Part F—Research Infrastructure
§19081. Facility operation and maintenance
(a) In general
The Director shall continue the Facility Operation Transition pilot program for a total of 5 years.
(b) Cost sharing
The Facility Operation Transition program shall provide funding for 10 to 50 percent of the operations and maintenance costs for major research facilities that are within the first five years of operation, where the share is determined based on—
(1) the operations and maintenance costs of the major research facility; and
(2) the capacity of the managing directorate or division to absorb such costs.
(c) Report
After the fifth year of the pilot program, the Director shall transmit a report to Congress that includes—
(1) an assessment, that includes feedback from the research community, of the effectiveness of the pilot program for—
(A) supporting research directorates and divisions in balancing investments in research grants and funding for the initial operation and maintenance of major facilities;
(B) incentivizing the development of new world-class facilities;
(C) facilitating interagency and international partnerships;
(D) funding core elements of multi-disciplinary facilities; and
(E) supporting facility divestment costs; and
(2) if deemed effective, a plan for permanent implementation of the pilot program.
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§19082. Reviews
The Director shall periodically carry out reviews within each of the directorates and divisions to assess the cost and benefits of extending the operations of research facilities that have exceeded their planned operational lifespan.
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§19083. Helium conservation
(a) Major research instrumentation support
(1) In general
The Director shall support, through the Major Research Instrumentation program, proposal requests that include the purchase, installation, operation, and maintenance of equipment and instrumentation to reduce consumption of helium.
(2) Cost sharing
The Director may waive the cost-sharing requirement for helium conservation measures for non-Ph.D.-granting institutions of higher education and Ph.D.-granting institutions of higher education that are not ranked among the top 100 institutions receiving Federal research and development funding, as documented by the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics.
(b) Annual report
No later than 1 year after August 9, 2022, and annually for the subsequent two years, the Director shall submit an annual report to Congress on the use of funding awarded by the Foundation for the purchase and conservation of helium. The report should include—
(1) the volume and price of helium purchased;
(2) changes in pricing and availability of helium; and
(3) any supply disruptions impacting a substantial number of institutions.
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§19084. Advanced computing
(a) Computing needs
To gather information about the computational needs of Foundation-funded projects, the Director shall require award proposals submitted to the Foundation, as appropriate, to include estimates of computational resource needs for projects that require use of advanced computing. The Director shall encourage and provide access to tools that facilitate the inclusion of these measures, including those identified in the 2016 National Academies report entitled "Future Directions for NSF Advanced Computing Infrastructure to Support U.S. Science and Engineering in 2017–2020".
(b) Reports
The Director shall document and publish every two years a summary of the amount and types of advanced computing capabilities that are needed to fully meet the Foundation's project needs as identified under subsection (a).
(c) Roadmap
To set priorities and guide strategic decisions regarding investments in advanced computing capabilities, the Director shall develop, publish, and regularly update a 5-year advanced computing roadmap that—
(1) describes the advanced computing resources and capabilities that would fully meet anticipated project needs, including through investments in the Mid-Scale Research Infrastructure program and the Major Research Equipment and Facilities Construction account;
(2) draws on community input, information contained in research proposals, allocation requests, insights from Foundation-funded cyber-infrastructure operators, and Foundation-wide information gathering regarding community needs;
(3) considers computational needs of planned major facilities;
(4) reflects anticipated technology trends;
(5) informs users and potential partners about future facilities and services;
(6) addresses the needs of groups historically underrepresented in STEM and geographic regions with low availability and high demand for advanced computing resources;
(7) considers how Foundation-supported advanced computing capabilities can be leveraged for activities through the Directorate for Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships; and
(8) provides an update to Congress about the level of funding necessary to fully meet computational resource needs for the research community.
(d) Securing American research from cyber theft
(1) Omitted
(2) Computing enclave pilot program
(A) In general
The Director, in consultation with the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the Secretary of Energy, and the heads of other relevant Federal departments and agencies, shall establish a pilot program to make awards to ensure the security of federally supported research data and to assist regional institutions of higher education and their researchers in compliance with regulations regarding the safeguarding of sensitive information and other relevant regulations and Federal guidelines.
(B) Structure
In carrying out the pilot program established pursuant to subparagraph (A), the Director shall select, for the development, installation, maintenance, or sustainment of secure computing enclaves, three institutions of higher education that have an established graduate student program and a demonstrated history of working with secure information, consistent with appropriate security protocols.
(C) Regionalization
(i) In general
In selecting universities pursuant to subparagraph (B), the Director shall give preference to institutions of higher education with the capability of serving other regional universities.
(ii) Geographic dispersal
The enclaves should be geographically dispersed to better meet the needs of regional interests.
