141 
preneurship, patenting, business planning, and 
other areas relevant to technology transfer, and 
connect students and researchers to relevant re-
sources, including mentors in the private sector; 
and 
‘‘(E) create and fund competitions to allow 
entrepreneurial students and faculty to illus-
trate the commercialization potential of their 
ideas. 
‘‘(4) 
MINIMUM
DURATION
AND
SIZE
OF 
AWARD.—Grants awarded under this subsection 
shall be at least 3 years in duration and $500,000 
in total amount. 
‘‘(5) APPLICATION.—An eligible entity seeking 
funding under this subsection shall submit an appli-
cation to the Director of the Foundation at such 
time, in such manner, and containing such informa-
tion and assurances as such Director may require. 
The application shall include, at a minimum, a de-
scription of how the eligible entity submitting an ap-
plication plans to sustain the proposed activities be-
yond the duration of the grant. 
‘‘(6) AUTHORIZATION
OF
APPROPRIATIONS.— 
From within funds authorized for the Directorate 
for Science and Engineering Solutions, there are au-
142 
thorized to carry out the activities under this sub-
section $40 million for each of fiscal years 2022 
through 2026.’’. 
(j) ENTREPRENEURIAL FELLOWSHIPS.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Director shall award 
fellowships to Ph.D.-trained scientists and engineers 
to help develop leaders capable of maturing prom-
ising ideas and technologies from lab to market and 
forge connections between academic research and 
government, industry, and finance. 
(2) APPLICATIONS.—An applicant for a fellow-
ship under this subsection shall submit to the Direc-
tor an application at such time, in such manner, and 
containing such information as the Director may re-
quire. At a minimum, the Director shall require that 
applicants— 
(A) have completed a doctoral degree in a 
STEM field no more than 5 years prior to the 
date of the application; and 
(B) have included in the application a let-
ter of support from the intended host institu-
tion that describes how the fellow will be em-
bedded in that institution’s research environ-
ment.
143 
(3) OUTREACH.—The Director shall conduct 
program outreach to recruit fellowship applicants— 
(A) from diverse research institutions; 
(B) from all regions of the country; and 
(C) from groups historically underrep-
resented in STEM fields; 
(4) The Director may enter into an agreement 
with a third-party entity to administer the fellow-
ships, subject to the provisions of this subsection. 
(5) AUTHORIZATION
OF
APPROPRIATIONS.— 
There is authorized to be appropriated to the Direc-
tor $100,000,000 for fiscal years 2022 through 
2026, to carry out the activities outlined in this sub-
section. 
(k) LOW-INCOME SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Director shall award 
scholarships to low-income individuals to enable such 
individuals to pursue associate, undergraduate, or 
graduate level degrees in mathematics, engineering, 
or computer science. 
(2) ELIGIBILITY.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to receive 
a scholarship under this section, an indi-
vidual—
144 
(i) must be a citizen of the United 
States, a national of the United States (as 
defined in section 1101(a) of title 8), an 
alien admitted as a refugee under section 
1157 of title 8, or an alien lawfully admit-
ted to the United States for permanent 
residence; 
(ii) shall prepare and submit to the 
Director an application at such time, in 
such manner, and containing such infor-
mation as the Director may require; and 
(iii) shall certify to the Director that 
the individual intends to use amounts re-
ceived under the scholarship to enroll or 
continue enrollment at an institution of 
higher education (as defined in section 
1001(a) of title 20) in order to pursue an 
associate, undergraduate, or graduate level 
degree in mathematics, engineering, com-
puter science, or other technology and 
science programs designated by the Direc-
tor. 
(B) ABILITY.—Awards of scholarships 
under this section shall be made by the Director 
solely on the basis of the ability of the appli-
145 
cant, except that in any case in which 2 or 
more applicants for scholarships are deemed by 
the Director to be possessed of substantially 
equal ability, and there are not sufficient schol-
arships available to grant one to each of such 
applicants, the available scholarship or scholar-
ships shall be awarded to the applicants in a 
manner that will tend to result in a geographi-
cally wide distribution throughout the United 
States of recipients’ places of permanent resi-
dence. 
