---
kind: "section"
citation: "15 U.S.C. § 7501"
title: "15"
title_heading: "Commerce and Trade"
number: "7501"
heading: "National Nanotechnology Program"
release: "119-102"
date: "2026-07-12"
url: "https://uscodex.org/usc/15/7501"
units:
  - "Chapter 101 — Nanotechnology Research and Development"
---

# §7501. National Nanotechnology Program

- (a) **National Nanotechnology Program—** The President shall implement a National [Nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2) [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3). Through appropriate agencies, [councils](/usc/15/7509.md?p=4), and the National [Nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2) Coordination Office established in [section 7502 of this title](/usc/15/7502.md), the [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3) shall—
  - (1) establish the goals, priorities, and metrics for evaluation for Federal [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2) research, development, and other activities;
  - (2) invest in Federal research and development [programs](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3) in [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2) and related sciences to achieve those goals; and
  - (3) provide for interagency coordination of Federal [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2) research, development, and other activities undertaken pursuant to the [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3).
- (b) **Program activities—** The activities of the [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3) shall include—
  - (1) developing a fundamental understanding of matter that enables control and manipulation at the nanoscale;
  - (2) providing grants to individual investigators and interdisciplinary teams of investigators;
  - (3) establishing a network of [advanced technology user facilities](/usc/15/7509.md?p=5) and centers;
  - (4) establishing, on a merit-reviewed and competitive basis, interdisciplinary [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2) research centers, which shall—
    - (A) interact and collaborate to foster the exchange of technical information and best practices;
    - (B) involve academic institutions or national laboratories and other partners, which may include [States](/usc/15/15g.md?p=2) and industry;
    - (C) make use of existing expertise in [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2) in their regions and nationally;
    - (D) make use of ongoing research and development at the micrometer scale to support their work in [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2); and
    - (E) to the greatest extent possible, be established in geographically diverse locations, encourage the participation of Historically Black Colleges and Universities that are part B institutions as defined in [section 1061(2) of title 20](/usc/20/1061.md?p=2) and minority institutions (as defined in [section 1067k(3) of title 20](/usc/20/1067k.md?p=3)), and include institutions located in [States](/usc/15/15g.md?p=2) participating in the Experimental [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3) to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR);
  - (5) ensuring United States global leadership in the development and application of [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2);
  - (6) advancing the United States productivity and industrial competitiveness through stable, consistent, and coordinated investments in long-term scientific and engineering research in [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2);
  - (7) accelerating the deployment and application of [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2) research and development in the private sector, including startup companies;
  - (8) encouraging interdisciplinary research, and ensuring that processes for solicitation and evaluation of proposals under the [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3) encourage interdisciplinary projects and collaborations;
  - (9) providing effective education and training for researchers and professionals skilled in the interdisciplinary perspectives necessary for [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2) so that a true interdisciplinary research culture for nanoscale science, engineering, and technology can emerge;
  - (10) ensuring that ethical, legal, environmental, and other appropriate societal concerns, including the potential use of [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2) in enhancing human intelligence and in developing artificial intelligence which exceeds human capacity, are considered during the development of [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2) by—
    - (A) establishing a research [program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3) to identify ethical, legal, environmental, and other appropriate societal concerns related to [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2), and ensuring that the results of such research are widely disseminated;
    - (B) requiring that interdisciplinary [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2) research centers established under [paragraph (4)](#b-4) include activities that address societal, ethical, and environmental concerns;
    - (C) insofar as possible, integrating research on societal, ethical, and environmental concerns with [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2) research and development, and ensuring that advances in [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2) bring about improvements in quality of life for all Americans; and
    - (D) providing, through the National [Nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2) Coordination Office established in [section 7502 of this title](/usc/15/7502.md), for public input and outreach to be integrated into the [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3) by the convening of regular and ongoing public discussions, through mechanisms such as citizens’ panels, consensus conferences, and educational events, as appropriate; and
  - (11) encouraging research on [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2) advances that utilize existing processes and technologies.
- (c) **Program management—** The National Science and Technology [Council](/usc/15/7509.md?p=4) shall oversee the planning, management, and coordination of the [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3). The [Council](/usc/15/7509.md?p=4), itself or through an appropriate subgroup it designates or establishes, shall—
  - (1) establish goals and priorities for the [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3), based on national needs for a set of broad applications of [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2);
  - (2) establish [program component areas](/usc/15/7509.md?p=6), with specific priorities and technical goals, that reflect the goals and priorities established for the [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3);
  - (3) oversee interagency coordination of the [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3), including with the activities of the Defense [Nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2) Research and Development [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3) established under section 246 of the Bob Stump National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2003 (Public Law 107–314) and the National Institutes of Health;
  - (4) develop, not later than 5 years after the date of the release of the most-recent strategic plan, and update every 5 years thereafter, a strategic plan to guide the activities described under [subsection (b)](#b) that describes—
    - (A) the near-term and long-term objectives for the [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3);
    - (B) the anticipated schedule for achieving the near-term objectives; and[^1]
    - (C) the metrics that will be used to assess progress toward the near-term and long-term objectives;
    - (D) how the [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3) will move results out of the laboratory and into application for the benefit of society;
    - (E) the [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3)’s support for long-term funding for interdisciplinary research and development in [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2); and
    - (F) the allocation of funding for interagency [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2) projects;
  - (5) propose a coordinated interagency budget for the [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3) to the Office of Management and Budget to ensure the maintenance of a balanced [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2) research portfolio and an appropriate level of research effort;
  - (6) exchange information with academic, industry, [State](/usc/15/15g.md?p=2) and [local government](/usc/15/34.md?p=1) (including [State](/usc/15/15g.md?p=2) and regional [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2) [programs](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3)), and other appropriate groups conducting research on and using [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2);
  - (7) develop a plan to utilize Federal [programs](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3), such as the Small Business Innovation Research [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3) and the Small Business Technology Transfer Research [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3), in support of the activity stated in [subsection (b)(7)](#b-7);
  - (8) identify research areas that are not being adequately addressed by the agencies’ current research [programs](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3) and address such research areas;
  - (9) encourage progress on [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3) activities through the utilization of existing manufacturing facilities and industrial infrastructures such as, but not limited to, the employment of underutilized manufacturing facilities in areas of high unemployment as production engineering and research testbeds; and
  - (10) in carrying out its responsibilities under paragraphs [(1)](#c-1) through [(9)](#c-9), take into consideration the recommendations of the [Advisory Panel](/usc/15/7509.md?p=1), suggestions or recommendations developed pursuant to [subsection (b)(10)(D)](#b-10-D), and the views of academic, [State](/usc/15/15g.md?p=2), industry, and other appropriate groups conducting research on and using [nanotechnology](/usc/15/7509.md?p=2).
- (d) **Annual report—** The [Council](/usc/15/7509.md?p=4) shall prepare an annual report, to be submitted to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the House of Representatives Committee on Science, and other appropriate committees, at the time of the President’s budget request to Congress, that includes—
  - (1) the [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3) budget, for the current fiscal year, for each agency that participates in the [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3), including a breakout of spending for the development and acquisition of research facilities and instrumentation, for each [program component area](/usc/15/7509.md?p=6), and for all activities pursuant to [subsection (b)(10)](#b-10);
  - (2) the proposed [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3) budget for the next fiscal year, for each agency that participates in the [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3), including a breakout of spending for the development and acquisition of research facilities and instrumentation, for each [program component area](/usc/15/7509.md?p=6), and for all activities pursuant to [subsection (b)(10)](#b-10);
  - (3) an analysis of the progress made toward achieving the goals and priorities established for the [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3);
  - (4) an analysis of the extent to which the [Program](/usc/15/7509.md?p=3) has incorporated the recommendations of the [Advisory Panel](/usc/15/7509.md?p=1); and
  - (5) an assessment of how Federal agencies are implementing the plan described in [subsection (c)(7)](#c-7), and a description of the amount of Small Business Innovative Research and Small Business Technology Transfer Research funds supporting the plan.

