Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 121.djvu/706

 PUBLIC LAW 110–69—AUG. 9, 2007

121 STAT. 685

SEC. 7020. CYBERINFRASTRUCTURE.

In order to continue and expand efforts to ensure that research institutions throughout the Nation can fully participate in research programs of the Foundation and collaborate with colleagues throughout the Nation, the Director, not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, shall develop and publish a plan that— (1) describes the current status of broadband access for scientific research purposes at institutions in EPSCoR-eligible States, at institutions in rural areas, and at minority serving institutions; and (2) outlines actions that can be taken to ensure that such connections are available to enable participation in those Foundation programs that rely heavily on high-speed networking and collaborations across institutions and regions. SEC. 7021. PILOT PROGRAM OF GRANTS FOR NEW INVESTIGATORS.

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(a) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall carry out a pilot program to award 1-year grants to individuals to assist them in improving research proposals that were previously submitted to the Foundation but not selected for funding. (b) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive a grant under this section, an individual— (1) may not have previously received funding as the principal investigator of a research grant from the Foundation; and (2) shall have submitted a proposal to the Foundation, which may include a proposal submitted to the Research in Undergraduate Institutions program, that was rated excellent under the Foundation’s competitive merit review process. (c) SELECTION PROCESS.—The Director shall make awards under this section based on the advice of the program officers of the Foundation. (d) USE OF FUNDS.—Grants awarded under this section shall be used to enable an individual to resubmit an updated research proposal for review by the Foundation through the agency’s competitive merit review process. Uses of funds made available under this section may include the generation of new data and the performance of additional analysis. (e) PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION.—The Director shall carry out this section through the Small Grants for Exploratory Research program. (f) NATIONAL SCIENCE BOARD REVIEW.—The Board shall conduct a review and assessment of the pilot program under this section, including the number of new investigators funded, the distribution of awards by type of institution of higher education, and the success rate upon resubmittal of proposals by new investigators funded through such pilot program. Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Board shall summarize its findings and any recommendations regarding changes to, the termination of, or the continuation of the pilot program in a report to the Committee on Science and Technology of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate.

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