I 

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 3871

To establish the United States-Israel Homeland Security Foundation to make 

grants to joint business ventures between United States and Israeli 

private corporate entities to develop products and services with applications related to homeland security, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 2, 2004

Mr. TURNER of Texas (for himself and Mr. WELDON of Pennsylvania) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Science, 

and in addition to the Select Committee on Homeland Security, 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 establish the United States-Israel Homeland Security 

Foundation to make grants to joint business ventures 

between United States and Israeli private corporate entities to develop products and services with applications 

related to homeland security, 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 ‘‘United States-Israel 

5 Homeland Security Foundation Act’’. 
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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) The development and implementation of 

4 technology is a crucial component of combating ter5 rorism and implementing homeland security strate6 gies. 

7 (2) Israel and Israeli industries have extensive 

8 experience with matters pertaining to homeland se9 curity generally and anti-terrorism specifically, in10 cluding expertise in the fields of border integrity, 

11 transportation security, first responder equipment, 

12 and civil defense planning. 

13 (3) The United States and Israel have an ex14 tensive history of working cooperatively and success15 fully to assist with the development of agricultural, 

16 defense, telecommunications, and other technologies 

17 mutually beneficial to each country, as exemplified 

18 by the success of the Binational Industrial Research 

19 and Development Foundation, commonly referred to 

20 as the BIRD Foundation. 

21 (4) Initiated in 1977 as a grant program fund22 ed in equal parts by the governments of the United 

23 States and Israel in support of joint United States24 Israeli business ventures, the BIRD Foundation has 

25 invested $180 million in 600 projects over the past 
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1 27 years and has realized $7 billion in sales and the 

2 development of a number of important technologies. 

3 (5) The establishment of a similar bi-national 

4 foundation, or the expansion of the BIRD Founda5 tion, to support the development of technologies and 

6 services applicable to homeland security would be 

7 beneficial to the security of the United States and 

8 Israel and would strengthen the economic ties be9 tween the two countries. 

10 SEC. 3. UNITED STATES-ISRAEL HOMELAND SECURITY 

11 FOUNDATION. 

12 The Homeland Security Act of 2002 (Public Law 

13 107–296) is amended by inserting after section 307 (6 

14 U.S.C. 187) the following new section: 

15 ‘‘SEC. 307A UNITED STATES-ISRAEL HOMELAND SECURITY 

16 FOUNDATION AND GRANT PROGRAM. 

17 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT AND PURPOSE.—

18 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT AUTHORIZED.—The Sec19 retary may establish a United States-Israel Home20 land Security Foundation (in this section referred to 

21 as the ‘Foundation’), for the purpose of awarding 

22 conditional grants to joint business ventures between 

23 United States and Israeli private corporate entities 

24 to develop, manufacture, sell, or otherwise provide 
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1 products and services with applications related to 

2 homeland security. 

3 ‘‘(2) ADMINISTRATION.—The Secretary shall 

4 administer the grant program through the Direc5 torate of Science and Technology. 

6 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—To be eligible to receive 

7 a grant under this section, an applicant shall—

8 ‘‘(1) be a joint venture consisting of United 

9 States and Israeli private corporate entities; 

10 ‘‘(2) be in the process of developing a product 

11 or service determined by the Secretary to have appli12 cations related to homeland security; and 

13 ‘‘(3) demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Sec14 retary a capability to develop, manufacture, sell, and 

15 support the product or service. 

16 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION.—An eligible entity may apply for 

17 a grant under this section by submitting to the Secretary 

18 an application at such time and in such manner as the 

19 Secretary may require and containing the following infor20 mation: 

21 ‘‘(1) An identification of the entity that is ap22 plying for the grant. 

23 ‘‘(2) The activities that the entity anticipates 

24 will be funded by the award of a grant. 
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1 ‘‘(3) The services or products the entity antici2 pates will be made available, either commercially or 

3 otherwise, as a result of an award of a grant. 

4 ‘‘(4) A detailed capital budget for the proposed 

5 project, including the manner in which the grant 

6 funds will be allocated and expended. 

7 ‘‘(5) Such other information as the Secretary 

8 may require. 

9 ‘‘(d) AMOUNT OF GRANT.—A grant under this sec10 tion may not exceed 50 percent of the total proposed cost 

11 for the development, manufacture, and provision of the 

12 product or service of the applicant described in the appli13 cation. 

14 ‘‘(e) GRANT REPAYMENT.—A grant recipient shall 

15 repay the grant to the Foundation as the Secretary may 

16 reasonably require. Grant repayments may not exceed 

17 more than 150 percent of the grant awarded, adjusted for 

18 inflation in accordance with the Consumer Price Index. 

19 ‘‘(f) ADVISORY BOARD.—

20 ‘‘(1) REPRESENTATIVES.—Administration of 

21 the Foundation shall include an advisory board com22 prised of public and private sector representatives. 

23 ‘‘(2) MEMBERSHIP OF ADVISORY BOARD.—

24 ‘‘(A) UNITED STATES MEMBERSHIP.—

25 Membership to the advisory board shall include 
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1 the Director of the Homeland Security Ad2 vanced Research Projects Agency and the Di3 rector of International Affairs of the Depart4 ment of Homeland Security. 

5 ‘‘(B) ISRAELI MEMBERSHIP.—The Sec6 retary shall extend an invitation to the relevant 

7 Israeli government officials for their participa8 tion on the advisory board. 

9 ‘‘(g) FOUNDATION FUNDING.—Subject to subsection 

10 (i), if the Secretary decides to establish the Foundation 

11 under subsection (a), the Secretary shall use not less than 

12 $25,000,000 of the funds available in the Acceleration 

13 Fund for Research and Development of Homeland Secu14 rity Technologies, established under section 307(c)(1), to 

15 administer the Foundation. 

16 ‘‘(h) ALTERNATIVE MECHANISM TO SUPPORT HOME17 LAND SECURITY PRODUCTS AND SERVICES.—Subject to 

18 subsection (i), if the Secretary decides not to establish the 

19 Foundation under subsection (a), the Secretary shall use 

20 not less than $25,000,000 of the funds available in the 

21 Acceleration Fund for Research and Development of 

22 Homeland Security Technologies, established under sec23 tion 307(c)(1), to support the efforts of the Binational In24 dustrial Research and Development Foundation to make 
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1 grants to joint United States-Israeli business ventures for 

2 projects related to homeland security. 

3 ‘‘(i) SHARED ENDOWMENT.—Any expenditure by the 

4 United States under this section shall be equal to the ex5 penditure by Israel for the same purpose.’’.

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