Sec. 319.
613 words·~3 min read·
/bill/113/hr/3547/eah/section-319A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
The Secretary shall establish an independent commission to be known as the Commission to Review the Effectiveness of the National Energy Laboratories. The National Energy Laboratories refers to all Department of Energy and National Nuclear Security Administration national laboratories. The Commission shall be composed of nine members who shall be appointed by the Secretary of Energy not later than May 1, 2014, from among persons nominated by the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.
The President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology shall, not later than March 15, 2014, nominate not less than 18 persons for appointment to the Commission from among persons who meet qualification described in paragraph (3). Each person nominated for appointment to the Commission shall— be eminent in a field of science or engineering; and/or have expertise in managing scientific facilities; and/or have expertise in cost and/or program analysis; and have an established record of distinguished service.
The membership of the Commission shall be representative of the broad range of scientific, engineering, financial, and managerial disciplines related to activities under this title. No person shall be nominated for appointment to the Board who is an employee of— the Department of Energy; a national laboratory or site under contract with the Department of Energy; a managing entity or parent company for a national laboratory or site under contract with the Department of Energy; or an entity performing scientific and engineering activities under contract with the Department of Energy.
The Commission shall, by no later than February 1, 2015, transmit to the Secretary of Energy and the Committees on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the Senate a report containing the Commission’s findings and conclusions. The Commission shall address whether the Department of Energy’s national laboratories— are properly aligned with the Department’s strategic priorities; have clear, well understood, and properly balanced missions that are not unnecessarily redundant and duplicative; have unique capabilities that have sufficiently evolved to meet current and future energy and national security challenges; are appropriately sized to meet the Department’s energy and national security missions; and are appropriately supporting other Federal agencies and the extent to which it benefits DOE missions.
The Commission shall also determine whether there are opportunities to more effectively and efficiently use the capabilities of the national laboratories, including consolidation and realignment, reducing overhead costs, reevaluating governance models using industrial and academic bench marks for comparison, and assessing the impact of DOE’s oversight and management approach. In its evaluation, the Commission should also consider the cost and effectiveness of using other research, development, and technology centers and universities as an alternative to meeting DOE’s energy and national security goals.
The Commission shall analyze the effectiveness of the use of laboratory directed research and development
(LDRD)to meet the Department of Energy’s science, energy, and national security goals. The Commission shall further evaluate the effectiveness of the Department’s oversight approach to ensure LDRD-funded projects are compliant with statutory requirements and congressional direction, including requirements that LDRD projects be distinct from projects directly funded by appropriations and that LDRD projects derived from the Department’s national security programs support the national security mission of the Department of Energy. Finally, the Commission shall quantify the extent to which LDRD funding supports recruiting and retention of qualified staff. The Commission’s charge may be modified or expanded upon approval of the Committees on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the Senate. The Secretary of Energy shall, by no later than April 1, 2015, transmit to Committees on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the Senate a report containing the Secretary’s approval or disapproval of the Commission’s recommendations and an implementation plan for approved recommendations.