America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2015
Latest action. Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2015
TITLE I--NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION (Sec. 101) Authorizes appropriations for FY2016-FY2017 for the National Science Foundation (NSF).
(Sec. 103) Specifies policy objectives for the NSF in allocating resources.
(Sec. 105) Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) sustained, predictable federal funding is essential to U.S. leadership in science and technology; (2) building understanding of and confidence in investments in basic research are essential to public support for sustained, predictable federal funding; and (3) the NSF should commit itself fully to transparency and accountability and to clear, consistent public communication regarding the national interest for each NSF-awarded grant and cooperative agreement.
(Sec. 106) Directs the NSF to award federal funding for basic research and education in the sciences through a new research grant or cooperative agreement only if it makes an affirmative determination, justified in writing, that the grant or agreement promotes the progress of science in the United States, is worthy of federal funding, and meets certain other criteria.
(Sec. 107) Prohibits the obligation of funds for an NSF construction project that has not commenced before enactment of this Act until 30 days after transmittal to Congress of the annual report on major research equipment and facilities construction.
(Sec. 108) Directs the NSF to maintain a Large Facilities Office within the Office of the NSF Director to support the research directorates in the development, implementation, and assessment of major multi-user research facilities.
Requires the NSF Director to appoint a senior agency official within the Office of the Director responsible for oversight of major multi-user research facilities.
Requires the NSF to study reforming the NSF policies on financial management of major multi-user research facilities.
Allows the NSF to provide management fees under an award only if the awardee has demonstrated that it has limited or no other financial resources available to cover the expenses for which the fees are sought.
Specifies prohibited uses of management fees.
The summary continues for 301 more paragraphs. Read it in full on Congress.gov
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Passed House amended" stage on May 20, 2015. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on May 21, 2015: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 114th Congress (2015-16), 329 of the 10,233 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 3.2 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
LAMAR SMITH (R-TX) introduced it on April 15, 2015, and 10 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They are 10 Republicans.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on April 15, 2015, 4166 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 4130 days ago, on May 21, 2015.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 114th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2017 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers