§4123 — Title 10 Armed Forces | U.S. Code

§4123 Mechanisms to Provide Funds for Defense Laboratories and Test Organizations for Research and Development of Technologies for Military Missions

Title 10 › Subtitle Subtitle A— General Military Law › Part V— ACQUISITION › Subpart E— Research and Engineering › Chapter 303— RESEARCH AND ENGINEERING ACTIVITIES › Subchapter III— RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CENTERS AND FACILITIES › § 4123

Last updated Apr 18, 2026|Official source

Summary

The Secretary of Defense must set up a system, working with the military department Secretaries, that lets a defense laboratory or test organization use between 2% and 4% of its available funds for certain purposes. Directors may spend this money, after talking with their military department’s science and technology leader, on innovative basic and applied research, programs that help move lab technologies into real use, workforce activities to hire and keep scientists and engineers, and on repairs or small construction projects for lab buildings and equipment. The science and technology leaders can write rules to encourage sharing and teamwork across labs. A director may also charge customers a fixed fee on top of normal costs to raise money for these activities, but that fee cannot be more than 4%. Money for repairs or minor construction can only be used after the Secretary tells the congressional defense committees the project’s total cost and confirms the project meets the cost limits in sections 2805(d) and 2811 of title 10. The Secretary must also collect and share information about results, best practices, lessons learned, and problems — putting unclassified material public and giving classified information to the right officials. A “test organization” means one in the Major Range and Test Facility Base under DoD Directive 3200.11 or its successor.

Title 10, §4123

Armed Forces — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)(1)The Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the Secretaries of the military departments, shall establish mechanisms under which the director of a defense laboratory or test organization may use an amount of funds equal to not less than two percent and not more than four percent of all funds available to the defense laboratory or test organization for the following purposes:

(A)To fund innovative basic and applied research that is conducted at the defense laboratory or test organization and supports military missions.

(B)To fund development programs that support the transition of technologies developed by the defense laboratory or test organization into operational use.

(C)To fund workforce development activities that improve the capacity of the defense laboratory or test organization to recruit and retain personnel with necessary scientific and engineering expertise that support military missions.

(D)To fund the repair or minor military construction of the laboratory or test organization infrastructure and equipment, in accordance with subsection (b).

(2)The mechanisms established under paragraph (1) shall provide that funding shall be used under paragraph (1) at the discretion of the director of a defense laboratory or test organization in consultation with the science and technology executive of the military department concerned.

(3)The science and technology executive of a military department may develop policies and guidance to leverage funding and promote cross-laboratory collaboration, including with laboratories or test organizations of other military departments.

(4)After consultation with the science and technology executive of the military department concerned, the director of a defense laboratory or test organization may charge customer activities a fixed percentage fee, in addition to normal costs of performance, in order to obtain funds to carry out activities authorized by this subsection. The fixed fee may not exceed four percent of costs.

(b)Funds shall be available in accordance with subsection (a)(1)(D) only if—

(1)the Secretary notifies the congressional defense committees of the total cost of the project before the date on which the Secretary uses the mechanism under such subsection for such project; and

(2)the Secretary ensures that the project complies with the applicable cost limitations in—

(A)section 2805(d) of this title, with respect to revitalization and recapitalization projects; and

(B)section 2811 of this title, with respect to repair projects.

(c)(1)The Secretary shall establish and maintain mechanisms for the continuous collection of information on achievements, best practices identified, lessons learned, and challenges arising in the exercise of the authority in this section.

(2)The Secretary shall establish and maintain mechanisms as follows:

(A)Mechanisms for the release to the public of information on achievements and best practices described in paragraph (1) in unclassified form.

(B)Mechanisms for dissemination to appropriate civilian and military officials of information on achievements and best practices described in paragraph (1) in classified form.

(d)In this section, the term “test organization” means a test organization of the Major Range and Test Facility Base specified in Department of Defense Directive 3200.11 or any successor directive.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

2025—Pub. L. 119–60, § 212(1), inserted “and test organizations” after “defense laboratories” in section catchline. Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 119–60, § 212(2), inserted “or test organization” after “laboratory” wherever appearing. Subsec. (a)(3). Pub. L. 119–60, § 212(3), inserted “or test organizations” after “laboratories”. Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 119–60, § 212(4), added subsec. (d). 2021—Pub. L. 116–283, § 1843(b)(1), as added by Pub. L. 117–81, § 1701(u)(4)(A), renumbered section 2363 of this title as this section. A former section 1843(b)(1) of Pub. L. 116–283, which directed the renumbering of section 2363 of this title as section 4103 instead of this section, was repealed by Pub. L. 117–81, § 1701(u)(4)(A), effective as if included therein, so that such renumbering was no longer directed. 2018—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 115–232 amended subsec. (c) generally. Prior to amendment, subsec. (c) related to annual reports on the use of the authority under subsec. (a).

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 2021 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 117–81 applicable as if included in the enactment of title XVIII of Pub. L. 116–283 as enacted, see section 1701(a)(2) of Pub. L. 117–81, set out in a note preceding section 3001 of this title and note below. Amendment by Pub. L. 116–283 effective Jan. 1, 2022, with additional provisions for delayed implementation and applicability of existing law, see section 1801(d) of Pub. L. 116–283, set out as a note preceding section 3001 of this title.