110TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1867 
AN ACT 
To authorize appropriations for fiscal years 2008, 2009, and 
2010 for the National Science Foundation, 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 ‘‘National Science 
Foundation Authorization Act of 2007’’. 
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) BOARD.—The term ‘‘Board’’ means the Na-
tional Science Board established under section 2 of 
the National Science Foundation Act of 1950 (42 
U.S.C. 1861). 
(2) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 
the Director of the Foundation. 
(3) ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.—The term ‘‘elemen-
tary school’’ has the meaning given that term by 
section 9101(18) of the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801(18)). 
(4) FOUNDATION.—The term ‘‘Foundation’’ 
means the National Science Foundation. 
(5) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The 
term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the 
meaning given such term in section 101(a) of the 
Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)). 
(6) SECONDARY
SCHOOL.—The term ‘‘sec-
ondary school’’ has the meaning given that term by 
section 9101(38) of the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801(38)).
SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
(a) FISCAL YEAR 2008.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 
appropriated to the Foundation $6,500,000,000 for 
fiscal year 2008. 
(2) SPECIFIC
ALLOCATIONS.—Of the amount 
authorized under paragraph (1)— 
(A) $5,080,000,000 shall be made avail-
able for research and related activities, of which 
$115,000,000 shall be made available for the 
Major Research Instrumentation program; 
(B) $873,000,000 shall be made available 
for education and human resources, of which— 
(i) $94,000,000 shall be for Mathe-
matics and Science Education Partner-
ships established under section 9 of the 
National Science Foundation Authorization 
Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 1862n); 
(ii) $70,000,000 shall be for the Rob-
ert Noyce Scholarship Program established 
under section 10 of the National Science 
Foundation Authorization Act of 2002 (42 
U.S.C. 1862n–1); 
(iii) $44,000,000 shall be for the 
Science, Mathematics, Engineering, and 
Technology Talent Expansion Program es-
tablished under section 8(7) of the Na-
tional Science Foundation Authorization 
Act of 2002 (Public Law 107–368); and 
(iv) $51,620,000 shall be for the Ad-
vanced Technological Education program 
established by section 3(a) of the Scientific 
and Advanced-Technology Act of 1992 
(Public Law 102–476); 
(C) $245,000,000 shall be made available 
for major research equipment and facilities con-
struction; 
(D) $285,600,000 shall be made available 
for agency operations and award management; 
(E) $4,050,000 shall be made available for 
the Office of the National Science Board; and 
(F) $12,350,000 shall be made available 
for the Office of Inspector General. 
(b) FISCAL YEAR 2009.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 
appropriated to the Foundation $6,980,000,000 for 
fiscal year 2009. 
(2) SPECIFIC
ALLOCATIONS.—Of the amount 
authorized under paragraph (1)— 
(A) $5,457,400,000 shall be made avail-
able for research and related activities, of which
$123,100,000 shall be made available for the 
Major Research Instrumentation program; 
(B) $934,000,000 shall be made available 
for education and human resources, of which— 
(i) $100,600,000 shall be for Mathe-
matics and Science Education Partner-
ships established under section 9 of the 
National Science Foundation Authorization 
Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 1862n); 
(ii) $101,000,000 shall be for the 
Robert Noyce Scholarship Program estab-
lished under section 10 of the National 
Science Foundation Authorization Act of 
2002 (42 U.S.C. 1862n–1); 
(iii) $55,000,000 shall be for the 
Science, Mathematics, Engineering, and 
Technology Talent Expansion Program es-
tablished under section 8(7) of the Na-
tional Science Foundation Authorization 
Act of 2002 (Public Law 107–368); and 
(iv) $55,200,000 shall be for the Ad-
vanced Technological Education program 
as established by section 3(a) of the Sci-
entific and Advanced-Technology Act of 
1992 (Public Law 102–476);
(C) $262,000,000 shall be made available 
for major research equipment and facilities con-
struction; 
(D) $309,760,000 shall be made available 
for agency operations and award management; 
(E) $4,120,000 shall be made available for 
the Office of the National Science Board; and 
(F) $12,720,000 shall be made available 
for the Office of Inspector General. 
(c) FISCAL YEAR 2010.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 
appropriated to the Foundation $7,493,000,000 for 
fiscal year 2010. 
