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Stansbury Secures Critical STEM Innovation Amendments in America COMPETES Act

February 4, 2022

Rep. Stansbury secured amendments to facilitate technology transfer to stimulate STEM innovation economies and support U.S. competitiveness in space microgravity research

WASHINGTON — U.S. Representative Melanie Stansbury (N.M.-01), a member of the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, secured two critical amendments to the America COMPETES Act, including her bipartisan Partnerships for Energy Security and Innovation Act (H.R. 4863) alongside Rep. Young Kim (Calif.-39-R) and an amendment to promote U.S. competitiveness in microgravity research.  

These amendments streamline the connection between research and technology development carried out by our National Laboratories, the National Science Foundation, and other programs and cutting-edge innovation and local economic development in the private sector.  

“New Mexico is the proud home of two of our nation’s leading research laboratories, which contribute billions to our state’s economy, and where scientists push the envelope of innovation in science and technology every day,” said Rep. Stansbury. “This is our moment to harness next-generation science and technologies for wider social and commercial uses. I’m proud that this amendment will help grow our STEM economy and tackle our biggest challenges in science, innovation, and clean energy economy of the future.” 

The Partnerships for Energy Security and Innovation Act amendment will create a nonprofit foundation for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) that channels research and innovation to higher education institutions and private sector partners in alignment with DOE’s mission. The foundation’s mission would also focus on bringing energy innovations to markets serving rural and underserved communities and facilitate the commercialization of technologies like next-generation materials and high-efficiency batteries.    

The nonprofit DOE foundation created by Rep. Stansbury and Rep. Kim’s bipartisan amendment will prioritize partnerships with institutions like Hispanic-serving institutions, historically Black colleges and universities, Tribal colleges and universities, and minority-serving institutions. Rep. Stansbury and Rep. Kim’s legislation is similar to an amendment championed by U.S. Senator Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) included in the Senate-passed U.S. Innovation and Competition Act (USICA). The Senate amendment builds on the successful model of nonprofit foundations that have successfully leveraged billions of dollars in research and innovation by the National Institutes of Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the U.S Department of Agriculture. 

In addition, Amendment 309 directs the National Science Foundation to open grant funding opportunities to conduct critical research within the micro-gravity environment. The research funding supports innovative medical and materials experimentation to advance pharmaceutical and semiconductor fields, among other important applications. .  

“Continued investments in research, scientific development, and technology are critical to the advancement of U.S. competitiveness and innovation,” said Rep. Stansbury. “The microgravity environment helps to facilitate research that wouldn’t be possible to perform on Earth – I’m proud to help secure this amendment to increase funding for crucial STEM research and projects that New Mexico’s growing space industry can lead on in our space economy.” 

The America COMPETES Act will make transformational investments in research, innovation, and manufacturing through the acceleration of U.S. production of critical semiconductor chips, provisions to strengthen the supply chain to make more goods in America, turbocharge the nation’s research capacity to lead the technologies of the future, and advance global competitiveness. The package also supports strong labor and human rights standards, among other key provisions. The transformative package of science and technology innovation legislation is the result of bipartisan, cross-committee efforts – its major components include many bills that have already passed the House by strong bipartisan votes or have bipartisan cosponsors.  

The full text of the Partnerships for Energy Security and Innovation amendment to the America COMPETES Act is available here.

The full text of Amendment 309 is available here.