Approved By Subcommittee, Lipinski's NSF Reauthorization Will Promote Innovation, Science Education, And Job Creation

Press Release

Today, under the guidance of Chairman Dan Lipinski, the House Committee on Science and Technology's Subcommittee on Research and Science Education held a markup and favorably reported legislation based on H.R. 4997, the National Science Foundation Authorization Act of 2010, which was introduced by Chairman Lipinski.

"The Subcommittee has held a series of hearings on topics ranging from the state of STEM education at all levels, to the need to promote high-risk/high-reward research, to ensuring a sustainable research infrastructure. In addition to our Subcommittee hearings, I've also held a number of listening sessions across the country to gain insights from those on the frontline of research facilitated by the NSF," stated Chairman Lipinski. "The result of the listening sessions and the Subcommittee hearings is a bill that will accelerate the growth of scientific knowledge, promote knowledge transfer and innovation, build a 21st century Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) workforce, and spur economic development."

Chairman Lipinski's bill keeps NSF on a doubling path, as was recommended in the 2005 National Academies' report Rising Above the Gathering Storm and set in the 2007 America COMPETES Act. It aims to help scientists and engineers funded by NSF to serve as more effective leaders and participants in STEM education; broaden participation in STEM at all levels; and ensure U.S. competitiveness and national security through technology transfer and commercialization.

The reauthorization directs NSF to spend at least five percent of its research budget to fund high-risk, high-reward research proposals. This was based on reports and recommendations from Rising Above the Gathering Storm, the 2007 National Science Board's Enhancing Support of Transformative Research at the National Science Foundation, the 2008 American Academy of Arts and Sciences' ARISE: Advancing Research in Science and Engineering, and witness testimony at a hearing on the subject last October.

Chairman Lipinski's bill will also help NSF support U.S. manufacturers by awarding grants to institutions of higher education to support fundamental research leading to transformative advances in manufacturing technologies, processes, and systems that will support U.S. manufacturing through improved performance, productivity, and competitiveness.

The Committee Print includes an amendment from Chairman Lipinski to create an innovation inducement prize pilot program at the NSF.

"This is another way to encourage high-risk, high-reward research," Chairman Lipinski said. "Unlike a traditional grant proposal, which necessarily focuses on incremental challenges that can be solved during the grant period, a prize contest can highlight important problems that nobody knows how to solve. A prize program can also generate excitement and interest in the frontiers of science. Ultimately the goal is to further diversify our approach to funding science and engineering. There are a number of potential benefits, and a pilot program is the right way to see exactly how useful innovation inducement prizes can be."

The Committee also approved a Manager's Amendment from Chairman Lipinski which included legislative language from three bills: H.R. 4998, H.R. 4955, and H.R. 4968.

H.R. 4998 establishes and expands partnerships that promote innovation and increase the economic and social impact of research by developing tools and resources to connect new scientific discoveries to practical uses.

The Transforming Undergraduate STEM Education Act, H.R. 4955, authorizes the NSF to provide grants for implementing or expanding research-based reforms in undergraduate STEM education for the purpose of increasing the number and quality of students studying toward and completing baccalaureate degrees in STEM.

H.R. 4968 authorizes the NSF to award grants for implementing or expanding research-based reforms in master's and doctoral level STEM education that emphasize preparation for diverse careers in the STEM workforce.

"American workers remain the most skilled, innovative, and productive in the world," Chairman Lipinski said. "But we cannot afford to ignore the challenges we face from abroad. We must continue to make substantial and well-targeted investments in research and education that will allow America to maintain its position at the forefront of the world economy for generations to come. Today, we took an important step in that direction, and I look forward to continuing to work on reauthorizing the rest of the America COMPETES Act."

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