(2) SPECIFIC
ALLOCATIONS.—Of the amount 
authorized under paragraph (1)— 
(A) $5,863,200,000 shall be made avail-
able for research and related activities, of which 
$131,700,000 shall be made available for the 
Major Research Instrumentation program; 
(B) $1,003,000,000 shall be made avail-
able for education and human resources, of 
which— 
(i) $107,600,000 shall be for Mathe-
matics and Science Education Partner-
ships established under section 9 of the
National Science Foundation Authorization 
Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 1862n); 
(ii) $133,000,000 shall be for the 
Robert Noyce Scholarship Program estab-
lished under section 10 of the National 
Science Foundation Authorization Act of 
2002 (42 U.S.C. 1862n–1); 
(iii) $60,000,000 shall be for the 
Science, Mathematics, Engineering, and 
Technology Talent Expansion Program es-
tablished under section 8(7) of the Na-
tional Science Foundation Authorization 
Act of 2002 (Public Law 107–368); and 
(iv) $59,100,000 shall be for the Ad-
vanced Technological Education program 
as established by section 3(a) of the Sci-
entific and Advanced-Technology Act of 
1992 (Public Law 102–476); 
(C) $280,000,000 shall be made available 
for major research equipment and facilities con-
struction; 
(D) $329,450,000 shall be made available 
for agency operations and award management; 
(E) $4,250,000 shall be made available for 
the Office of the National Science Board; and
(F) $13,100,000 shall be made available 
for the Office of Inspector General. 
(d) MAJOR RESEARCH INSTRUMENTATION.— 
(1) AWARD AMOUNT.—The minimum amount 
of an award under the Major Research Instrumenta-
tion program shall be $100,000. The maximum 
amount of an award under the program shall be 
$4,000,000, except if the total amount appropriated 
for 
the 
program 
for 
a 
fiscal 
year 
exceeds 
$125,000,000, in which case the maximum amount 
of an award shall be $6,000,000. 
(2) USE OF FUNDS.—In addition to the acquisi-
tion of instrumentation and equipment, funds made 
available by awards under the Major Research In-
strumentation program may be used to support the 
operations and maintenance of such instrumentation 
and equipment. 
(3) COST SHARING.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—An institution of higher 
education receiving an award shall provide at 
least 30 percent of the cost from private or 
non-Federal sources. 
(B) EXCEPTIONS.—Institutions of higher 
education that are not Ph.D.-granting institu-
tions are exempt from the cost sharing require-
ment in subparagraph (A), and the Director 
may reduce or waive the cost sharing require-
ment for— 
(i) institutions— 
(I) which are not ranked among 
the top 100 institutions receiving Fed-
eral research and development fund-
ing, as documented by the statistical 
data published by the Foundation; 
and 
(II) for which the proposed 
project will make a substantial im-
provement in the institution’s capa-
bilities to conduct leading edge re-
search, to provide research experi-
ences 
for 
undergraduate 
students 
using leading edge facilities, and to 
broaden the participation in science 
and engineering research by individ-
uals identified in section 33 or 34 of 
the Science and Engineering Equal 
Opportunities Act (42 U.S.C. 1885a 
or 1885b); and 
(ii) consortia of institutions of higher 
education that include at least one institu-
tion that is not a Ph.D-granting institu-
tion. 
(e) UNDERGRADUATE EDUCATION PROGRAMS.—The 
Director shall continue to carry out programs in support 
of undergraduate education, including those authorized in 
section 17 of the National Science Foundation Authoriza-
tion Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 1862n–6). Funding for these 
programs shall increase in proportion to the increase in 
the total amount appropriated to the Foundation in any 
year for which appropriations are authorized by this Act. 
(f) LIMIT ON PROPOSALS.— 
(1) POLICY.—For programs that require as 
part of the selection process for awards the submis-
sion of preproposals and that also limit the number 
of preproposals that may be submitted by an institu-
tion, the Director shall allow the subsequent submis-
sion of a full proposal based on each preproposal 
that is determined to have merit following the Foun-
dation’s merit review process. 
(2) REVIEW AND ASSESSMENT OF POLICIES.— 
The Board shall review and assess the effects on in-
stitutions of higher education of the policies of the 
Foundation regarding the imposition of limitations 
on the number of proposals that may be submitted 
by a single institution for programs supported by the
Foundation. The Board shall determine whether cur-
rent policies are well justified and appropriate for 
the types of programs that limit the number of pro-
posal submissions. Not later that 1 year after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Board shall sum-
marize its findings and any recommendations re-
garding changes to the current policy on the restric-
tion of proposal submissions in a report to the Com-
mittee on Science and Technology of the House of 
Representatives and to the Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation and the Committee on 
Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Sen-
ate. 
(g) RESEARCH EXPERIENCES
FOR UNDERGRADU-
ATES.—The Director shall increase funding for the Re-
search Experiences for Undergraduates program in pro-
portion to the increase in the total amount appropriated 
to the Foundation for research and related activities in 
any year for which appropriations are authorized by this 
Act. 
