II 
Calendar No. 570 
115TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4323 
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 
DECEMBER 20, 2017 
Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, 
and Transportation 
SEPTEMBER 12, 2018 
Reported by Mr. THUNE, with an amendment 
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 
AN ACT 
To promote veteran involvement in STEM education, com-
puter science, and scientific research, and for other pur-
poses. 
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 ‘‘Supporting Veterans 
in STEM Careers Act’’. 
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
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(1) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 
the Director of the National Science Foundation. 
(2)
FOUNDATION.—The
term
‘‘Foundation’’ 
means the National Science Foundation. 
(3) STEM.—The term ‘‘STEM’’ has the mean-
ing given the term in section 2 of the America COM-
PETES Reauthorization Act of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 
6621 note). 
(4) VETERAN.—The term ‘‘veteran’’ has the 
meaning given the term in section 101 of title 38, 
United States Code. 
SEC. 3. SUPPORTING VETERANS IN STEM EDUCATION AND 
COMPUTER SCIENCE. 
(a) SUPPORTING VETERAN INVOLVEMENT IN SCI-
ENTIFIC RESEARCH AND STEM EDUCATION.—The Di-
rector shall, through the research and education activities 
of the Foundation, encourage veterans to study and pur-
sue careers in STEM and computer science, in coordina-
tion with other Federal agencies that serve veterans. 
(b) VETERAN OUTREACH PLAN.—Not later than 90 
days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Director 
shall submit to the Committee on Science, Space, and 
Technology of the House of Representatives and the Com-
mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 
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Senate a plan for how the Foundation can enhance its out-
reach efforts to veterans. Such plan shall— 
(1) report on the Foundation’s existing out-
reach activities; 
(2) identify the best method for the Foundation 
to leverage existing authorities and programs to fa-
cilitate and support veterans in STEM careers and 
studies, including teaching programs; and 
(3) identify a method for the Foundation to 
track veteran participation in research and edu-
cation programs of the Foundation, and describe 
any barriers to collecting such information. 
(c) NATIONAL SCIENCE BOARD INDICATORS RE-
PORT.—The National Science Board shall provide in its 
annual report on indicators of the state of science and en-
gineering in the United States any available and relevant 
data on veterans in science and engineering careers or 
education programs. 
(d) ROBERT NOYCE TEACHER SCHOLARSHIP PRO-
GRAM UPDATE.—Section 10 of the National Science 
Foundation Authorization Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 1862n– 
1) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)(5)— 
(A)
in
subparagraph
(A),
by
striking 
‘‘and’’ at the end; 
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(B) in subparagraph (B), by striking the 
period at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(C) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(C) higher education programs that serve 
or support veterans.’’; 
(2) in subsection (b)(2)(F)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘and students’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘, students’’; and 
(B) by inserting ‘‘, and veterans’’ before 
the period at the end; 
(3) in subsection (c)(2), by inserting ‘‘and vet-
erans’’ before the period at the end; and 
(4) in subsection (d)(2), by inserting ‘‘and vet-
erans’’ before the period at the end. 
(e) NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION TEACHING 
FELLOWSHIPS
AND MASTER TEACHING FELLOWSHIPS 
UPDATE.—Section 10A(d) of the National Science Foun-
dation Authorization Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 1862n– 
1a(d)) is amended— 
(1) in paragraph (3)(F)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘and individuals’’ and in-
serting ‘‘, individuals’’; and 
(B) by inserting ‘‘, and veterans’’ before 
the period at the end; and 
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(2) in paragraph (4)(B), by inserting ‘‘and vet-
erans’’ before the period at the end. 
(f) NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION COMPUTER 
AND NETWORK SECURITY CAPACITY BUILDING GRANTS 
UPDATE.—Section 5(a) of the Cyber Security Research 
and Development Act (15 U.S.C. 7404(a)) is amended— 
(1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘and stu-
dents who are veterans’’ after ‘‘these fields’’; and 
(2) in paragraph (3)— 
(A) in subparagraph (I), by striking ‘‘and’’ 
at the end; 
(B) by redesignating subparagraph (J) as 
subparagraph (K); and 
(C) by inserting after subparagraph (I) the 
following: 
‘‘(J) creating opportunities for veterans to 
transition to careers in computer and network 
security; and’’. 
