HB 1368, the DOE and NASA Interagency Research Coordination Act, directs the Department of Energy and NASA to coordinate on cross-cutting research and development activities that support both agencies’ missions. The bill authorizes the agencies to use memoranda of understanding or other interagency agreements, and to enter into reimbursable or non-reimbursable arrangements to carry out collaborative work. It also allows them to make competitive awards, subject to merit review and applicable agency rules, to support joint research efforts.
The bill identifies several priority areas for collaboration, including propulsion systems and components, nuclear thermal and nuclear electric propulsion, radioisotope power systems, advanced nuclear fuels, modeling and simulation, machine learning, high-energy physics, astrophysics, cosmology, earth and environmental sciences, quantum information science, radiation health effects, and space-based solar energy transmission. It also encourages data sharing, secure information transfer, and access to DOE research infrastructure, and requires a report to Congress within two years describing the coordination activities, achievements, and future opportunities, including clean energy applications such as marine energy.
In practical terms, the bill would not create a new program or agency, but would formalize and expand interagency collaboration between DOE, NASA, national laboratories, universities, nonprofits, and other entities. It also requires that the activities be carried out consistently with federal research security requirements, which reflects an effort to balance collaboration with safeguards for sensitive research and data.
The overall sentiment reflected in the bill’s movement is positive and noncontroversial: it passed the House and was received in the Senate with referral to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Because there are no recorded committee transcripts or votes showing opposition in the provided materials, the bill appears to have broad support as a coordination and research-efficiency measure. Any potential points of contention are likely to center on research security, data-sharing practices, and the scope of collaboration in sensitive areas such as nuclear propulsion, quantum technologies, and advanced energy systems.
The bill would amend federal interagency research practice by expressly authorizing DOE and NASA to coordinate on joint R&D, use formal interagency agreements, and make competitive awards for collaborative projects. It would affect how the agencies allocate research resources, share data, and access facilities, while also requiring a congressional report and adherence to federal research security law. No existing statute is directly repealed, but the measure builds on and references DOE research authorities, the National Quantum Initiative Act, and NASA-related title 51 provisions.
The available legislative history suggests favorable sentiment. The bill passed the House and advanced to the Senate without any recorded votes or committee objections in the provided materials. Its framing as a coordination and efficiency measure, rather than a major policy overhaul, likely contributes to its broadly positive reception.
No specific opposition is documented in the provided record. The most likely areas of concern are the handling of sensitive research and data, especially under the bill’s research security requirement, and the inclusion of advanced technologies such as nuclear propulsion, quantum computing, and space-based solar power. Any debate would likely focus on whether the collaboration is sufficiently bounded and how securely information is shared across agencies and outside partners.