Lamar Smith: “Mr. Loudermilk is the chairman of the Science, Space, and Technology Committee's Oversight Subcommittee, and I…”

“Mr. Loudermilk is the chairman of the Science, Space, and Technology Committee's Oversight Subcommittee, and I appreciate all the work he has done on this bill. H.R. 5049, the NSF Major Research Facility Reform Act, is the second bill today that is part of Majority Leader McCarthy's Innovation Initiative. We appreciate all of his efforts on this and other innovation bills, which now total 17. This legislation addresses an issue about which the Science, Space, and Technology Committee has expressed concerns for the last 2 years: the National Science Foundation past management of major research facility projects. The Science, Space, and Technology Committee seeks to ensure that taxpayer dollars are spent on research in the national interest, not wasted on mismanagement and questionable costs. This bill achieves that goal. It addresses gaps in project oversight and management through solutions identified by the NSF inspector general, auditors, an outside review panel, and the Science, Space, and Technology Committee's own oversight for a year and a half. Last year, in the wake of several reports of project waste and mismanagement, NSF Director France A. Cordova agreed to commission a study by the National Academy of Public Administration to take a closer look at how NSF could better manage large-scale research projects. The study's report offered 13 recommendations to improve NSF's management of cooperative agreements.…”