puses, and as needed on the Institute’s joint institute 
campuses, for the modernization, renovation, and con-
struction of research facilities needed to conduct lead-
ing edge scientific and technical research. 
‘‘(3) CONTENTS OF FUND.—The Funds shall con-
sist of the following amounts: 
‘‘(A) Such amounts as may be appropriated 
by law. 
‘‘(B) Interest earned on the balance of the 
Fund. 
‘‘(4) AUTHORIZATION OF FUNDS.—Of the funds 
authorized to be appropriated in section 302 of the 
National Institute of Standards and Technology for 
the Future Act of 2021 for the construction and ren-
ovation of facilities, $80,000,000 for each of the fiscal 
years 2022 through 2026 shall be provided for the 
Fund established in subsection (a). 
‘‘(5) CONTINUING
AVAILABILITY
OF
FUNDS.— 
Amounts in the Fund are available without regard to 
fiscal year limitation. 
‘‘(6) NOTIFICATION
TO
COMMITTEES.—Upon 
making any obligation or expenditure of any amount 
in the Fund, the Secretary, through the Director, shall 
notify the Committee on Science, Space, and Tech-
nology of the House of Representatives, the Committee 
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on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 
Senate, the Committee on Appropriations of the 
House of Representatives and the Committee on Ap-
propriations of the Senate of the amount and purpose 
of the obligation or expenditure. 
‘‘(7) NIST FACILITIES
MODERNIZATION
AND 
MAINTENANCE PLAN.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—To carry out the pro-
gram authorized in subsection (d), the Secretary, 
acting through the Director, shall develop and 
submit to Congress a 5-year modernization and 
maintenance plan for the Institute’s campuses. 
‘‘(B) 
TIMING.—The 
modernization 
and 
maintenance plan required in subparagraph (A) 
shall be submitted to Congress not later than 30 
days after the date of enactment of the National 
Institute of Standards and Technology for the 
Future Act of 2021, and an update shall be sub-
mitted to Congress annually thereafter. 
‘‘(C) COMPONENTS.—The plan required in 
subparagraph (A) shall include, with respect to 
the 5-year period beginning on the date of the 
submission or update, the following: 
‘‘(i) A list of Capital Construction 
Projects expected to be undertaken during 
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such period, the core capabilities these fa-
cilities will provide, climate-resilience plan-
ning efforts, anticipated schedule of con-
struction, and anticipated funding require-
ments. 
‘‘(ii) A list of planned utility infra-
structure projects expected to be undertaken 
during such periods, anticipated schedule of 
construction, and anticipated funding re-
quirements. 
‘‘(iii) A list of planned IT infrastruc-
ture projects expected to be undertaken dur-
ing such period, anticipated schedule of con-
struction, and anticipated funding require-
ments. 
‘‘(iv) A list of the deferred maintenance 
projects expected to be undertaken during 
such period, anticipated schedule of con-
struction, anticipated funding requirements, 
and an evaluation of progress made in re-
ducing the deferred maintenance backlog.’’. 
SEC. 302. EDUCATIONAL OUTREACH AND SUPPORT FOR 
UNDERREPRESENTED COMMUNITIES. 
Section 18 of the National Institute of Standards and 
Technology Act (15 U.S.C. 278g-1) is amended— 
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(1) in subsection (a), in the second sentence— 
(A) by striking ‘‘may’’ and inserting 
‘‘shall’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘academia’’ and inserting 
‘‘diverse types of institutions of higher education, 
including minority-serving institutions and com-
munity colleges’’; and 
(2) in subsection (e)— 
(A) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 
the end; 
(B) in paragraph (5), by striking the period 
at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(C) by inserting after paragraph (5) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(6) conduct outreach to and develop research 
collaborations with historically black colleges and uni-
versities and minority-serving institutions, including 
through the recruitment of students and faculty at 
such institutions to participate in programs developed 
under paragraph (3); 
‘‘(7) conduct outreach to and develop research 
collaborations with community colleges, including 
through the recruitment of students and faculty at 
such institutions to participate in programs developed 
under paragraph (3); 
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‘‘(8) carry out other activities to increase the 
participation of persons historically underrepresented 
in STEM in the Institute’s programs; and 
‘‘(9) conduct outreach to and develop collabora-
tions with nontraditional educational organizations, 
including those that offer training through non-profit 
associations and professional associations or profes-
sional societies, to engage persons historically under-
represented in STEM through programs developed 
under this subsection.’’. 
SEC. 303. OTHER TRANSACTIONS AUTHORITY. 
Section 2(b)(4) of the National Institute of Standards 
and Technology Act (15 U.S.C. 272(b)(4)) is amended to 
read as follows: 
‘‘(4) to enter into and perform such contracts, 
including cooperative research and development ar-
rangements and grants and cooperative agreements or 
other transactions, as may be necessary in the con-
duct of its work and on such terms as it may deem 
appropriate, in furtherance of the purposes of this 
Act;’’. 
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SEC. 304. COLLABORATIONS WITH GOVERNMENT AGEN-
CIES. 
