NSF Act of 1950 & America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010

Attachment A
NSF Act of 1950
and
America COMPETES Reauthorization
Act of 2010

8

NSF Act of 1950
Only includes the relevant sections of the legislation address the circumstances making the collection of
information on the Survey of Doctorate Recipients necessary.

SECTION I
NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION ACT OF 1950

FUNCTIONS (42 U.S.C. §1862)
§ 1862. Functions
(a) Initiation and support of studies and programs; scholarships; current register of scientific and
engineering personnel
The Foundation is authorized and directed—
(1) to initiate and support basic scientific research and programs to strengthen scientific research
potential and science education programs at all levels in the mathematical, physical, medical,
biological, social, and other sciences, and to initiate and support research fundamental to the
engineering process and programs to strengthen engineering research potential and engineering
education programs at all levels in the various fields of engineering, by making contracts or other
arrangements (including grants, loans, and other forms of assistance) to support such scientific,
engineering, and educational activities and to appraise the impact of research upon industrial
development and upon the general welfare;
(2) to award, as provided in section 1869 of this title, scholarships and graduate fellowships for study
and research in the sciences or in engineering;
(3) to foster the interchange of scientific and engineering information among scientists and engineers
in the United States and foreign countries;
(4) to foster and support the development and use of computer and other scientific and engineering
methods and technologies, primarily for research and education in the sciences and engineering;
(5) to evaluate the status and needs of the various sciences and fields of engineering as evidenced by
programs, projects, and studies undertaken by agencies of the Federal Government, by
individuals, and by public and private research groups, employing by grant or contract such
consulting services as it may deem necessary for the purpose of such evaluations; and to take into
consideration the results of such evaluations in correlating the research and educational programs
undertaken or supported by the Foundation with programs, projects, and studies undertaken by
agencies of the Federal Government, by individuals, and by public and private research groups;
(6) to provide a central clearinghouse for the collection, interpretation, and analysis of data on
scientific and engineering resources and to provide a source of information for policy formulation
by other agencies of the Federal Government;
(7) to initiate and maintain a program for the determination of the total amount of money for
scientific and engineering research, including money allocated for the construction of the
facilities wherein such research is conducted, received by each educational institution and
appropriate nonprofit organization in the United States, by grant, contract, or other arrangement

from agencies of the Federal Government, and to report annually thereon to the President and the
Congress; and
(8) to take a leading role in fostering and supporting research and education activities to improve the
security of networked information systems.

BIENNIAL REPORT (42 U.S.C. §1885d)
§ 1885d. Biennial reports
(a) By January 30, 1982, and biennially thereafter, the Director shall simultaneously transmit a
report to the Congress, the Attorney General, the Director of the Office of Science and
Technology Policy, the Chairman of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the
Director of the Office of Personnel Management, the Secretary of Labor, the Secretary of
Education, and the Secretary of Health and Human Services.
(b) The report required by subsection (a) of this section shall contain—
(1) an accounting and comparison, by sex, race, and ethnic group and by discipline, of the
participation of women and men in scientific and engineering positions, including—
(A) the number of individuals in permanent and temporary and in full-time and part-time
scientific and engineering positions by appropriate level or similar category;
(B) the average salary of individuals in such scientific and engineering positions;
(C) the number and type of promotional opportunities realized by individuals in such scientific
and engineering positions;
(D) the number of individuals serving as principal investigators in federally conducted or
federally supported research and development; and
(E) the unemployment rate of individuals seeking scientific and engineering positions;
(2) an assessment, including quantitative and other data, of the proportion of women and minorities
studying scientific and engineering fields, including mathematics and computer skills, at all
educational levels; and
(3) such other data, analyses, and evaluations as the Director, acting on the advice of the Committee
on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering, determines appropriate to carry out the
Foundation’s functions as well as the policies and programs of sections 1885 to 1885d of this
title.

America COMPETES Reauthorization
Act of 2010
Only includes the relevant sections of the legislation that address the circumstances making the collection
of information on the Survey of Doctorate Recipients necessary.
America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010
H. R. 5116—26
SEC. 505. NATIONAL CENTER FOR SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING STATISTICS.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT. – There is established within the Foundation a National Center for Science
and Engineering Statistics that shall serve as a central Federal clearinghouse for the collection,
interpretation, analysis, and dissemination of objective data on science, engineering, technology,
and research and development.
(b) DUTIES. – In carrying out subsection (a) of this section, the Director, acting through the Center
shall –
(1) collect, acquire, analyze, report, and disseminate statistical data related to the science and
engineering enterprise in the United States and other nations that is relevant and useful to
practitioners, researchers, policymakers, and the public, including statistical data on –
(A) research and development trends;
(B) the science and engineering workforce;
(C) United States competitiveness in science, engineering, technology, and research and
development; and
(D) the condition and progress of United States STEM education;
(2) support research using the data it collects, and on methodologies in areas related to the work
of the Center; and
(3) support the education and training of researchers in the use of large-scale, nationally
representative data sets.
(c) STATISTICAL REPORTS. – The Director or the National Science Board, acting through the
Center, shall issue regular, and as necessary, special statistical reports on topics related to the
national and international science and engineering enterprise such as the biennial report required
by section 4(j)(1) of the National Science Foundation Act of 1950 (42 U.S.C. 1863(j)(1)) on
indicators of the state of science and engineering in the United States.