103D CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 1757
AN ACT
To provide for a coordinated Federal program to accelerate
development and dissemination of applications of high-
performance computing and high-speed networking, 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 Information
Infrastructure Act of 1993’’.
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SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds that—
(1) high-performance computing and high-speed
networks have proven to be powerful tools for im-
proving America’s national security, industrial com-
petitiveness, research capabilities, and ability to
make a wide array of information available for a
variety of applications;
(2) Federal programs, such as the High-Per-
formance Computing Program and National Re-
search and Education Network established by Con-
gress in 1991, are vital to the maintenance of
United States leadership in high-performance com-
puting and high-speed network development, particu-
larly in the defense and research sectors;
(3) high-performance computing and high-speed
networking have the potential to expand dramati-
cally access to information in many fields, including
education, libraries, government information dis-
semination, and health care, if adequate resources
are devoted to the research and development activi-
ties needed to do so;
(4) high-performance computing and high-speed
networking have the potential to expand opportuni-
ties for participation for Americans who have dis-
abilities and to improve equality of opportunity, full
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participation, independent living, and economic self-
sufficiency for Americans with disabilities;
(5) the Federal Government should ensure that
the applications achieved through research and de-
velopment efforts such as the High-Performance
Computing Program directly benefit all Americans;
(6) the Federal Government should stimulate
the development of computing and networking appli-
cations and support wider access to network re-
sources so that the benefits of applications so devel-
oped can reach the intended users throughout the
Nation, including users with disabilities; and
(7) a coordinated, interagency undertaking is
needed to identify and promote applications of com-
puting and networking advances developed by the
High-Performance Computing Program which will
provide large economic and social benefits to the Na-
tion, including new tools for teaching, the creation of
digital libraries of electronic information, the devel-
opment of standards and protocols to make the
stores of government information readily accessible
by electronic means, and computer systems to im-
prove the delivery of health care.
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SEC. 3. APPLICATIONS OF THE HIGH-PERFORMANCE COM-
PUTING PROGRAM.
The High-Performance Computing Act of 1991 is
amended by adding at the end the following new title:
‘‘TITLE III—APPLICATIONS OF
COMPUTING AND NETWORKING
‘‘SEC. 301. ESTABLISHMENT OF APPLICATIONS PROGRAM.
‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Director, through the
Federal Coordinating Council for Science, Engineering,
and Technology, shall, in accordance with this title—
‘‘(1) establish a coordinated interagency appli-
cations program to develop applications of comput-
ing and networking advances achieved under the
Program described in section 101, that are designed
to be accessible and usable by all persons in the
United States, including historically underserved
populations and individuals with disabilities, in the
fields of education, libraries, health care, the provi-
sion of government information, and other appro-
priate fields; and
‘‘(2) develop a Plan for Computing and
Networking Applications (hereafter in this title re-
ferred to as the ‘Plan’) describing the goals and pro-
posed activities of the applications program estab-
lished under paragraph (1), taking into consider-
ation the recommendations of the advisory commit-
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tee on high-performance computing and applications
established under section 101(b).
The President shall designate the Federal agencies and
departments which shall participate in the applications
program established under paragraph (1). The applica-
tions program may be administered as part of the Pro-
gram established under section 101.
‘‘(b) COLLABORATION WITH NON-FEDERAL ENTI-
TIES.—To the maximum extent possible, the applications
program shall involve cost sharing and partnerships
among participating Federal departments and agencies,
State and local governments, and private sector entities.
‘‘(c) INTEROPERABLE INFORMATION SYSTEMS.— In
selecting projects for support under this title, special con-
sideration shall be given to projects which will promote
development of interconnected and interoperable informa-
tion systems.
‘‘(d) NONDEVELOPMENTAL ITEMS.—In carrying out
activities under this Act, Federal departments and agen-
cies shall purchase nondevelopmental items whenever
possible.
