49 U.S.C. § 44813 — Center of Excellence for Unmanned Aircraft Systems

(a) In general. The FAA Administrator must continue operating the Center of Excellence for Unmanned Aircraft^* Systems, called the “Center” here. (b) Responsibilities. The Center must (1) conduct applied research and training on safely and efficiently integrating unmanned aircraft systems and advanced air mobility into the national airspace system; (2) promote and support collaboration among academic institutions, the FAA, Federal partners, and industry stakeholders, including manufacturers, operators, service providers, standards organizations, carriers, and suppliers, on that integration; and (3) set goals to advance technology, improve engineering practices, and support continuing education related to that integration. (c) Program participation. The Administrator must ensure that the Center includes higher-education institutions, as defined in section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965, and research institutions offering accredited bachelor’s programs in aeronautical science that lead to commercial pilot certifications and focus on training women aviators. (d) Using capacity and capabilities. When validating consensus safety standards accepted under section 44805, the Administrator must, as far as practicable, use the research and testing capacity of (1) the Center; (2) test ranges designated under section 44803; (3) existing Federal and non-Federal test ranges and testbeds; (4) NASA; and (5) the William J. Hughes Technical Center for Advanced Aerospace.