§2511. Defense dual-use critical technology partnerships

(a) Establishment of Partnerships.-The Secretary of Defense shall conduct a program to further the national security objectives set forth in section 2501(a) of this title, by providing for the establishment of cooperative arrangements (hereinafter in this section referred to as "partnerships") between the Department of Defense and entities referred to in subsection (b) in order to encourage and provide for research, development, and application of dual-use critical technologies. The Secretary may make grants, enter into contracts, or enter into cooperative agreements and other transactions pursuant to section 2371 of this title in order to establish the partnerships.

(b) Non-Department of Defense Participants.-In the case of each partnership, the entities with which the Secretary enters into the partnership shall include two or more eligible firms or a nonprofit research corporation established by two or more eligible firms and, may also include, as determined appropriate by the Secretary of Defense, a Federal laboratory or laboratories, Government-owned and operated industrial facilities, institutions of higher education, agencies of State governments, and other entities that participate in the partnership by supporting the activities conducted by such firms or corporations under this section.

(c) Financial Commitment of Non-Federal Government Participants.-(1) The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that the amount of funds provided by the Federal Government to a partnership does not exceed 50 percent of the total cost of partnership activities.

(2) The Secretary may prescribe regulations to provide for consideration of in-kind contributions by non-Federal Government participants in a partnership for the purpose of calculating the share of the partnership costs that has been or is being undertaken by such participants. In such regulations, the Secretary may authorize a participant that is a small business concern to use funds received under the Small Business Innovation Research Program or the Small Business Technology Transfer Program to help pay the costs of partnership activities. Any such funds so used may be considered in calculating the amount of the financial commitment undertaken by the non-Federal Government participants unless the Secretary determines that the small business concern has not made a significant equity percentage contribution in the partnership from non-Federal sources.

(3) The Secretary shall consider a partnership proposal submitted by a small business concern without regard to the ability of the small business concern to immediately meet its share of the anticipated partnership costs. Upon the selection of a partnership proposal submitted by a small business concern, the small business concern shall have a period of not less than 120 days in which to arrange to meet its financial commitment requirements under the partnership from sources other than a person of a foreign country. If the Secretary determines upon the expiration of that period that the small business concern will be unable to meet its share of the anticipated partnership costs, the Secretary shall revoke the selection of the partnership proposal submitted by the small business concern.

(d) Assistance Authorized.-The Secretary of Defense may provide a partnership with technical and other assistance to facilitate the achievement of the purposes of this section. In providing such assistance, the Secretary shall make available, as appropriate for the work to be performed by each partnership, equipment and facilities of Department of Defense laboratories (including the scientists and engineers at those laboratories) to a partnership recognized under this section for purposes of any project that is approved by the Secretary.

(e) Selection Process.-Competitive procedures shall be used in the establishment of partnerships.

(f) Selection Criteria.-The criteria for the selection of proposed partnerships for establishment under this section shall include the following:

(1) The extent to which the program proposed to be conducted by the partnership advances and enhances the national security objectives set forth in section 2501(a) of this title.

(2) The technical excellence of the program proposed to be conducted by the partnership.

(3) The qualifications of the personnel proposed to participate in the partnership's research activities.

(4) An assessment of timely private sector investment in activities to achieve the goals and objectives of the proposed partnership other than through the partnership.

(5) The potential effectiveness of the partnership in the further development and application of each technology proposed to be developed by the partnership for the national technology and industrial base.

(6) The extent of the financial commitment of eligible firms to the proposed partnership.

(7) The extent to which the partnership does not unnecessarily duplicate projects undertaken by other agencies.

(8) Such other criteria that the Secretary prescribes.

(g) Regulations.-The Secretary of Defense shall prescribe regulations for the purposes of this section.

(Added Pub. L. 102–484, div. D, title XLII, §4221(a), Oct. 23, 1992, 106 Stat. 2677 ; amended Pub. L. 103–160, div. A, title XIII, §§1315(a), 1317(c), Nov. 30, 1993, 107 Stat. 1787 , 1789; Pub. L. 103–337, div. A, title XI, §1115(a), Oct. 5, 1994, 108 Stat. 2868 .)

Prior Provisions

A prior section 2511, added Pub. L. 101–510, div. A, title VIII, §823(a)(3), Nov. 5, 1990, 104 Stat. 1600 ; amended Pub. L. 102–190, div. A, title VIII, §824(b), Dec. 5, 1991, 105 Stat. 1438 , defined "manufacturing technology", "manufacturing extension program", and "United States-based small manufacturing firm" for purposes of former chapter 149 of this title, prior to repeal and restatement in section 2491 of this title by Pub. L. 102–484, §§4202(a), 4203(a).

Another prior section 2511 was renumbered section 2540 of this title and subsequently repealed.

Provisions similar to those in this section were contained in section 2523 of this title, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 102–484, §4202(a).

Amendments

1994-Subsec. (c)(3). Pub. L. 103–337 added par. (3).

1993-Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 103–160, §1315(a), amended subsec. (c) generally. Prior to amendment, subsec. (c) read as follows: "The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that, to the maximum extent he determines to be practicable, the amount of the funds provided by the Federal Government under a partnership does not exceed the total amount provided by non-Federal Government participants in that partnership."

Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 103–160, §1317(c), struck out ", except that procedures other than competitive procedures may be used in any case in which an exception set out in section 2304(c) of this title applies" after "partnerships".

Application of 1993 Amendments to Existing Technology Reinvestment Projects

Section 1315(g) of Pub. L. 103–160 provided that: "In the case of a project funded under section 2511, 2512, 2513, 2523, or 2524 of title 10, United States Code, using funds appropriated for a fiscal year beginning before October 1, 1993, the amendments made by this section [amending this section and sections 2491, 2512, 2513, 2523, and 2524 of this title] shall not alter the financial commitment requirements in effect on the day before the date of the enactment of this Act [Nov. 30, 1993] for the non-Federal Government participants in the project."

Section Referred to in Other Sections

This section is referred to in sections 2512, 2513, 2519, 2520, 2522 of this title.