§4632 — Title 15 Commerce and Trade | U.S. Code

Summary

Creates a National Advisory Committee on Semiconductors to make a national plan for semiconductor research and development so the United States keeps its lead in the field. Congress says semiconductors are vital to industry and defense, that responsibility is split across many agencies, and government and industry must work together. The Committee must study industry, government, and research needs and abilities; identify what a strong national strategy must include; set priorities and recommend who should do what; check how government labs, private companies, and universities can help; watch U.S. semiconductor competitiveness; find technical weaknesses compared with other countries; spot new technologies that affect defense or competitiveness; create R&D plans; and give recommendations to federal agencies, industry, and other groups. The Committee will have 13 members, and 7 make a quorum. The Secretary of Defense, Secretary of Commerce, Secretary of Energy, the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, and the Director of the National Science Foundation (or their designees) must serve. The President, through the OSTP Director, appoints 4 industry experts and 4 experts in technology, defense, and economic development. The President names one of those appointees as chair when appointed. The chair must call the first meeting within 90 days after August 23, 1988. Office of Science and Technology Policy will get funding and support through an arrangement with a designated agency under a memorandum of understanding. Non-federal members get travel pay under normal federal travel rules. Each fiscal year the Committee must report to the President and Congress on its work and plans; the first report must analyze key technical areas, including manufacturing, and say what federal role should be to fix problems. Each report must say how long the Committee will need before it finishes. Money is authorized as needed for fiscal years 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, and 1993.

Title 15, §4632

Commerce and Trade — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)This section may be cited as the “National Advisory Committee on Semiconductor Research and Development Act of 1988”.

(b)(1)The Congress finds and declares that—

(A)semiconductor technology is playing an ever-increasing role in United States industrial and commercial products and processes, making secure domestic sources of state-of-the-art semiconductors highly desirable;

(B)modern weapons systems are highly dependent on leading edge semiconductor devices, and it is counter to the national security interest to be heavily dependent upon foreign sources for this technology;

(C)governmental responsibilities related to the semiconductor industry are divided among many Federal departments and agencies; and

(D)joint industry-government consideration of semiconductor industry problems is needed at this time.

(2)The purposes of this section are—

(A)to establish the National Advisory Committee on Semiconductors; and

(B)to assign to such Committee the responsibility for devising and promulgating a national semiconductor strategy, including research and development, the implementation of which will assure the continued leadership of the United States in semiconductor technology.

(c)There is hereby created in the executive branch of the Government an independent advisory body to be known as the National Advisory Committee on Semiconductors (hereafter in this section referred to as the “Committee”).

(d)(1)The Committee shall—

(A)collect and analyze information on the needs and capabilities of industry, the Federal Government, and the scientific and research communities related to semiconductor technology;

(B)identify the components of a successful national semiconductor strategy in accordance with subsection (b)(2)(B);

(C)analyze options, establish priorities, and recommend roles for participants in the national strategy;

(D)assess the roles for government and national laboratories and other laboratories supported largely for government purposes in contributing to the semiconductor technology base of the Nation, as well as to access the effective use of the resources of United States private industry, United States universities, and private-public research and development efforts; and

(E)provide results and recommendations to agencies of the Federal Government involved in legislative, policymaking, administrative, management, planning, and technology activities that affect or are part of a national semiconductor strategy, and to the industry and other nongovernmental groups or organizations affected by or contributing to that strategy.

(2)In fulfilling this responsibility, the Committee shall—

(A)monitor the competitiveness of the United States semiconductor technology base;

(B)determine technical areas where United States semiconductor technology is deficient relative to international competition;

(C)identify new or emerging semiconductor technologies that will impact the national defense or United States competitiveness or both;

(D)develop research and development strategies, tactics, and plans whose execution will assure United States semiconductor competitiveness; and

(E)recommend appropriate actions that support the national semiconductor strategy.

(e)(1)(A)The Committee shall be composed of 13 members, 7 of whom shall constitute a quorum.

(B)The Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of Energy, the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, and the Director of the National Science Foundation, or their designees, shall serve as members of the Committee.

(C)The President, acting through the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, shall appoint, as additional members of the Committee, 4 members from outside the Federal Government who are eminent in the semiconductor industry, and 4 members from outside the Federal Government who are eminent in the fields of technology, defense, and economic development.

(D)One of the members appointed under subparagraph (C), as designated by the President at the time of appointment, shall be chairman of the Committee.

(2)Funding and administrative support for the Committee shall be provided to the Office of Science and Technology Policy through an arrangement with an appropriate agency or organization designated by the Committee, in accordance with a memorandum of understanding entered into between them.

(3)Members of the Committee, other than full-time employees of the Federal Government, while attending meetings of the Committee or otherwise performing duties at the request of the Chairman while away from their homes or regular places of business, shall be allowed travel expenses in accordance with subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5.

(4)The Chairman shall call the first meeting of the Committee not later than 90 days after August 23, 1988.

(5)At the close of each fiscal year the Committee shall submit to the President and the Congress a report on its activities conducted during such year and its planned activities for the coming year, including specific findings and recommendations with respect to the national semiconductor strategy devised and promulgated under subsection (b)(2)(B). The first report shall include an analysis of those technical areas, including manufacturing, which are of importance to the United States semiconductor industry, and shall make specific recommendations regarding the appropriate Federal role in correcting any deficiencies identified by the analysis. Each report shall include an estimate of the length of time the Committee must continue before the achievement of its purposes and the issuance of its final report.

(f)There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out the purposes of this section such sums as may be necessary for the fiscal years 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, and 1993.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Codification Section was enacted as part of the Technology Competitiveness Act and as part of the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988, and not as part of part D of title I of division C of Pub. L. 100–180 which comprises this subchapter.

Amendments

1992—Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 102–245 substituted “1990, 1991, 1992, and 1993” for “and 1990”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Termination of Reporting RequirementsFor termination, effective May 15, 2000, of provisions in subsec. (e)(5) of this section relating to submitting annual report to Congress, see section 3003 of Pub. L. 104–66, as amended, set out as a note under section 1113 of Title 31, Money and Finance, and page 178 of House Document No. 103–7. Termination of Advisory CommitteesAdvisory committees established after Jan. 5, 1973, to terminate not later than the expiration of the 2-year period beginning on the date of their establishment, unless, in the case of a committee established by the President or an officer of the Federal Government, such committee is renewed by appropriate action prior to the expiration of such 2-year period, or in the case of a committee established by the Congress, its duration is otherwise provided by law. See section 1013 of Title 5, Government Organization and Employees.

§4632 Semiconductor Research and Development