1)(A)’’. 

17 SEC. 203. INCLUSION OF EARLY-STAGE TECHNOLOGY DEM18 ONSTRATION IN AUTHORIZED TECHNOLOGY 

19 TRANSFER ACTIVITIES. 

20 Section 1001 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 

21 U.S.C. 16391) is amended by— 

22 (1) redesignating subsection (g) as subsection 

23 (h); and 

24 (2) inserting after subsection (f) the following: 


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1 ‘‘(g) EARLY-STAGE TECHNOLOGY DEMONSTRA2 TION.—The Secretary shall permit the directors of the Na3 tional Laboratories to use funds authorized to support 

4 technology transfer within the Department to carry out 

5 early-stage and pre-commercial technology demonstration 

6 activities to remove technology barriers that limit private 

7 sector interest and demonstrate potential commercial ap8 plications of any research and technologies arising from 

9 National Laboratory activities.’’. 

10 SEC. 204. FUNDING COMPETITIVENESS FOR INSTITUTIONS 

11 OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND OTHER NON12 PROFIT INSTITUTIONS. 

13 Section 988(b) of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 

14 U.S.C. 16352(b)) is amended— 

15 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘Except as 

16 provided in paragraphs (2) and (3)’’ and inserting 

17 ‘‘Except as provided in paragraphs (2), (3), and 

18 (4)’’; and 

19 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(4) EXEMPTION FOR INSTITUTIONS OF HIGH21 ER EDUCATION AND OTHER NONPROFIT INSTITU22 TIONS.— 

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (1) shall 

24 not apply to a research or development activity 

25 performed by an institution of higher education 


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1 or nonprofit institution (as defined in section 4 

2 of the Stevenson-Wydler Technology Innovation 

3 Act of 1980 (15 U.S.C. 3703)). 

4 ‘‘(B) TERMINATION DATE.—The exemp5 tion under subparagraph (A) shall apply during 

6 the 6-year period beginning on the date of en7 actment of this paragraph.’’. 

8 SEC. 205. PARTICIPATION IN THE INNOVATION CORPS PRO9 GRAM. 

10 The Secretary may enter into an agreement with the 

11 Director of the National Science Foundation to enable re12 searchers funded by the Department to participate in the 

13 National Science Foundation Innovation Corps program. 

14 TITLE III—ASSESSMENT OF 

15 IMPACT 

16 SEC. 301. REPORT BY GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OF17 FICE. 

18 Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment 

19 of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 

20 shall submit to Congress a report— 

21 (1) describing the results of the projects devel22 oped under sections 201, 202, and 203, including in23 formation regarding— 

24 (A) partnerships initiated as a result of 

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1 sented by those partnerships with respect to na2 tional priorities and other taxpayer-funded re3 search; and 

4 (B) whether the activities carried out 

5 under those projects result in— 

6 (i) fiscal savings; 

7 (ii) expansion of National Laboratory 

8 capabilities; 

9 (iii) increased efficiency of technology 

10 transfers; or 

11 (iv) an increase in general efficiency 

12 of the National Laboratory system; and 

13 (2) assess the scale, scope, efficacy, and impact 

14 of the Department’s efforts to promote technology 

15 transfer and private sector engagement at the Na16 tional Laboratories, and make recommendations on 

17 how the Department can improve these activities. 

Æ 


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