‘‘SEC. 302. PLAN FOR COMPUTING AND NETWORKING AP-
PLICATIONS.
‘‘(a) REQUIREMENT.—The Plan shall contain a state-
ment of steps which should be taken to implement the ap-
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plications program established under section 301(a)(1) for
the fiscal year in which the Plan is submitted and the suc-
ceeding four fiscal years, and shall be submitted to the
Congress within one year after the date of enactment of
this title. The Plan shall be revised and resubmitted to
the Congress at least once each two years thereafter.
‘‘(b) CONTENTS.—The Plan shall—
‘‘(1) establish the goals and priorities for the
applications program established under section
301(a)(1), consistent with this Act;
‘‘(2) set forth the specific responsibilities of
each Federal agency and department participating in
the applications program established under section
301(a)(1) to achieve the goals and priorities estab-
lished under paragraph (1) of this subsection; and
‘‘(3) describe the recommended levels of Fed-
eral funding required for each agency and depart-
ment to carry out the specific responsibilities set
forth in paragraph (2) of this subsection.
‘‘(c) PROGRESS IN IMPLEMENTING PLAN.—(1) Ac-
companying the initial submission of the Plan shall be—
‘‘(A) a summary of the achievements of Federal
efforts during the preceding fiscal year to develop
computing and networking applications and to ad-
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vance the technologies on which the applications de-
pend; and
‘‘(B) any recommendations regarding additional
action or legislation which may be required to assist
in implementing the Plan.
‘‘(2) Accompanying each subsequent submission of
the Plan shall be—
‘‘(A) a summary of the achievements of Federal
efforts since the previous submission of the Plan to
develop computing and networking applications and
to advance the technologies on which the applica-
tions depend, including an estimate of the number
and the demographic diversity of users served in
each application;
‘‘(B) an evaluation of the progress made toward
achieving the goals and priorities established under
subsection (b)(1);
‘‘(C) a summary of problems encountered in im-
plementing the Plan; and
‘‘(D) any recommendations regarding additional
action or legislation which may be required to assist
in implementing the Plan.
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‘‘SEC. 303. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE FEDERAL COORDI-
NATING COUNCIL FOR SCIENCE, ENGINEER-
ING, AND TECHNOLOGY.
‘‘The Federal Coordinating Council for Science, En-
gineering, and Technology shall—
‘‘(1) develop the Plan as provided in section
301(a)(2);
‘‘(2) coordinate the activities of Federal agen-
cies and departments undertaken pursuant to the
Plan and report at least annually to the President,
through the Chairman of the Council, on any rec-
ommended changes in agency or departmental roles
that are needed better to implement the Plan; and
‘‘(3) assess, prior to the President’s submission
to the Congress of the annual budget estimate, each
agency and departmental budget estimate for con-
sistency with the Plan and make the results of that
assessment available to the appropriate elements of
the Executive Office of the President, particularly
the Office of Management and Budget.
‘‘SEC. 304. NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENT.
‘‘(a) REQUIREMENT.—Each Federal agency and de-
partment designated by the President under section
301(a) as a participant in the applications program shall,
as part of its annual request for appropriations to the Of-
fice of Management and Budget—
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‘‘(1) identify each element of its activities
which—
‘‘(A) contributes primarily to the imple-
mentation of the Plan; or
‘‘(B) contributes primarily to the achieve-
ment of other objectives but aids Plan imple-
mentation in important ways; and
‘‘(2) identify the portion of its request for ap-
propriations that is allocated to each such element.
‘‘(b) OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET RE-
VIEW.—The Office of Management and Budget shall re-
view each submission received under this section in light
of the goals, priorities, and agency and departmental re-
sponsibilities set forth in the Plan. The President’s annual
budget request shall include a statement of the portion
of each appropriate agency or department’s annual budget
request that is allocated to efforts to achieve the goals and
priorities established under section 302(b)(1).
‘‘SEC. 305. NETWORK ACCESS.