(g) GRADUATE TRAINEESHIPS IN COMPUTER AND 
NETWORK
SECURITY
RESEARCH
UPDATE.—Section 
5(c)(6)(C) of the Cyber Security Research and Develop-
ment Act (15 U.S.C. 7404(c)(6)(C)) is amended by insert-
ing ‘‘or veterans’’ after ‘‘disciplines’’. 
(h) VETERANS
AND MILITARY FAMILIES STEM 
EDUCATION INTERAGENCY SUBCOMMITTEE.— 
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(1) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the Office of 
Science and Technology Policy shall establish a sub-
committee under the Committee on STEM Edu-
cation of the National Science and Technology 
Council (established under section 101 of the Amer-
ica COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010) to 
coordinate
Federal
programs
and
policies
for 
transitioning and training veterans and military 
spouses for STEM careers. 
(2)
DUTIES
OF
SUBCOMMITTEE.—The
sub-
committee established under paragraph (1) shall— 
(A) coordinate Federal agency STEM out-
reach activities and programs for veterans and 
military spouses; and 
(B) develop and facilitate the implementa-
tion by participating agencies of a strategic 
plan, which shall— 
(i) specify and prioritize short- and 
long-term objectives; 
(ii) specify the common metrics that 
will be used by Federal agencies to assess 
progress toward achieving such objectives; 
(iii) identify barriers veterans face in 
reentering the workforce, including a lack 
of formal STEM education, career guid-
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ance, and the process of transferring mili-
tary credits and skills to college credits; 
(iv) identify barriers military spouses 
face
in
establishing
careers
in
STEM 
fields; 
(v) describe the approaches that each 
participating agency will take to address 
administratively the barriers described in 
clauses (iii) and (iv); and 
(vi) identify any barriers that require 
Federal or State legislative or regulatory 
changes in order to be addressed. 
(3) DUTIES OF OSTP.—The Director of the Of-
fice of Science and Technology Policy shall encour-
age and monitor the efforts of the Federal agencies 
participating in the subcommittee to ensure that the 
strategic plan required under paragraph (2)(B) is 
developed and executed effectively and that the ob-
jectives of such strategic plan are met. 
(4) REPORT.—The Director of the Office of 
Science and Technology Policy shall— 
(A) not later than 1 year after the date of 
enactment of this Act, submit to Congress the 
strategic plan required under paragraph (2)(B); 
and 
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(B) include in the annual report required 
by section 101(d) of the America COMPETES 
Reauthorization
Act
a
description
of
any 
progress made in carrying out the activities de-
scribed in paragraph (2)(B) of this subsection. 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Supporting Veterans 
in STEM Careers Act’’. 
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means the 
Director of the National Science Foundation. 
(2) 
FOUNDATION.—The 
term 
‘‘Foundation’’ 
means the National Science Foundation. 
(3) STEM.—The term ‘‘STEM’’ has the meaning 
given the term in section 2 of the America COM-
PETES Reauthorization Act of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 6621 
note). 
(4) VETERAN.—The term ‘‘veteran’’ has the 
meaning given the term in section 101 of title 38, 
United States Code. 
SEC. 3. SUPPORTING VETERANS IN STEM EDUCATION AND 
COMPUTER SCIENCE. 
(a) SUPPORTING VETERAN INVOLVEMENT
IN SCI-
ENTIFIC RESEARCH AND STEM EDUCATION.—The Director 
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shall, through the research and education activities of the 
Foundation, encourage veterans to study and pursue careers 
in STEM and computer science, in coordination with other 
Federal agencies that serve veterans. 
(b) VETERAN OUTREACH PLAN.—Not later than 180 
days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Director 
shall submit to the Committee on Science, Space, and Tech-
nology of the House of Representatives and the Committee 
on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate 
a plan for how the Foundation can enhance its outreach 
efforts to veterans. Such plan shall— 
(1) report on the Foundation’s existing outreach 
activities; 
(2) identify the best method for the Foundation 
to leverage existing authorities and programs to fa-
cilitate and support veterans in STEM careers and 
studies, including teaching programs; 
(3) include options for how the Foundation will, 
to the extent practicable, track veteran participation 
in research and education programs of the Founda-
tion; and 
(4) describe any barriers to collecting the infor-
mation described in paragraph (3). 
