U.S. Rep. Ben Ray LujánCONGRESSIONAL News:
WASHINGTON, D.C. ― U.S. Rep. Ben Ray Luján, of New Mexico’s Third District, introduced legislation Friday Feb. 12, to increase partnerships between businesses and national laboratories that spur economic growth and create new jobs.
Luján’s legislation authorizes a dedicated fund to provide for the government’s share of Cooperative Research and Development Agreements (CRADA) that support maturing lab technology and transferring it to the private sector.
Cooperative Research and Development Agreements are common mechanisms to support collaboration between a business and a national lab to bring technology from the lab to the marketplace. While it is permissible for the Department of Energy to use its funds to pay for the government’s share of a CRADA, most are funded entirely by private businesses.
Given the large risk in commercializing a new technology, paying for the government’s share of the CRADA as well as its own is prohibitively expensive for most small businesses. This bill authorizes $20 million a year for five years to create a fund to pay for the government’s portion of the CRADA, and directs the Department of Energy to ensure that special consideration is given to small businesses.
“For decades, our national labs have served as centers of innovation and research,” Luján said. “My legislation will help our national labs realize their full potential by providing entrepreneurs and small businesses with access to the labs’ innovative science and research and development capabilities and efforts. This will stimulate new partnerships and support a more seamless transition from laboratory advances to market technologies that grow the economy and create jobs.”
“House Democrats are focused on supporting the creation of jobs and providing Americans with the tools and resources they need to navigate an economy that is being transformed by new technologies,” Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer said. “Rep. Luján’s legislation would do exactly that by fostering partnerships between businesses and national laboratories and spurring innovation that will lead to the creation of well-paying jobs, and I thank him for his efforts to help more of our people make it in America.”
As a co-chair of the Technology Transfer Caucus and the Science and National Labs Caucus, Luján is a strong advocate for the national labs, working to expand their mission, and striving to ensure that the innovative work that occurs there is being fully utilized to grow the economy and support local businesses.