Peters, Gardner Introduce Substitute to American Innovation and Competitiveness Act
Press Release
Senators Gary Peters (D-MI) and Cory Gardner (R-CO), leaders of the Senate Commerce Committee's innovation and competitiveness working group on federal science and technology research policies, introduced a substitute amendment to S. 3084, the American Innovation and Competitiveness Act. The amendment includes a four percent increase in National Science Foundation (NSF) and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) authorization levels for FY 2018 over FY 2017 in addition to technical corrections to the bill following feedback from various stakeholder groups.
The bipartisan American Innovation and Competitiveness Act maximizes basic research by reducing administrative burdens for researchers, enhancing agency oversight, improving research dissemination, and reforming federal science agencies to increase the impact of taxpayer-funded research. The legislation most directly affects programs within the National Science Foundation (NSF), National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). It will be considered by the Commerce Committee at a markup scheduled for June 29, 2016, at 10:00 a.m.
"In order to ensure our nation's long-term prosperity, we must commit to making considerable, predictable investments in research and development that will keep our country globally competitive," said Senator Peters, Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Space, Science and Competitiveness. "These investments are a down payment on America's economic future and I'm proud Senator Gardner and I were able to craft a bipartisan plan to increase federal investments in basic research that will build the foundation for a stronger ecosystem of discovery and innovation."
"The substitute amendment I introduced with Senator Peters to the American Innovation and Competitiveness Act recognizes the importance of providing robust resources to our research and science communities in order to keep America competitive," said Senator Gardner. "I'm proud of the bipartisan nature of this legislation, and I look forward to a full and open debate."
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