NSF Major Research Facility Reform Act of 2016

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``NSF Major Research Facility Reform 
Act of 2016''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Director.--The term ``Director'' means the Director of 
        the Foundation.
            (2) Foundation.--The term ``Foundation'' means the National 
        Science Foundation established under section 2 of the National 
        Science Foundation Act of 1950 (42 U.S.C. 1861).
            (3) Major multi-user research facility.--The term ``major 
        multi-user research facility'' means a science and engineering 
        infrastructure construction project that exceeds the lesser of 
        10 percent of a Directorate's annual budget or $100,000,000 in 
        total project cost that is funded in the major research 
        equipment and facilities construction account, or any successor 
        thereto.

SEC. 3. MANAGEMENT AND OVERSIGHT OF LARGE FACILITIES.

    (a) Large Facilities Office.--The Director shall maintain a Large 
Facilities Office. The functions of the Large Facilities Office shall 
be to support the research directorates in the development, 
implementation, and assessment of major multi-user research facilities, 
including by--
            (1) serving as the Foundation's primary resource for all 
        policy or process issues related to the development and 
        implementation of major multi-user research facilities;
            (2) serving as a Foundation-wide resource on project 
        management, including providing expert assistance on 
        nonscientific and nontechnical aspects of project planning, 
        budgeting, implementation, management, and oversight;
            (3) coordinating and collaborating with research 
        directorates to share best management practices and lessons 
        learned from prior projects; and
            (4) assessing projects during preconstruction and 
        construction phases for cost and schedule risk.
    (b) Oversight of Large Facilities.--The Director shall appoint a 
senior agency official as head of the Large Facilities Office whose 
responsibility is oversight of the development, construction, and 
transfer to operations of major multi-user research facilities across 
the Foundation.
    (c) Policies for Large Facility Costs.--
            (1) In general.--The Director shall ensure that the 
        Foundation's polices for developing and maintaining major 
        multi-user research facility construction costs are consistent 
        with the best practices described in the March 2009 Government 
        Accountability Office Report GAO-09-3SP, or any successor 
        report thereto, the Uniform Guidance in 2 CFR part 200, and the 
        Federal Acquisition Regulation as appropriate.
            (2) Cost proposal analysis.--
                    (A) General requirement.--The Director shall ensure 
                that an external cost proposal analysis is conducted 
                for any major multi-user research facility.
                    (B) Resolution of issues found.--The Director, or a 
                senior agency official within the Office of the 
                Director designated by the Director, shall certify in 
                writing that all issues identified during the cost 
                analysis, including any findings of unjustified or 
                questionable cost items, are resolved before the 
                Foundation may execute a construction agreement with 
                respect to the project.
                    (C) Transmittal to congress.--The Director shall 
                transmit each certification made under subparagraph (B) 
                to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of 
                the House of Representatives, the Committee on 
                Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate, 
                the Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
                Representatives, and the Committee on Appropriations of 
                the Senate.
            (3) Incurred cost audits.--The Director shall ensure that 
        an incurred cost audit is conducted at least biennially on any 
        major multi-user research facility, in accordance with 
        Government Auditing Standards as established in Government 
        Accountability Office Report GAO-12-331G, or any successor 
        report thereto, with the first incurred cost audit to commence 
        no later than 12 months after execution of the construction 
        agreement.
            (4) Contingencies.--
                    (A) In general.--Except as provided for in 
                subparagraph (C)(ii), the Foundation shall--
                            (i) provide oversight for contingency in 
                        accordance with Cost Principles Uniform 
                        Guidance in 2 CFR part 200.433, or any 
                        successor thereto, and the Federal Acquisition 
                        Regulation as appropriate, except as provided 
                        in this paragraph; and
                            (ii) not make any award which provides for 
                        contributions to a contingency reserve held or 
                        managed by the awardee, as defined in 2 CFR 
                        part 200.433(c).
                    (B) Updating policy manual.--The Foundation shall 
                update its Large Facilities Manual and any other 
                applicable guidance for contingencies on major multi-
                user research facilities with regard to estimating, 
                monitoring, and accounting for contingency.
                    (C) Foundation requirements.--The policy updated 
                under subparagraph (B) shall require that the 
                Foundation--
                            (i) may only include contingency amounts in 
                        an award in accordance with Cost Principles 
                        Uniform Guidance in 2 CFR part 200.433, or any 
                        successor thereto, and the Federal Acquisition 
                        Regulation as appropriate; and