(c) NATIONAL
SCIENCE
BOARD
INDICATORS
RE-
PORT.—The National Science Board shall provide in its an-
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nual report on indicators of the state of science and engi-
neering in the United States any available and relevant 
data on veterans in science and engineering careers or edu-
cation programs. 
(d) ROBERT NOYCE TEACHER SCHOLARSHIP PRO-
GRAM UPDATE.—Section 10 of the National Science Foun-
dation Authorization Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 1862n–1) is 
amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)(5)— 
(A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘and’’ 
at the end; 
(B) in subparagraph (B), by striking the 
period at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(C) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(C) higher education programs that serve 
or support veterans.’’; and 
(2) in subsection (b)(2)(F)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘and students’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘, students’’; and 
(B) by inserting ‘‘, and veterans’’ before the 
period at the end. 
(e) NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION TEACHING FEL-
LOWSHIPS
AND MASTER TEACHING FELLOWSHIPS UP-
DATE.—Section 10A(d) of the National Science Foundation 
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Authorization Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 1862n–1a(d)) is 
amended— 
(1) in paragraph (3)(F)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘and individuals’’ and in-
serting ‘‘, individuals’’; and 
(B) by inserting ‘‘, and veterans’’ before the 
period at the end; and 
(2) in paragraph (4)(B), by inserting ‘‘and vet-
erans’’ before the period at the end. 
(f) NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION COMPUTER AND 
NETWORK SECURITY CAPACITY BUILDING GRANTS UP-
DATE.—Section 5(a) of the Cyber Security Research and 
Development Act (15 U.S.C. 7404(a)) is amended— 
(1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘and students 
who are veterans’’ after ‘‘these fields’’; and 
(2) in paragraph (3)— 
(A) in subparagraph (I), by striking ‘‘and’’ 
at the end; 
(B) by redesignating subparagraph (J) as 
subparagraph (K); and 
(C) by inserting after subparagraph (I) the 
following: 
‘‘(J) creating opportunities for veterans to 
transition to careers in computer and network 
security; and’’. 
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(g) GRADUATE TRAINEESHIPS
IN COMPUTER
AND 
NETWORK
SECURITY
RESEARCH
UPDATE.—Section 
5(c)(6)(C) of the Cyber Security Research and Development 
Act (15 U.S.C. 7404(c)(6)(C)) is amended by inserting ‘‘or 
veterans’’ after ‘‘disciplines’’. 
(h) VETERANS AND MILITARY FAMILIES STEM EDU-
CATION INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the Office of 
Science and Technology Policy shall establish or des-
ignate an interagency working group to coordinate 
Federal programs and policies for transitioning and 
training veterans and military spouses for STEM ca-
reers. 
(2) 
DUTIES
OF
INTERAGENCY
WORKING 
GROUP.—The interagency working group under para-
graph (1) shall— 
(A) coordinate any Federal agency STEM 
outreach activities and programs for veterans 
and military spouses; and 
(B) develop and facilitate the implementa-
tion by participating agencies of a strategic 
plan, which shall— 
(i) specify and prioritize short- and 
long-term objectives; 
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(ii) specify the common metrics that 
will be used by Federal agencies to assess 
progress toward achieving such objectives; 
(iii) identify barriers veterans face in 
reentering the workforce, including a lack of 
formal STEM education, career guidance, 
and the process of transferring military 
credits and skills to college credits; 
(iv) identify barriers military spouses 
face in establishing careers in STEM fields; 
(v) describe the approaches that each 
participating agency will take to address 
administratively the barriers described in 
clauses (iii) and (iv); and 
(vi) identify any barriers that require 
Federal or State legislative or regulatory 
changes in order to be addressed. 
(3) DUTIES OF OSTP.—The Director of the Office 
of Science and Technology Policy shall encourage and 
monitor the efforts of the Federal agencies partici-
pating in the interagency working group to ensure 
that the strategic plan required under paragraph 
(2)(B) is developed and executed effectively and that 
the objectives of such strategic plan are met. 
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