(3) SCHOLARSHIP AMOUNT AND RENEWAL.— 
The amount of a scholarship awarded under this 
section shall be determined by the Director. The Di-
rector may renew scholarships for up to 5 years. 
(4) AUTHORIZATION.—Of amounts authorized 
for the Directorate for Science and Engineering So-
lutions, $100,000,000 shall be authorized for this 
program. 
(l) TRANSFER OF FUNDS.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Funds made available to 
carry out this section shall be available for transfer 
to other offices, directorates, or divisions within the 
Foundation for such use as is consistent with the 
purposes for which such funds are provided.
146 
(2) PROHIBITION ON TRANSFER FROM OTHER 
OFFICES.—No funds shall be available for transfer 
to the Directorate established under this section 
from other offices, directorates, or divisions within 
the Foundation. 
(m) AUTHORITIES.—In addition to existing authori-
ties available to the Foundation, the Director may exercise 
the following authorities in carrying out the activities 
under this section: 
(1) AWARDS.—In carrying out this section, the 
Director may provide awards in the form of grants, 
contracts, cooperative agreements, cash prizes, and 
other transactions. 
(2) APPOINTMENTS.—The Director shall have 
the authority to make appointments of scientific, en-
gineering, and professional personnel for carrying 
out research and development functions which re-
quire the services of specially qualified personnel re-
lating to the focus areas identified under subsection 
(g) and such other areas of national research prior-
ities as the Director may determine. 
(n) ETHICAL, LEGAL, AND SOCIETAL CONSIDER-
ATIONS.—The Director shall establish policies regarding 
engagement with experts in the social dimensions of 
science and technology and set up formal avenues for pub-
148 
(2) INCLUSIONS.—The evaluation shall in-
clude— 
(A) a recommendation on whether the Di-
rectorate should be continued or terminated; 
and 
(B) a description of lessons learned from 
operation of the Directorate. 
(3) AVAILABILITY.—On completion of the eval-
uation, the evaluation shall be made available to 
Congress and the public. 
SEC. 10. ADMINISTRATIVE AMENDMENTS. 
(a) SUPPORTING VETERANS IN STEM CAREERS.— 
Section 3(c) of the Supporting Veterans in STEM Careers 
Act is amended by striking ‘‘annual’’ and inserting ‘‘bien-
nial’’. 
(b) SUNSHINE ACT COMPLIANCE.—Section 15 of the 
National Science Foundation Authorization Act of 2002 
is amended— 
(1) so that paragraph (3) reads as follows: 
‘‘(3) COMPLIANCE
REVIEW.—The Inspector 
General of the Foundation shall conduct a review of 
the compliance by the Board with the requirements 
described in paragraph (2) as necessary based on a 
triennial risk assessment. Any review deemed nec-
essary shall examine the proposed and actual con-
149 
tent of closed meetings and determine whether the 
closure of the meetings was consistent with section 
552b of title 5, United States Code.’’; and 
(2) by striking paragraphs (4) and (5) and in-
serting the following: 
‘‘(4) MATERIALS RELATING TO CLOSED POR-
TIONS OF MEETING.—To facilitate the risk assess-
ment required under paragraph (3) of this sub-
section, and any subsequent review conducted by the 
Inspector General, the Office of the National Science 
Board shall maintain the General Counsel’s certifi-
cate, the presiding officer’s statement, and a tran-
script or recording of any closed meeting, for at 
least 3 years after such meeting.’’. 
(c) SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING INDICATORS RE-
PORT
SUBMISSION.—Section 4(j)(1) of the National 
Science Foundation Act of 1950 (42 U.S.C. 1863(j)(1)) 
is amended by striking ‘‘January 15’’ and inserting 
‘‘March 15’’. 
Passed the House of Representatives June 28, 2021. 
Attest: 
Clerk.
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 2225 
AN ACT 
To authorize appropriations for fiscal years 2022, 
2023, 2024, 2025, and 2026 for the National 
Science Foundation, and for other purposes.