(h) GLOBAL WARMING EDUCATION.— 
(1) INFORMAL EDUCATION.—As part of Infor-
mal Science Education activities, the Director shall 
support activities to create informal educational ma-
terials, exhibits, and multimedia presentations rel-
evant to global warming, climate science, and green-
house gas reduction strategies. 
(2) K–12 
INSTRUCTIONAL
MATERIALS.—As 
part of Discovery Research K–12 activities, the Di-
rector shall support the development of K–12 edu-
cational materials relevant to global warming, cli-
mate science, and greenhouse gas reduction strate-
gies. 
SEC. 4. CENTERS FOR RESEARCH ON LEARNING AND EDU-
CATION IMPROVEMENT. 
(a) FUNDING
FOR CENTERS.—The Director shall 
continue to carry out the program of Centers for Research 
on Learning and Education Improvement as established 
in section 11 of the National Science Foundation Author-
ization Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 1862n–2). 
(b) ELIGIBILITY FOR CENTERS.—Section 11 of the 
National Science Foundation Authorization Act of 2002 
(42 U.S.C. 1862n–2) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)(1), by inserting ‘‘or eligi-
ble nonprofit organizations’’ after ‘‘institutions of 
higher education’’; 
(2) in subsection (b)(1) by inserting ‘‘or an eli-
gible nonprofit organization’’ after ‘‘institution of 
higher education’’; and
(3) in subsection (b)(1) by striking ‘‘of such in-
stitutions’’ and inserting ‘‘thereof’’. 
SEC. 5. INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall evaluate the role 
of the Foundation in supporting interdisciplinary research, 
including through the Major Research Instrumentation 
program, the effectiveness of the Foundation’s efforts in 
providing information to the scientific community about 
opportunities for funding of interdisciplinary research pro-
posals, and the process through which interdisciplinary 
proposals are selected for support. The Board shall also 
evaluate the effectiveness of the Foundation’s efforts to 
engage undergraduate students in research experiences in 
interdisciplinary settings, including through the Research 
in Undergraduate Institutions program and the Research 
Experiences for Undergraduates program. 
(b) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 
of enactment of this Act, the Board shall provide the re-
sults of its evaluation under subsection (a), including a 
recommendation for the proportion of the Foundation’s re-
search and related activities funding that should be allo-
cated for interdisciplinary research, to the Committee on 
Science and Technology of the House of Representatives 
and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor-
tation and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, 
and Pensions of the Senate. 
SEC. 6. PILOT PROGRAM OF GRANTS FOR NEW INVESTIGA-
TORS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall carry out a 
pilot program to award one-year grants to individuals to 
assist them in improving research proposals that were pre-
viously submitted to the Foundation but not selected for 
funding. 
(b) USE OF FUNDS.—Grants awarded under this sec-
tion shall be used to enable an individual to resubmit an 
updated research proposal for review by the Foundation 
through the agency’s competitive merit review process. 
Uses of funds made available under this section may in-
clude the generation of new data and the performance of 
additional analysis. 
(c) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive a grant 
under this section, an individual shall— 
(1) not have previously received funding as the 
principal investigator of a research grant from the 
Foundation; and 
(2) have submitted a proposal to the Founda-
tion, which may include a proposal submitted to the 
Research in Undergraduate Institutions program,
that was rated very good or excellent under the 
Foundation’s competitive merit review process. 
(d) SELECTION PROCESS.—The Director shall make 
awards under this section based on the advice of the pro-
gram officers of the Foundation. 
(e) PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION.—The Director may 
carry out this section through the Small Grants for Ex-
ploratory Research program. 
(f) NATIONAL
SCIENCE
BOARD
REVIEW.—The 
Board shall conduct a review and assessment of the pilot 
program under this section, including the number of new 
investigators funded, the distribution of awards by type 
of institution of higher education, and the success rate 
upon resubmittal of proposals by new investigators funded 
through this pilot program. Not later than 3 years after 
the date of enactment of this Act, the Board shall summa-
rize its findings and any recommendations regarding 
changes to or the continuation of the pilot program in a 
report to the Committee on Science and Technology of the 
House of Representatives and the Committee on Com-
merce, Science, and Transportation and the Committee on 
Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate. 
SEC. 7. BROADER IMPACTS MERIT REVIEW CRITERION. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—In evaluating research proposals 
under the Foundation’s broader impacts criterion, the Di-
rector shall give special consideration to proposals that in-
volve partnerships between academic researchers and in-
dustrial scientists and engineers that address research 
areas that have been identified as having high importance 
for future national economic competitiveness, such as 
nanotechnology. 
(b) PARTNERSHIPS WITH INDUSTRY.—The Director 
shall encourage research proposals from institutions of 
higher education that involve partnerships with businesses 
and organizations representing businesses in fields that 
have been identified as having high importance for future 
national economic competitiveness and that include input 
on the research agenda from and cost-sharing by the in-
dustry partners. 
