Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 104 Part 5.djvu/444

 104 STAT. 3766 PUBLIC LAW 101-624—NOV. 28, 1990 (2) have a scientific or engineering background or have experience in the development of new products or processes in the public or private sector. (e) ACTIVITIES.—Each Regional Center shall— (1) encourage interaction among the private and Federal laboratories, National Science Foundation centers. Department of Agriculture research programs, other Federal resources. State and local regional economic development programs, universities, colleges, the private sector, and the financial community, for the purpose of evaluating sind commercializing new nonfood, nonfeed uses of agricultural commodities; (2) identify broad areas where commercialization of new nonfood, nonfeed products and processes can contribute to economic growth in rural areas of the United States, through the development of new nonfood, nonfeed uses for agricultural commodities by private companies and businesses; (3) provide technical assistance and related business and financial counseling for small domestic businesses to commercialize new nonfood, nonfeed uses of agricultural commodities; (4) identify new nonfood, nonfeed products and processes that are worthy of financial assistance; (5) make use of existing programs in scientific, engineering, technical, and management education that will support the accelerated commercialization of new nonfood, nonfeed products and processes using agricultural commodities; (6) advise the Board on the viability of specific applications submitted for financial assistance and on the type of assistance, if any, to be provided; (7) coordinate their activities with the Small Business Development Centers; and fi (8) coordinEite their activities with the Center. (f) REVIEW OF PROPOSALS FOR ASSISTANCE. — (1) SUBMISSION TO REGIONAL CENTER. —I f a Regional Center is established that includes the area in which a person applying for assistance under this subtitle is located, that person shall submit the application to the Regional Center for review. (2) REVIEW.— The Directors of the Regiongil Centers shall work in consultation with the Advisory Council appointed under section 1661(c) to obtain peer review and evaluation of applications submitted to the Regional Centers. (3) ROLE OF ADVISORY COUNCIL. —The Advisory Council shall review applications submitted to the Regional Centers. The Advisory Council shall, by majority vote, make a nonbinding recommendation on each proposal to the appropriate Regional Director. (4) RECOMMENDATION. — The Regional Director, after consideration of the Advisory Council's recommendation and based on the comments of the reviewers, shall make and submit a recommendation to the Board along with the recommendation of the Advisory Council. A recommendation submitted by a Regional Director or the Advisory Council shall not be binding on the Board. 7 USC 5908. SEC. 1664. ALTERNATIVE AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH AND COMMER- CIALIZATION REVOLVING FUND. (a) ESTABLISHMENT. — There is established in the Treasury of the United States a revolving fund to be known as the Alternative

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