IIB

107TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 2051

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

MAY 15 (legislative day, MAY 9), 2002

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education,

Labor, and Pensions

AN ACT

To authorize the National Science Foundation to establish

regional centers for the purpose of plant genome and

gene expression research and development and international research partnerships for the advancement of

plant biotechnology in the developing world.
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1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. DEFINITIONS.

4 In this Act—

5 (1) the term ‘‘Director’’ means the Director of

6 the National Science Foundation;

7 (2) the term ‘‘institution of higher education’’

8 has the meaning given such term in section 101 of

9 the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C.

10 1001); and

11 (3) the term ‘‘nonprofit organization’’ means a

12 nonprofit research institute or a nonprofit associa13 tion with experience and capability in plant bio14 technology research as determined by the Director.

15 SEC. 2. MATCHING FUNDS.

16 The Director may establish matching fund require17 ments for grantees to receive grants under this Act.

18 SEC. 3. PLANT GENOME AND GENE EXPRESSION RESEARCH

19 CENTERS.

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall award grants

21 to consortia of institutions of higher education or non22 profit organizations (or both) to establish regional plant

23 genome and gene expression research centers. Grants shall

24 be awarded under this section on a merit-reviewed, com25 petitive basis. When making awards, the Director shall,
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1 to the extent practicable, ensure that the program created

2 by this section examines as many different agricultural en3 vironments as possible.

4 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the centers estab5 lished pursuant to subsection (a) shall be to conduct re6 search in plant genomics and plant gene expression. A cen7 ter’s activities may include—

8 (1) basic plant genomics research and genomics

9 applications, including those related to cultivation of

10 crops in extreme environments and to cultivation of

11 crops with reduced reliance on fertilizer;

12 (2) basic research that will contribute to the de13 velopment or use of innovative plant-derived prod14 ucts;

15 (3) basic research on alternative uses for plants

16 and plant materials, including the use of plants as

17 renewable feedstock for alternative energy produc18 tion and nonpetroleum-based industrial chemicals

19 and precursors; and

20 (4) basic research and dissemination of infor21 mation on the ecological and other consequences of

22 genetically engineered plants.
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1 SEC. 4. PARTNERSHIPS FOR PLANT BIOTECHNOLOGY IN

2 THE DEVELOPING WORLD.

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—(1) The Director shall award

4 grants to institutions of higher education, nonprofit orga5 nizations, or consortia of such entities to establish re6 search partnerships for supporting the development of

7 plant biotechnology targeted to the needs of the developing

8 world. The Director, by means of outreach, shall encour9 age inclusion of Historically Black Colleges or Univer10 sities, Hispanic-serving institutions, or tribal colleges or

11 universities in consortia that enter into such partnerships.

12 (2) In order to be eligible to receive a grant under

13 this section, an institution of higher education or eligible

14 nonprofit organization (or consortium thereof) shall enter

15 into a partnership with one or more research institutions

16 in one or more developing nations and may also include

17 for-profit companies involved in plant biotechnology.

18 (3) Grants under this section shall be awarded on a

19 merit-reviewed competitive basis.

20 (b) PURPOSE.—Grants awarded under this section

21 shall be used for support of research in plant bio22 technology targeted to the needs of the developing world.

23 Such activities may include—

24 (1) basic genomic research on crops grown in

25 the developing world;
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1 (2) basic research in plant biotechnology that

2 will advance and expedite the development of im3 proved cultivars, including those that are pest-resist4 ant, produce increased yield, reduce the need for fer5 tilizers, or increase tolerance to stress;

6 (3) basic research that could lead to the devel7 opment of technologies to produce pharmaceutical

8 compounds such as vaccines and medications in

9 plants that can be grown in the developing world;

10 and

11 (4) research on the impact of plant bio12 technology on the social, political, economic, and en13 vironmental conditions in countries in the developing

14 world.

15 SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

16 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Na17 tional Science Foundation $9,000,000 for fiscal year

18 2002, $13,500,000 for fiscal year 2003, and $13,500,000

19 for fiscal year 2004 to carry out this Act.

Passed the House of Representatives May 14, 2002.

Attest: JEFF TRANDAHL,

Clerk.