Sec. 102. Findings
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Congress finds the following: Taxpayer-supported research investments administered by the Foundation should serve the national interest. The Foundation has made major contributions for more than 60 years to strengthen and sustain the Nation’s academic research enterprise. The economic strength and national security of the United States, and the quality of life of all Americans, are grounded in the Nation’s scientific and technological capabilities. Providing support for basic research is an investment in our Nation’s future security and economic prosperity.
Congress applauds the Foundation’s recognition that wise stewardship of taxpayer dollars is necessary to maintain and ensure the public’s trust for funding of fundamental scientific and engineering research. Other nations are increasing their public investments in basic research in the physical sciences in order to boost long-term economic growth. Longstanding United States leadership in supercomputing, genomics, nanoscience, photonics, quantum physics, and other key technological areas is jeopardized if United States investments in basic research in the natural sciences do not keep pace.
Redundant regulations and reporting requirements imposed by Federal agencies on research institutions and researchers increase costs by tens of millions of dollars annually. The Foundation carries out important functions by supporting basic research in all science and engineering disciplines and in supporting STEM education at all levels. The research and education activities of the Foundation promote the discovery, integration, dissemination, and application of new knowledge in service to society and prepare future generations of scientists, mathematicians, and engineers who will be necessary to ensure America’s leadership in the global marketplace.
Many of the complex problems and challenges facing the Nation increasingly require the collaboration of multiple scientific disciplines. The Foundation should continue to emphasize cross-directorate research collaboration and activities to address these issues and encourage interdisciplinary research. The Foundation should meet the highest standards of efficiency, transparency, and accountability in its stewardship of public funds. The Foundation is charged with the responsibilities— to develop and encourage the pursuit of a national policy for the promotion of basic research and education in the sciences; to initiate, support, and conduct basic scientific research and to appraise the impact of research on industrial development and the general welfare; to initiate, support, and conduct scientific research activities in connection with matters relating to the national defense, at the request of the Secretary of Defense; to award scholarships and graduate fellowships in the sciences; to foster the interchange of scientific information among scientists and across scientific disciplines; to evaluate scientific research programs undertaken by agencies of the Federal Government, and to correlate the Foundation’s scientific research with that undertaken by individuals and by public and private research groups; to communicate effectively to American citizens the relevance of public investments in scientific discovery and technological innovation to the Nation’s security, prosperity, and welfare; and to establish such special commissions as the Board considers necessary.
The emerging global economic, scientific, and technical environment challenges long standing assumptions about domestic and international policy, requiring the Foundation to play a more proactive role in sustaining the competitive advantage of the United States through superior research capabilities.