(D) Program elements
The Director shall work with institutions of higher education selected pursuant to subparagraph (B) to—
(i) develop an approved design blueprint for compliance with Federal data protection protocols;
(ii) develop a comprehensive and confidential list, or a bill of materials, of each binary component of the software, firmware, or product that is required to deploy additional secure computing enclaves;
(iii) develop templates for all policies and procedures required to operate the secure computing enclave in a research setting;
(iv) develop a system security plan template; and
(v) develop a process for managing a plan of action and milestones for the secure computing enclave.
(E) Sustainability
In reviewing applications for awards, the Director shall review and consider plans and prospects of the applicant institution of higher education to ensure long-term sustainability of the computing enclave, beyond the availability of Federal funds.
(F) Duration
Subject to other availability of appropriations, the pilot program established pursuant to subparagraph (A) shall operate for not less than 3 years.
(G) Report
(i) In general
The Director shall report to Congress not later than 6 months after the completion of the pilot program under subparagraph (A).
(ii) Contents
The report required under clause (i) shall include—
(I) an assessment of the pilot program under subparagraph (A), including an assessment of the security benefits provided by such secure computing enclaves;
(II) recommendations related to the value of expanding the network of secure computing enclaves; and
(III) recommendations on the efficacy of the use of secure computing enclaves by other Federal agencies in a broader effort to expand security of Federal research.
(H) Authorization of appropriations
There is authorized to be appropriated to the Director, $38,000,000 for fiscal years 2023 through 2025, to carry out the activities outlined in this paragraph.
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Editorial Notes
Codification
Section is comprised of section 10374 of
§19085. National secure data service
(a) In general
The Director, in consultation with the Director of the Office of Management and Budget and the interagency committee established under
(b) Establishment
Not later than one year after August 9, 2022, the Director shall establish a National Secure Data Service demonstration project. The National Secure Data Service demonstration project shall be—
(1) aligned with the principles, best practices, and priority actions recommended by the Advisory Committee on Data for Evidence Building, to the extent feasible; and
(2) operated directly by or via a contract that is managed by the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics.
(c) Data
In carrying out this section, the Director shall engage with Federal and State agencies to collect, acquire, analyze, report, and disseminate statistical data in the United States and other nations to support governmentwide evidence-building activities consistent with the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018.
(d) Voluntary participation
Participation in the National Secure Data Service demonstration project by Federal and State agencies shall be voluntary.
(e) Privacy and confidentiality protections
If the Director issues a management contract under subsection (b), the recipient shall be designated as an "agent" under subchapter III of
(f) Technology and privacy standards
In carrying out this subsection, the Director shall—
(1) consider application and use only of systems and technologies that incorporate protection measures to reasonably ensure confidential data and statistical products are protected in accordance with obligations under subchapter III of
(A) raw data and other sensitive inputs are not accessible to recipients of statistical outputs from the National Secure Data Service demonstration project;
(B) no individual entity's data or information is revealed by the National Secure Data Service demonstration project platform to any other party in an identifiable form;
(C) no information about the data assets used in the National Secure Data Service demonstration project is revealed to any other party, except as incorporated into the final statistical output;
(D) the National Secure Data Service demonstration project permits only authorized analysts to perform statistical queries necessary to answer approved project questions, and prohibits any other queries; and
(E) the National Secure Data Service demonstration project conducts privacy risk assessments to minimize the privacy risks to individual entities whose data has been made available by a reporting entity, including those privacy risks that could result from data breaches of any system operated by the reporting entity, as well as for determining approved project questions under subparagraph (D) to minimize the privacy risks to individuals affected by uses of the statistical output; and
(2) the National Secure Data Service demonstration project shall implement reasonable measures commensurate with the risks to individuals' privacy to achieve the outcomes under subparagraphs (A) through (E) of paragraph (1), which may include the appropriate application of privacy-enhancing technologies and appropriate measures to minimize or prevent reidentification risks consistent with any applicable guidance or regulations issued under subchapter III of
(g) Transparency
The National Secure Data Service established under subsection (b) shall maintain a public website with up-to-date information on supported projects.
(h) Report
Not later than 2 years after August 9, 2022, the National Secure Data Service demonstration project established under subsection (b) shall submit a report to Congress that includes—
(1) a description of policies for protecting data, consistent with applicable Federal law;
(2) a comprehensive description of all completed or active data linkage activities and projects;
(3) an assessment of the effectiveness of the demonstration project for mitigating risks and removing barriers to a sustained implementation of the National Secure Data Service as recommended by the Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking; and
(4) if deemed effective by the Director, a plan for scaling up the demonstration project to facilitate data access for evidence building while ensuring transparency and privacy.
(i) Authorization of appropriations
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Director to carry out this subsection $9,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2023 through 2027.
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Editorial Notes
References in Text
The Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018, referred to in subsec. (c), is
The Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act of 2018, referred to in subsec. (e), is title III of
The Privacy Act of 1974, referred to in subsec. (e), is