‘‘(a) CONNECTIONS PROGRAM.—The Plan shall in-
clude programs administered by the National Science
Foundation to—
‘‘(1) foster the development of network services
in local communities which will connect institutions
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of education at all levels, libraries, museums, and
State and local governments to each other; and
‘‘(2) provide funds for the purchase of network
services to entities described in paragraph (1), or or-
ganizations representing such entities, to connect to
the Internet.
Such program shall include funding for the acquisition of
required hardware and software and for the establishment
of broadband connections to the Internet. Not more than
75 percent of the cost of any project for which an award
is made under this subsection shall be provided under this
Act.
‘‘(b) TRAINING.—The Plan shall include programs
administered by the National Science Foundation and
other appropriate agencies and departments to train
teachers, students, librarians, and State and local govern-
ment personnel in the use of computer networks and the
Internet. Training programs for librarians shall be de-
signed to provide skills and training materials needed by
librarians to instruct the public in the use of hardware
and software for accessing and using computer networks
and the Internet. Training programs shall include pro-
grams designed for individuals with disabilities.
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‘‘(c) REPORT.—The Director shall, within one year
after the date of enactment of this title, submit a report
to Congress which shall include—
‘‘(1) findings of an examination of the extent to
which the education and library communities and
State and local government have access to the
Internet, including the numbers and the geographic
distribution, by type, of institutions having access,
and including the numbers of institutions having
human/computer interfaces suitable for use by indi-
viduals with disabilities;
‘‘(2) a statement of the extent to which
broadband connections to the Internet exist for the
education and library communities and State and
local governments, including the numbers and the
geographic distribution, by type, of institutions hav-
ing access;
‘‘(3) an assessment of the factors limiting ac-
cess by institutions of education at all levels, librar-
ies, and State and local governments to the Internet
and an estimate of the cost of providing universal
broadband access for those institutions to the
Internet; and
‘‘(4) recommendations for collaborative pro-
grams among Federal, State, and local governments
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and the private sector to expand connectivity to the
Internet for educational institutions, libraries, and
State and local governments.
‘‘(d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—From
sums otherwise authorized to be appropriated, there are
authorized to be appropriated to the National Science
Foundation for the purposes of this section, $15,000,000
for fiscal year 1994, $30,000,000 for fiscal year 1995, and
$50,000,000 for fiscal year 1996.
‘‘SEC. 306. RESEARCH IN SUPPORT OF APPLICATIONS.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Plan shall specify the basic
and applied research and human resource development ac-
tivities in areas, such as computer science and engineer-
ing, mathematics, computer visualization, and human cog-
nition, that will provide the foundation for achieving the
applications included in the Plan. The Plan shall include
basic and applied research activities related to the long-
range social and ethical implications of applications of
high-speed networking and high-performance computing.
The Plan shall specify those activities included in the Pro-
gram under title I which contribute to the development
of applications included in the Plan.
‘‘(b) NETWORK SECURITY AND PRIVACY.—The Plan
shall specify research programs needed to create means
to—
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qualified to provide the Director with advice and informa-
tion on high-performance computing and on applications
of computing and networking. The recommendations of
the advisory committee shall be considered in reviewing
and revising the Program described in this section and the
Plan required by section 301(a)(2). The advisory commit-
tee shall provide the Director with an independent assess-
ment of—
‘‘(A) progress in implementing the Program de-
scribed in this section and the Plan required by sec-
tion 301(a)(2);
‘‘(B) the need to revise the Program described
in this section and the Plan required by section
301(a)(2);
‘‘(C) the balance between the components of the
activities undertaken pursuant to this Act;
‘‘(D) whether the research, development and
demonstration projects undertaken pursuant to this
Act are—
‘‘(i) helping to maintain United States
leadership in computing and networking tech-
nologies and in the application of those tech-
nologies; and
‘‘(ii) promoting competitive private sector
markets in the provision of products and serv-