114TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5049 
AN ACT 
To provide for improved management and oversight of major 
multi-user research facilities funded by the National 
Science Foundation, to ensure transparency and account-
ability of construction and management costs, and for 
other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘NSF Major Research 
Facility Reform Act of 2016’’. 
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 
the Director of the Foundation. 
(2) FOUNDATION.—The term ‘‘Foundation’’ 
means the National Science Foundation established 
under section 2 of the National Science Foundation 
Act of 1950 (42 U.S.C. 1861). 
(3) MAJOR MULTI-USER RESEARCH FACILITY.— 
The term ‘‘major multi-user research facility’’ means 
a science and engineering infrastructure construction 
project that exceeds the lesser of 10 percent of a Di-
rectorate’s annual budget or $100,000,000 in total 
project cost that is funded in the major research 
equipment and facilities construction account, or any 
successor thereto. 
SEC. 3. MANAGEMENT AND OVERSIGHT OF LARGE FACILI-
TIES. 
(a) LARGE FACILITIES OFFICE.—The Director shall 
maintain a Large Facilities Office. The functions of the 
Large Facilities Office shall be to support the research 
directorates in the development, implementation, and as-
sessment of major multi-user research facilities, including 
by— 
(1) serving as the Foundation’s primary re-
source for all policy or process issues related to the 
development and implementation of major multi-user 
research facilities; 
(2) serving as a Foundation-wide resource on 
project management, including providing expert as-
sistance on nonscientific and nontechnical aspects of 
project planning, budgeting, implementation, man-
agement, and oversight; 
(3) coordinating and collaborating with research 
directorates to share best management practices and 
lessons learned from prior projects; and 
(4) assessing projects during preconstruction 
and construction phases for cost and schedule risk. 
(b) OVERSIGHT OF LARGE FACILITIES.—The Direc-
tor shall appoint a senior agency official as head of the 
Large Facilities Office whose responsibility is oversight of 
the development, construction, and transfer to operations 
of major multi-user research facilities across the Founda-
tion. 
(c) POLICIES FOR LARGE FACILITY COSTS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall ensure 
that the Foundation’s polices for developing and
maintaining major multi-user research facility con-
struction costs are consistent with the best practices 
described in the March 2009 Government Account-
ability Office Report GAO–09–3SP, or any successor 
report thereto, the Uniform Guidance in 2 CFR part 
200, and the Federal Acquisition Regulation as ap-
propriate. 
(2) COST PROPOSAL ANALYSIS.— 
(A) GENERAL REQUIREMENT.—The Direc-
tor shall ensure that an external cost proposal 
analysis is conducted for any major multi-user 
research facility. 
(B) RESOLUTION OF ISSUES FOUND.—The 
Director, or a senior agency official within the 
Office of the Director designated by the Direc-
tor, shall certify in writing that all issues identi-
fied during the cost analysis, including any 
findings of unjustified or questionable cost 
items, are resolved before the Foundation may 
execute a construction agreement with respect 
to the project. 
(C) TRANSMITTAL
TO
CONGRESS.—The 
Director shall transmit each certification made 
under subparagraph (B) to the Committee on 
Science, Space, and Technology of the House of
Representatives, the Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation of the Senate, the 
Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
Representatives, and the Committee on Appro-
priations of the Senate. 
(3) INCURRED
COST
AUDITS.—The Director 
shall ensure that an incurred cost audit is conducted 
at least biennially on any major multi-user research 
facility, in accordance with Government Auditing 
Standards as established in Government Account-
ability Office Report GAO–12–331G, or any suc-
cessor report thereto, with the first incurred cost 
audit to commence no later than 12 months after 
execution of the construction agreement. 
(4) CONTINGENCIES.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided for 
in subparagraph (C)(ii), the Foundation shall— 
(i) provide oversight for contingency 
in accordance with Cost Principles Uni-
form Guidance in 2 CFR part 200.433, or 
any successor thereto, and the Federal Ac-
quisition Regulation as appropriate, except 
as provided in this paragraph; and 
(ii) not make any award which pro-
vides for contributions to a contingency re-