Jim Baird: “I rise in support of H.R. 1068, a bill to amend the High-Performance Computing Act of 1991. This is a bipartisan bill…”

“I rise in support of H.R. 1068, a bill to amend the High-Performance Computing Act of 1991. This is a bipartisan bill which Congresswoman Biggert and I introduced. I want particularly to acknowledge the role Mrs. Biggert has played in working to develop this legislation over the past several years. This bill is based on a bill introduced by Congresswoman Biggert and Congressman Lincoln Davis during the past two Congresses. And in both those Congresses, the bill passed the House. I also want to thank Chairman Gordon and Ranking Member Hall for their support for the legislation, for helping to advance it through the committee and to bring it to the floor. H.R. 1068 will improve the planning and coordination process for the major Federal interagency research program in information technology. Information technology is a major driver of economic growth. It creates high-wage jobs, provides for rapid communication throughout the world, and provides the tools for acquiring knowledge. For example, information technology helps to make the workplace more productive, to improve the quality of health care, and to make government more responsive and accessible to the needs of our citizens. High-performance computing and networking is not only an essential component of U.S. scientific competitiveness, it also has important industrial, medical, and defense applications.”