10 U.S.C. § 4124 — Centers for Science, Technology, and Engineering Partnership

(a) Designation. (1) The Secretary of Defense, coordinating with the military-department Secretaries, must designate each science and technology reinvention laboratory as a Center for Science, Technology, and Engineering Partnership in its recognized core competencies. (2) The Secretary must establish a policy encouraging each military-department Secretary to redesign management and business processes and adopt best business and personnel practices at that department's Centers, tied to the Centers' capability needs, so they become recognized leaders throughout Defense and the national technology and industrial base. (3) Through Center directors, the Secretary may conduct pilot programs consistent with law to test such practices when the directors determine they could (A) improve Center efficiency and effectiveness; (B) improve support for Defense elements using Center services; or (C) improve capability by lowering cost and improving mission performance and efficiency. (b) Public-private partnerships. (1) To achieve paragraph (2)'s objectives, the Secretary may authorize and establish incentives for a Center director to enter cooperative arrangements with Center employees, academia, private industry, State or local governments, or other entities outside Defense to have them perform related work under contract, subcontract, or otherwise, including work involving Center capabilities and applicable to Defense and commercial entities (A)(i)–(ii); or to let outside private entities use underused Center capabilities for Government or commercial purposes for periods consistent with Defense needs (B). (2) Objectives are to (A) maximize capacity use; (B) reduce or eliminate Defense ownership cost; (C) reduce Defense science, technology, and engineering costs; (D) use private investment for research, equipment recapitalization, and commercial ventures based on Center capabilities; (E) promote cooperation and technology transfer among the armed forces^*, academia, industry, and State and local governments; (F) improve access to skilled technical workers; and (G) improve access to non-Defense development and innovation methods and capabilities. (3)(A) Partnerships may be used for technology transfer and authorities in (B). (B) Those authorities are laws allowing Defense cooperation with academia, industry, and State and local governments, including title 5 sections 3371–3375; title 10 sections 2194, 2563, 4001, 4021, 4831, and 4062; title 35 section 209; and sections 8, 12, and 23 of the Stevenson-Wydler Technology Innovation Act of 1980 (15 U.S.C. 3706, 3710a, and 3715). (c) Private sector use. Private use of Center capabilities may support research and testing that makes Government capabilities more efficient and economical and encourages creation and preservation of jobs needed for armed-forces research and technical skills. (d) Crediting amounts. Money a Center receives for partnership work may be credited to the appropriation or fund, including a working-capital or revolving fund, that paid for the work, or used by the director as appropriate and consistent with section 219 of the Duncan Hunter National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2009 (10 U.S.C. 2358 note). (e) Conditions. A Center may make capacity available to a private entity only if (1) the use will not significantly harm Center performance or mission, as the director determines; and (2) the entity agrees to (A) reimburse Defense when required for direct and indirect costs, including rent, attributable to its use, as determined by the military-department Secretary; and (B) hold harmless and indemnify the United States against claims for damage or injury from the use, except the circumstances in section 2563(c)(3), and against liability or claims arising from a decision to suspend or end use during war or national emergency. (f) Partnership intermediaries. (1) With approval of the Secretary or head of the other concerned Federal department or agency, a Center director may enter a contract, memorandum of understanding, or other transaction with a partnership intermediary to provide services that increase the chance of successful cooperative or joint Center activities with industry or academic institutions. (2) “Partnership intermediary” means a State or local government agency, or a nonprofit entity owned, chartered, funded, or operated wholly or partly by or for such a government, that (A) helps, advises, evaluates, or cooperates with industry or academic institutions needing or able to use Center technology assistance productively; (B) facilitates technology transfer to a Center; or (C) assists workforce development in critical technology areas for transition activities addressing Center needs. (g) No conversion. Nothing authorizes changing work at a Center from Defense personnel to a contractor when another law prohibits that change. (h) Definitions. (1) “Capabilities” means the facilities, equipment, personnel, intellectual property, and other assets supporting a Center's core competencies. (2) “National technology and industrial base” has the meaning in section 4801. This section does not define it. (3) “Science and technology reinvention laboratory” means a laboratory designated under section 4121(b).