The National Nanotechnology Initiative:
Overview, Reauthorization, and
Appropriations Issues
John F. Sargent Jr.
Specialist in Science and Technology Policy
May 22, 2012
Congressional Research Service
7-5700
www.crs.gov
RL34401
CRS Report for Congress
Pr
epared for Members and Committees of Congress
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
Summary
Nanotechnology—a term encompassing the science, engineering, and applications of submicron
materials—involves the harnessing of unique physical, chemical, and biological properties of
nanoscale substances in fundamentally new and useful ways. The economic and societal promise
of nanotechnology has led to substantial and sustained investments by governments and
companies around the world. In 2000, the United States launched the world’s first national
nanotechnology program. From FY2001 through FY2012, the federal government invested
approximately $15.6 billion in nanoscale science, engineering, and technology through the U.S.
National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI). President Obama has requested $1.8 billion in NNI
funding for FY2013. U.S. companies and state governments have invested billions more. As a
result of this focus and these investments, the United States has, in the view of many experts,
emerged as a global leader in nanotechnology. However, the competition for global leadership in
nanotechnology is intensifying as countries and companies around the world increase their
investments.
Nanotechnology’s complexity and intricacies, early stage of development (with commercial pay-
off possibly years away for many potential applications), and broad scope of potential
applications engender a wide range of public policy issues. Maintaining U.S. technological and
commercial leadership in nanotechnology poses a variety of technical and policy challenges,
including development of technologies that will enable commercial scale manufacturing of
nanotechnology materials and products; environmental, health, and safety concerns; and
maintenance of public confidence in its safety.
Congress established programs, assigned responsibilities, and initiated research and development
related to these issues in the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act of
2003 (P.L. 108-153). Although many provisions of this act have no sunset provision, FY2008 was
the last year of agency authorizations included in the act. Legislation to amend and reauthorize
the act was introduced in the House (H.R. 5940, 110th Congress) and the Senate (S. 3274, 110th
Congress) in the 110th Congress. The House passed H.R. 5940 by a vote of 407-6; the Senate did
not act on S. 3274. In January 2009, H.R. 554 (111th Congress), the National Nanotechnology
Initiative Amendments Act of 2009, was introduced in the 111th Congress. The act contained
essentially the same provisions as H.R. 5940. In February 2009, the House passed the bill by
voice vote under a suspension of the rules. The bill was referred to the Senate Committee on
Commerce, Science, and Transportation; no further action was taken. On May 7, 2010, the House
Committee on Science and Technology reported the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of
2010 (H.R. 5116, 111th Congress) which included, as Title I, Subtitle A, of the National
Nanotechnology Initiative Amendments Act of 2010. This title was removed prior to enactment.
No comprehensive reauthorization bill has been introduced in the 112th Congress.
Proponents of the NNI assert that nanotechnology is one of the most important emerging and
enabling technologies and that U.S. competitiveness, technological leadership, national security,
and societal interests require an aggressive approach to its development and commercialization.
Critics of the NNI voice concerns that reflect disparate underlying beliefs. Some critics assert that
the government is not doing enough to move technology from the laboratory into the
marketplace. Others argue that the magnitude of the public investment may skew what should be
market-based decisions in research, development, and commercialization. Still other critics say
that the inherent risks of nanotechnology are not being addressed in a timely or effective manner.
Congressional Research Service
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
Contents
Introduction...................................................................................................................................... 1
Overview.......................................................................................................................................... 2
National Nanotechnology Initiative................................................................................................. 7
Vision and Goals........................................................................................................................ 7
History ....................................................................................................................................... 8
Legislative Approach................................................................................................................. 8
21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act of 2003 ............................. 9
Reauthorization Efforts ..................................................................................................... 10
Structure .................................................................................................................................. 11
Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology (NSET) Subcommittee ...................... 11
National Nanotechnology Coordination Office................................................................. 13
Funding.................................................................................................................................... 14
Agency Funding ................................................................................................................ 14
Program Component Area Funding................................................................................... 17
Centers, Networks, and User Facilities ................................................................................... 22
NNI Assessments by PCAST, NRC: Selected Issues, Findings, and Recommendations ............. 23
NNI Program Management ..................................................................................................... 25
Funding.................................................................................................................................... 27
U.S. Technological and Industrial Leadership......................................................................... 27
Technology Commercialization............................................................................................... 28
Standards ................................................................................................................................. 30
Economic Impact Metrics and Data Collection....................................................................... 31
Nanotechnology Workforce Education and Training .............................................................. 32
Environmental, Health, and Safety-Related Issues.................................................................. 33
Societal Implications ............................................................................................................... 36
Selected NNI Reports .................................................................................................................... 38
The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Leading to a
Revolution in Technology and Industry, Supplement to the President’s FY2013
Budget ............................................................................................................................ 38
Environmental, Health, and Safety Research Strategy...................................................... 38
The National Nanotechnology Initiative Strategic Plan (2011) ........................................ 39