Section 8 of the National Bureau of Standards Author-
ization of Act for Fiscal Year 1983 (15 U.S.C. 275b) is 
amended— 
(1) in the heading, by adding ‘‘AND WITH’’ 
after ‘‘PERFORMED FOR’’; 
(2) by striking ‘‘The Secretary of Commerce’’ 
and inserting ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of 
Commerce’’; 
(3) by inserting after ‘‘(15 U.S.C. 278b(e)).’’ the 
following: ‘‘The Secretary may accept, apply for, use, 
and spend Federal, State, and non-governmental 
funds to further the mission of the Institute without 
regard to the source or the period of availability of 
these funds as well as share personnel, associates, fa-
cilities, and property with these partner organiza-
tions, with or without reimbursement, upon mutual 
agreement.’’; and 
(4) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(b) REPORT.—For each fiscal year beginning with 
fiscal year 2022, not later than 90 days after submission 
of the President’s annual budget request for such fiscal year, 
the Director shall submit to the Committee on Science, 
Space, and Technology and the Committee on Appropria-
tions of the House of Representatives and the Committee 
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on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the Com-
mittee of Appropriations of the Senate a de- scription of 
any appropriated funds, under this authority, carried over 
from the year in which such funds were ap- propriated.’’. 
SEC. 305. HIRING CRITICAL TECHNICAL EXPERTS. 
Section 6 of the National Institute of Standards and 
Technology Act is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘SEC. 6. HIRING CRITICAL TECHNICAL EXPERTS. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The officers and employees of the 
Institute, except the director, shall be appointed by the Sec-
retary of Commerce at such time as their respective services 
may become necessary. 
‘‘(b) HIRING CRITICAL TECHNICAL EXPERTS.—Not-
withstanding section 3104 of title 5 or the provisions of any 
other law relating to the appointment, number, classifica-
tion, or compensation of employees, the Secretary of Com-
merce shall have the authority to make appointments of sci-
entific, engineering, and professional personnel, and to fix 
the basic pay of such personnel at a rate to be determined 
by the Secretary at rates not in excess of the highest total 
annual compensation payable at the rate determined under 
section 104 of title 3. The Director shall appoint not more 
than 15 personnel under this section. 
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‘‘(c) SUNSET.—The authority under section (b) shall 
expire on the date that is 5 years after the date of enactment 
of this section.’’. 
SEC. 306. INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS DEVELOPMENT. 
(a) INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS ENGAGEMENT.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall lead infor-
mation exchange and coordination among Federal 
agencies and communication from Federal agencies to 
the private sector of the United States to ensure effec-
tive Federal engagement in the development and use 
of international technical standards. 
(2) REQUIREMENTS.—To support private sector- 
led engagement and ensure effective Federal engage-
ment in the development and use of international 
technical standards, the Director shall consider— 
(A) the role and needs of the Federal Gov-
ernment with respect to international technical 
standards; 
(B) organizations developing international 
technical standards of interest to the United 
States, United States representation and influ-
ence in these organizations, and key contributors 
for technical and leadership expertise in these or-
ganizations; 
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(C) support for persons with domain subject 
matter expertise, especially from small businesses 
located in the United States, to influence and en-
gage in technical standards leadership positions, 
working groups and meetings; 
(D) opportunities for partnerships for sup-
porting international technical standards from 
across the Federal Government, federally funded 
research and development centers, university-af-
filiated research centers, institutions of higher 
education, industry, industry associations, non-
profit organizations, and other key contributors; 
(E) support for activities to encourage the 
adoption of technical standards developed in the 
United States to be adopted by international 
standards organizations; and 
(F) other activities determined by the Direc-
tor to be necessary to support United States par-
ticipation in international standards develop-
ment, economic competitiveness, and national se-
curity in the development and use of inter-
national technical standards. 
(b) CAPACITY BUILDING GUIDANCE.—The Director 
shall support education and workforce development efforts 
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to promote United States participation in international 
standards organizations. The Director shall— 
(1) identify and create, as appropriate, technical 
standards education and training resources for inter-
ested businesses, industry associations, academia, 
nonprofits, Federal agencies, and other relevant 
standards contributors, including activities targeted 
at integrating standards content into undergraduate 
and graduate curricula in science, engineering, busi-
ness, public policy, and law; 
(2) conduct outreach, including to private sector 
leaders, to support engagement by more United States 
stakeholders in international technical standards de-
velopment; and 
(3) other activities deemed necessary by the Di-
rector to support increased engagement, influence, 
and leadership of United States organizations in the 
development of international technical standards. 
(c) CAPACITY BUILDING PILOT PROGRAM.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Director, in coordination 
with the Director of the National Science Foundation, 
the Administrator of the Small Business Administra-
tion and the heads of other relevant Federal agencies, 
as appropriate, shall establish a 5-year pilot program 
to award grants, on a merit-reviewed, competitive 
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basis, to private sector entities or nonprofit institu-
tions based in the United States to support increased 
participation by small business and academic inter-
ests in international standards organizations. 
(2) ACTIVITIES.—In carrying out the pilot pro-
grams established in subsection (c), the Director shall 
award competitive, merit-reviewed grants to covered 
entities to cover the reasonable costs, up to a specified 
ceiling set by the Director, of activities supporting in-
creased engagement and leadership of employees of 
small businesses and faculty of institutions of higher 
education or other nonprofit research institutions 
with subject matter and technical expertise necessary 
to be conributers in international standards organiza-
tions. 
(3) AWARD CRITERIA.—The Director may only 
provide a grant under this section to an eligible re-
cipient that— 
(A) demonstrates deep technical standards 
expertise; 
(B) demonstrates knowledge with the proc-
esses of the standards development organization 
in which the recipient intends to engage using 
grant funds; 
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