                            (ii) shall retain control over funds 
                        budgeted for contingency, but may disburse 
                        budgeted contingency funds incrementally to the 
                        awardee to ensure project stability and 
                        continuity.
                    (D) Awardee requirements.--The policy updated under 
                subparagraph (B) shall require that an awardee shall--
                            (i) provide verifiable documentation to 
                        support any amounts proposed for contingencies; 
                        and
                            (ii) support requests for the release of 
                        contingency funds with evidence of a bona fide 
                        need and that the amounts allocated to the 
                        performance baseline are reasonable and 
                        allowable.
                    (E) Current awardees.--The Foundation shall work 
                with awardees for whom awards with contingency 
                provisions have been made before the date of enactment 
                of this Act--
                            (i) to determine if any of their use of 
                        contingency funds represents out-of-scope 
                        changes for which Foundation's prior written 
                        approval was not obtained; and
                            (ii) if out-of-scope changes are found, to 
                        identify any financial action that may be 
                        appropriate.
            (5) Management fees.--
                    (A) Definition.--In this paragraph, the term 
                ``management fee'' means a portion of an award made by 
                the Foundation for the purpose of covering ordinary and 
                legitimate business expenses necessary to maintain 
                operational stability which are not otherwise allowable 
                under Cost Principles Uniform Guidance in 2 CFR part 
                200, Subpart E, or any successor regulation thereto.
                    (B) Limitation.--The Foundation may provide a 
                management fee under an award only if the awardee 
                provides justification as to the need for such funds. 
                In such cases, the Foundation shall take into account 
                the awardee's overall financial circumstances when 
                determining the amount of the fee if justified.
                    (C) Financial information.--The Foundation shall 
                require award applicants to provide income and 
                financial information covering a period of no less than 
                3 prior years (or in the case of an entity established 
                less than 3 years prior to the entity's application 
                date, the period beginning on the date of establishment 
                and ending on the application date), including cash on 
                hand and net asset information, in support of a request 
                for management fees. The Foundation shall also require 
                awardees to report to the Foundation annually any 
                sources of non-Federal funds received in excess of 
                $50,000 during the award period.
                    (D) Expense reporting.--The Foundation shall 
                require awardees to track and report to the Foundation 
                annually all expenses reimbursed or otherwise paid for 
                with management fee funds, in accordance with Federal 
                accounting practices as established in Government 
                Accountability Office Report GAO-12-331G, or any 
                successor report thereto.
                    (E) Audits.--The Inspector General of the 
                Foundation may audit any Foundation award for 
                compliance with this paragraph.
                    (F) Prohibited uses.--An awardee may not use 
                management fees for--
                            (i) costs allowable under Cost Principles 
                        Uniform Guidance in 2 CFR part 200, Subpart E, 
                        or any successor regulation thereto;
                            (ii) alcoholic beverages;
                            (iii) tickets to concerts, sporting, or 
                        other entertainment events;
                            (iv) vacation or other travel for 
                        nonbusiness purposes;
                            (v) charitable contributions, except for a 
                        charitable contribution of direct benefit to 
                        the project or activity supported by the 
                        management fee;
                            (vi) social or sporting club memberships;
                            (vii) meals or entertainment for 
                        nonbusiness purposes;
                            (viii) luxury or personal items;
                            (ix) lobbying, as described in the Uniform 
                        Guidance at 2 CFR 200.450; or
                            (x) any other purpose the Foundation 
                        determines is inappropriate.
                    (G) Review.--The Foundation shall review management 
                fee usage for each Foundation award on at least an 
                annual basis for compliance with this paragraph and the 
                Foundation's Large Facilities Manual.
            (6) Report.--Not later than 12 months after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Director shall submit to Congress a 
        report describing the Foundation's policies for developing and 
        managing major multi-user research facility construction costs, 
        including a description of any aspects of the policies that 
        diverge from the best practices recommended in Government 
        Accountability Office Report GAO-09-3SP, or any successor 
        report thereto, and the Uniform Guidance in 2 CFR part 200.
            (7) Noncompliance.--The Director shall ensure that the 
        Foundation shall take the enforcement actions specified in 45 
        CFR 92.43 for noncompliance with this section.