(c) REPORT ON BROADER IMPACTS CRITERION.— 
Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this 
Act, the Director shall transmit to Congress a report on 
the impact of the broader impacts grant criterion used by 
the Foundation. The report shall— 
(1) identify the criteria that each division and 
directorate of the Foundation uses to evaluate the 
broader impacts aspects of research proposals; 
(2) provide a breakdown of the types of activi-
ties by division that awardees have proposed to carry 
out to meet the broader impacts criterion;
(3) provide any evaluations performed by the 
Foundation to assess the degree to which the broad-
er impacts aspects of research proposals were car-
ried out and how effective they have been at meeting 
the goals described in the research proposals; 
(4) describe what national goals, such as im-
proving undergraduate science, mathematics, and 
engineering education, improving K–12 science and 
mathematics education, promoting university-indus-
try collaboration and technology transfer, and broad-
ening participation of underrepresented groups, the 
broader impacts criterion is best suited to promote; 
and 
(5) describe what steps the Foundation is tak-
ing and should take to use the broader impacts cri-
terion to improve undergraduate science, mathe-
matics, and engineering education. 
SEC. 8. POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCH FELLOWS. 
(a) MENTORING.—The Director shall require that all 
grant applications that include funding to support 
postdoctoral researchers include a description of the men-
toring activities that will be provided for such individuals, 
and shall ensure that this part of the application is evalu-
ated under the Foundation’s broader impacts merit review 
criterion. Mentoring activities may include career coun-
seling, training in preparing grant applications, guidance 
on ways to improve teaching skills, and training in re-
search ethics. 
(b) REPORTS.—The Director shall require that an-
nual reports and the final report for research grants that 
include funding to support postdoctoral researchers in-
clude a description of the mentoring activities provided to 
such researchers. 
SEC. 9. RESPONSIBLE CONDUCT OF RESEARCH. 
The Director shall require that each institution that 
applies for financial assistance from the Foundation for 
science and engineering research or education describe in 
its grant proposal a plan to provide appropriate training 
and oversight in the responsible and ethical conduct of re-
search to undergraduate students, graduate students, and 
postdoctoral researchers participating in the proposed re-
search project. 
SEC. 10. REPORTING OF RESEARCH RESULTS. 
The Director shall ensure that all final project re-
ports and citations of published research documents re-
sulting from research funded, in whole or in part, by the 
Foundation, are made available to the public in a timely 
manner and in electronic form through the Foundation’s 
Web site.
SEC. 11. SHARING RESEARCH RESULTS. 
An investigator supported under a Foundation 
award, whom the Director determines has failed to comply 
with the provisions of section 734 of the Foundation Grant 
Policy Manual, shall be ineligible for a future award under 
any Foundation supported program or activity. The Direc-
tor may restore the eligibility of such an investigator on 
the basis of the investigator’s subsequent compliance with 
the provisions of section 734 of the Foundation Grant Pol-
icy Manual and with such other terms and conditions as 
the Director may impose. 
SEC. 12. FUNDING FOR SUCCESSFUL STEM EDUCATION 
PROGRAMS. 
(a) EVALUATION OF PROGRAMS.—The Director shall, 
on an annual basis, evaluate all of the Foundation’s grants 
that are scheduled to expire within one year and— 
(1) that have the primary purpose of meeting 
the objectives of the Science and Engineering Equal 
Opportunity Act (42 U.S.C. 1885 et seq.); or 
(2) that have the primary purpose of providing 
teacher professional development. 
(b) CONTINUATION OF FUNDING.—For grants that 
are identified under subsection (a) and that are deemed 
by the Director to be successful in meeting the objectives 
of the initial grant solicitation, the Director may extend 
the duration of those grants for up to 3 additional years
beyond their scheduled expiration without the requirement 
for a recompetition. The Director may extend such grants 
for an additional 3 years following a second review within 
1 year before the extended completion date, in accordance 
with subsection (a), and the determination by the Director 
that the objectives of the grant are being achieved. 
(c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 2 years 
after the date of enactment of this Act, the Director shall 
submit a report to the Committee on Science and Tech-
nology of the House of Representatives and to the Com-
mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the 
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of 
the Senate that— 
(1) lists the grants which have been extended in 
duration by the authority provided under this sec-
tion; and 
(2) provides any recommendations the Director 
may have regarding the extension of the authority 
provided under this section to programs other than 
those specified in subsection (a). 
SEC. 13. COST SHARING. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall evaluate the im-
pact of its policy to eliminate cost sharing for research 
grants and cooperative agreements for existing programs 
that were developed around industry partnerships and his-