PRIA, Government Policy, Made Personal

Summary

The Secretary of Defense must give grants to Sematech to help pay for research and development of semiconductor manufacturing technology. The grants must follow a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that requires Sematech to have a charter agreed to by its industry members and an annual operating plan made with the Secretary and the Semiconductor Technology Council. The MOU limits total government money to no more than 50 percent of any year’s R&D costs. Sematech must work with Department of Energy national labs and U.S. colleges and universities. An independent commercial auditor must check how the federal funds are spent and send an annual report to the Secretary, Sematech, and the Comptroller General. The Secretary may use Sematech’s intellectual property like a participant and may give it to Defense contractors for Defense needs, but may not transfer it for commercial use. Sematech must move new technology quickly to its participants to improve U.S. manufacturing productivity. The MOU is not treated as a federal contract, so federal contract rules do not apply. For fiscal year 1988, $100,000,000 of Defense Agencies’ research, development, test, and evaluation funds may be obligated only to make grants under this authority.

Title 15, §4602

Commerce and Trade, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Authority to make grants

The Secretary of Defense shall make grants, in accordance with section 6304 of title 31, to Sematech in order to defray expenses incurred by Sematech in conducting research on and development of semiconductor manufacturing technology. The grants shall be made in accordance with a memorandum of understanding entered into under subsection (b).

(b)Memorandum of understanding

The Secretary of Defense shall enter into a memorandum of understanding with Sematech for the purposes of this subchapter. The memorandum of understanding shall require the following:

(1)That Sematech have—

(A)a charter agreed to by all representatives of the semiconductor industry that are participating members of Sematech; and

(B)an annual operating plan that is developed in consultation with the Secretary of Defense and the Semiconductor Technology Council.

(2)That the total amount of funds made available to Sematech by Federal, State, and local government agencies for any fiscal year for the support of research and development activities of Sematech under this section may not exceed 50 percent of the total cost of such activities.

(3)That Sematech, in conducting research and development activities pursuant to the memorandum of understanding, cooperate with and draw on the expertise of the national laboratories of the Department of Energy and of colleges and universities in the United States in the field of semiconductor manufacturing technology.

(4)That an independent, commercial auditor be retained (A) to determine the extent to which the funds made available to Sematech by the United States for the research and development activities of Sematech have been expended in a manner that is consistent with the purposes of this subchapter, the charter of Sematech, and the annual operating plan of Sematech, and (B) to submit to the Secretary of Defense, Sematech, and the Comptroller General of the United States an annual report containing the findings and determinations of such auditor.

(5)That (A) the Secretary of Defense be permitted to use intellectual property, trade secrets, and technical data owned and developed by Sematech in the same manner as a participant in Sematech and to transfer such intellectual property, trade secrets, and technical data to Department of Defense contractors for use in connection with Department of Defense requirements, and (B) the Secretary not be permitted to transfer such property to any person for commercial use.

(6)That Sematech take all steps necessary to maximize the expeditious and timely transfer of technology developed and owned by Sematech to the participants in Sematech in accordance with the agreement between Sematech and those participants and for the purpose of improving manufacturing productivity of United States semiconductor firms.

(c)Construction of memorandum of understanding

The memorandum of understanding entered into under subsection (b) shall not be considered to be a contract for the purpose of any law or regulation relating to the formation, content, and administration of contracts awarded by the Federal Government and subcontracts under such contracts, including chapter 271 of title 10, section 719 of the Defense Production Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. App. 2168), and the Federal Acquisition Regulations, and such provisions of law and regulation shall not apply with respect to the memorandum of understanding.

(d)Funding for FY88

Of the amounts appropriated to the Defense Agencies for fiscal year 1988 for research, development, test, and evaluation, $100,000,000 may be obligated only to make grants under this section.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

section 719 of the Defense Production Act of 1950, referred to in subsec. (c), is section 719 of act Sept. 8, 1950, ch. 932, title VII, as added Pub. L. 91–379, title I, § 103, Aug. 15, 1970, 84 Stat. 796, which was formerly classified to section 2168 of the former Appendix to Title 50, War and National Defense, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 100–679, § 5(b), Nov. 17, 1988, 102 Stat. 4063.

Amendments

2021—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 117–81 substituted “chapter 271” for “section 2306a”. 1993—Subsec. (b)(1)(B). Pub. L. 103–160 substituted “Semiconductor Technology Council” for “Advisory Council on Federal Participation in Sematech”.

§4602 Grants to Sematech