SEC. 4. WHISTLEBLOWER EDUCATION.

    (a) In General.--The Foundation shall be subject to section 4712 of 
title 41, United States Code.
    (b) Education and Training.--The Foundation shall provide education 
and training for Foundation managers and staff on the requirements of 
such section 4712, and provide information on such section to all 
awardees, contractors, and employees of such awardees and contractors.

            Passed the House of Representatives June 14, 2016.

            Attest:

                                                 KAREN L. HAAS,

                                                                 Clerk.

Summary: (This measure has not been amended since it was reported to the House on June 13, 2016.  NSF Major Research Facility Reform Act of 2016  (Sec. 3) This bill directs the National Science Foundation (NSF) to maintain a Large Facilities Office to support its research directorates in the development, implementation, and assessment of major multi-user research facilities.   The NSF shall appoint a senior agency official to head the Office, whose responsibility shall be to oversee development, construction, and transfer to operations of major multi-user facilities across the NSF.  The bill requires:  an external cost proposal analysis for any major multi-user research facility;  the resolution of all issues identified, including any unjustified or questionable cost items; and biennial incurred cost audits of any such facility.   The NSF shall not make any award which arranges for contributions to an awardee's contingency reserve. (Contingency is the part of a budget estimate of future costs associated with possible events or conditions arising from causes whose precise outcome is indeterminable at the time of estimate, and that experience shows will likely result, in aggregate, in additional costs for the approved activity or project.) The NSF shall update its Large Facilities Manual and any other applicable guidance for estimating, monitoring, and accounting for contingencies on major multi-user research facilities.  The updated policy shall state that the NSF: (1) may only include contingency amounts in an award meeting specified criteria; and (2) shall retain control over funds budgeted for contingency, but may disburse budgeted contingency funds incrementally to an awardee to ensure project stability and continuity. An awardee shall: (1) furnish verifiable documentation to support proposed contingency amounts, and (2) support requests for the release of contingency funds with evidence of a bona fide need and reasonable and allowable allocations to the performance baseline.  The NSF shall work with current awardees to: (1) determine if any of their use of contingency funds represents out-of-scope changes for which prior NSF written approval was not obtained, and (2) identify appropriate financial action regarding any out-of-scope changes found.   The NSF may include management fees under an award for ordinary and legitimate business expenses, not otherwise allowable, only if the awardee furnishes a justification of need. The NSF shall require award applicants to report:  income and financial information covering at least three prior years, including cash on hand and net asset information, in support of a request for management fees; and any sources of nonfederal funds received in excess of $50,000 during the award period.  The NSF shall require awardees to track and report annually all expenses reimbursed or otherwise paid for with management fee funds. The bill specifies prohibited uses for management fees.  (Sec. 4) The bill subjects the NSF to the pilot program for enhancement of contractor protection from reprisal for (whistleblower) disclosure of certain information.  The NSF shall arrange for education and training for NSF managers and staff on the pilot program and furnish information on it to all awardees and contractors and their employees.