## Footnotes

[^1]: So in original. The word “and” probably should not appear.

## Source credit

(Pub. L. 108–153, § 2, Dec. 3, 2003, 117 Stat. 1923; Pub. L. 114–329, title II, § 204(b)(1), Jan. 6, 2017, 130 Stat. 2999.)

## Notes

### Editorial Notes

### References in Text

Section 246 of the Bob Stump National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2003, referred to in subsec. (c)(3), is section 246 of Pub. L. 107–314, which is set out as a note under section 2358 of Title 10, Armed Forces.

### Amendments

2017—Subsec. (c)(4). Pub. L. 114–329 amended par. (4) generally. Prior to amendment, par. (4) read as follows: “develop, within 12 months after December 3, 2003, and update every 3 years thereafter, a strategic plan to guide the activities described under subsection (b), meet the goals, priorities, and anticipated outcomes of the participating agencies, and describe—

“(A) how the Program will move results out of the laboratory and into application for the benefit of society;

“(B) the Program’s support for long-term funding for interdisciplinary research and development in nanotechnology; and

“(C) the allocation of funding for interagency nanotechnology projects;”.

### Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

### Change of Name

Committee on Science of House of Representatives changed to Committee on Science and Technology of House of Representatives by House Resolution No. 6, One Hundred Tenth Congress, Jan. 5, 2007. Committee on Science and Technology of House of Representatives changed to Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of House of Representatives by House Resolution No. 5, One Hundred Twelfth Congress, Jan. 5, 2011.

### Short Title

Pub. L. 108–153, § 1, Dec. 3, 2003, 117 Stat. 1923, provided that: “This Act [enacting this chapter] may be cited as the ‘21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act’.”