or plans to operate, the proposer shall demonstrate in its
application that its proposal is compatible with such State
plan. The purpose of such grants is to upgrade the overall
quality of the Outreach Program and to contribute to the
goal of ready availability of the services and information
provided through the Outreach Program, including infor-
mation on modern and advanced manufacturing tech-
nology, to all interested United States manufacturers.
Such grants shall be awarded to increase the capabilities
and capacity of Manufacturing Outreach Centers. Manu-
facturing Outreach Centers may not concurrently receive
financial assistance under section 25 of the National Insti-
tute of Standards and Technology Act and grants under
this paragraph. Grants may be awarded under this para-
graph for an initial period not to exceed 3 years and may
be renewed for one additional period, not to exceed 2
years. Such grants may not at any time exceed 50 percent
of the operating costs and in-kind contributions of the
grant recipient.
‘‘(4) In selecting applicants to participate in the Out-
reach Program and in making grants under paragraph
(3), the Secretary shall solicit and consider evaluations of
the applicant’s performance record and current capabili-
ties, and the potential usefulness of the applicant’s pro-
posal, from United States manufacturers that the Sec-
retary considers qualified to make such evaluations.
‘‘(d) OUTREACH
PROGRAM
INFORMATION
NET-
WORK.—(1) The Department of Commerce shall provide
for an instantaneous, interactive electronic communica-
tions network (in this section referred to as the ‘outreach
network’) to serve the Outreach Program, to facilitate ef-
fective and efficient interaction within it, and to permit
the collection and dissemination in electronic form, in a
timely and accurate manner, of information described in
subsection (e). The outreach network shall, wherever prac-
ticable, make use of existing public and private computer
networks, data bases, and electronic bulletin boards. The
design, configuration, acquisition plan, and operating poli-
cies, including user fees and appropriate electronic access
for public and private information suppliers and users, of
the outreach network shall be included in the 5-year plan
prepared under subsection (g)(2) and shall address—
‘‘(A) effective mechanisms for providing operat-
ing funds for the maintenance and use of the out-
reach network established under this paragraph, in-
cluding user fees, industry support, and continued
Federal investment;
‘‘(B) the future operation and evolution of the
outreach network, including its relationship with
other public or private information services;
‘‘(C) how to protect the copyrights of material
distributed over the outreach network; and
‘‘(D) appropriate policies—
‘‘(i) to ensure the security of proprietary
information that might be available on the out-
reach network and to protect the privacy of
users of the outreach network; and
‘‘(ii) to facilitate and limit access to the
outreach network and its information to mem-
ber organizations of the Outreach Program and
to United States companies, State and local
governments, United States universities and
colleges, and United States nonprofit organiza-
tions that the Secretary deems appropriate.
‘‘(2) Except as provided in this section, the outreach
network established under paragraph (1) shall be designed
and configured in a manner that will enable interoper-
ability with networks and technologies developed under the
National High-Performance Computing Program de-
scribed in section 101 of the High-Performance Comput-
ing Act of 1991 (15 U.S.C. 5511). The Secretary shall
also, as appropriate, coordinate activities under this sub-
section with the relevant activities of other Federal agen-
cies, particularly the agile manufacturing/enterprise inte-
gration activities of the Department of Defense.
‘‘(e) CLEARINGHOUSE.—(1) The Secretary shall de-
velop a clearinghouse system, using existing public and
private sector information providers and carriers where
appropriate, to—
‘‘(A) identify expertise and acquire information,
appropriate to the purpose of the Outreach Program
stated in subsection (a), from all appropriate Fed-
eral sources, and where appropriate from other
sources, providing assistance where necessary in
making such information electronically available
through and compatible with the outreach network;
‘‘(B) ensure ready access, through the outreach
network, by United States companies, Federal agen-
cies, State and local governments, United States
universities and colleges, United States nonprofit or-
ganizations that the Secretary deems appropriate,
and member organizations of the Outreach Program,
to the most recent relevant available information and
expertise;
‘‘(C) ensure that common standards of inter-
connection are utilized by the outreach network and
the clearinghouse to allow maximum interoperability
and usership; and
‘‘(D) to the extent practicable, inform United
States manufacturers of the availability of such in-
formation.
‘‘(2) The clearinghouse shall include information
available electronically on—
‘‘(A) activities of Manufacturing Outreach Cen-
ters, Regional Centers for the Transfer of Manufac-
turing Technology, the State Technology Extension
Program, and the users of the outreach network;
‘‘(B) domestic and international standards and
other export promotion information, including con-
formity assessment requirements and procedures;
‘‘(C) the Malcolm Baldrige Quality program,
and quality principles and standards;
‘‘(D) manufacturing processes minimizing waste
and negative environmental impact;
‘‘(E) federally funded technology development
and transfer programs;
‘‘(F) how to access data bases and services; and
‘‘(G) skills training, particularly the implemen-
tation and use of modern and advanced manufactur-
ing techniques.
‘‘(3) The Secretary, acting through the Under Sec-
retary, may convene a national conference to develop rec-
ommendations for common standards for interconnection
and for improved dissemination to users of the clearing-
house of information on domestic and international tech-
nical regulations and standards, and on conformity assess-
ment procedures, including draft standards and regula-
tions. Invited participants are to include a broad cross sec-
tion of the standards, accreditation, and user commu-
nities.
‘‘(f) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS.—In carrying out
this section, the Secretary shall satisfy the following re-
quirements:
‘‘(1) The Outreach Program and the outreach
network shall be established and operated through
cooperation and cofunding among Federal, State,
and local governments, other public and private con-
tributors, and end users that the Secretary deter-
mines are appropriate for providing maximum bene-
fit to United States manufacturers.
‘‘(2) The Outreach Program and the outreach
network shall utilize and leverage, to the extent
practicable, existing organizations, data bases, elec-
tronic networks, facilities, capabilities, and existing
standards for interconnection, and shall be designed