Selected Nanotechnology Legislation in the 111th and 112th Congresses ...................................... 40
S. 1662—Nanotechnology Regulatory Science Act of 2011................................................... 40
H.R. 2749—Nanotechnology Advancement and New Opportunities Act............................... 40
H.R. 2359—Safe Cosmetics Act of 2011 ................................................................................ 41
S. 493—SBIR/STTR Reauthorization Act of 2011................................................................. 42
Title I, Subtitle A, H.R. 5116 (111th Congress)—National Nanotechnology Initiative
Amendments Act of 2010..................................................................................................... 42
H.R. 554 (111th Congress)—National Nanotechnology Initiative Amendments Act of
2009...................................................................................................................................... 42
S. 1482 (111th Congress)—National Nanotechnology Amendments Act of 2009................... 44
S. 596 (111th Congress)—Nanotechnology Innovation and Prize Competition Act of
2009...................................................................................................................................... 46
H.R. 820 (111th Congress)—Nanotechnology Advancement and New
Opportunities Act ................................................................................................................. 47
Congressional Research Service
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
H.R. 2647 (111th Congress)—National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year
2010...................................................................................................................................... 47
S. 3117 (111th Congress)—Promote Nanotechnology in Schools Act..................................... 47
H.R. 4502 (111th Congress)—Nanotechnology Education Act ............................................... 47
S. 2942 (111th Congress)—Nanotechnology Safety Act of 2010 ............................................ 48
H.R. 5786 (111th Congress)—Safe Cosmetics Act of 2010..................................................... 48
Concluding Observations............................................................................................................... 48
Figures
Figure 1. Organizations With a Role in the National Nanotechnology Initiative and Their
Relationships .............................................................................................................................. 14
Tables
Table 1. NNI Funding, by Agency: FY2001-FY2012 and FY2013 Request................................. 16
Table 2. NNI Funding, by Program Component Area, FY2006-FY2012 and FY2013
Request ....................................................................................................................................... 21
Appendixes
Appendix A. Selected Reports on the National Nanotechnology Initiative................................... 50
Appendix B. List of NNI and Nanotechnology-Related Acronyms .............................................. 55
Contacts
Author Contact Information........................................................................................................... 56
Congressional Research Service
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
Introduction
Nanotechnology has been an issue of interest to Congress for a number of years, coming into
focus in 2000 with the launch of the U.S. National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) by President
Clinton in his FY2001 budget request to Congress. From FY2001 through FY2012, Congress
appropriated approximately $15.6 billion for nanotechnology research and development (R&D).
President Obama has proposed $1.8 billion in NNI funding for FY2013. The NNI’s efforts have
been directed at advancing understanding and control of matter at the nanoscale,1 where the
physical, chemical, and biological properties of materials differ in fundamental and useful ways
from the properties of individual atoms or
Nanotechnology: A Description
bulk matter.2
The term “nanotechnology” is often used as an all-
encompassing term for nanoscale science, engineering, and
The development and application of
technology. Nanotechnology is the understanding and
nanotechnology—more fully explained
control of matter at dimensions of roughly 1 to 100
nanometers, the size-scale between individual atoms and
below—across a wide array of products and
bulk materials, where unique phenomena enable novel
industries holds the potential for significant
applications. A nanometer is one-billionth of a meter, or
economic and societal benefits. To capture
about the width of 10 hydrogen atoms arranged side-by-
these benefits, the United States will have to
side in a line. Nanotechnology involves imaging, measuring,
modeling, and manipulating matter at this size-scale.
effectively address a variety of technical and
policy challenges that stand as potential
At the nanoscale, the physical, chemical, and biological
barriers to commercialization, including
properties of materials can differ in fundamental and useful
ways from the properties of individual atoms and molecules
environmental, health, and safety (EHS)
or bulk matter. Nanotechnology R&D is directed toward
concerns and their implications for
understanding and creating improved materials, devices, and
workplace, environmental, food, and drug
systems that exploit these new properties.
regulations; development of standards,
Physicist Richard Feynman’s remarks at the 1959 annual
reference materials, and consistent
meeting of the American Physical Society are often cited as
nomenclature; development of new
the first articulation of and vision for nanotechnology.
measurement methods and tools; effective
Though he did not use the term nanotechnology in this
speech, he spoke of controlling matter at the nanoscale and
technology transfer to the private sector;
creating atomic-level machines, positing some of the
protection of intellectual property;
applications that doing so might enable.
availability, affordability, and patience of
Source: The National Nanotechnology Initiative Strategic Plan, 2004,
investment capital; ethical, legal, and
Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology Subcommittee,
societal concerns; public understanding,
National Science and Technology Council, Executive Office of the
support, and acceptance; and development
President, December 2004.
of a world-class scientific and technical
nanotechnology workforce.
This report provides an overview of nanotechnology, the National Nanotechnology Initiative,
possible reauthorization of the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act of
2003 (P.L. 108-153), and appropriations issues.
1 In the context of the NNI and nanotechnology, the nanoscale refers to a dimension of 1 to 100 nanometers (see box on
this page).
2 While extensive R&D has been, and continues to be, conducted to understand and harness the properties of individual
atoms, this is not the domain of nanotechnology.
Congressional Research Service
1
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
Overview
The economic and societal promise of nanotechnology has led to involvement and investments by
governments and companies around the world. In 2000, the United States became the first nation
to establish a formal, national initiative to advance nanoscale science, engineering, and
technology—the National Nanotechnology Initiative. Since then, the United States has emerged
as a global leader in nanotechnology. However, the competition for global leadership is
intensifying as foreign investments in nanoscale science, engineering, and technology increase.
Other nations have followed the U.S. lead and established their own national nanotechnology
programs, each with varying degrees of investment, foci, and support for industrial applications
and commercialization. Today, almost every nation that supports research and development
(R&D) has a national-level nanotechnology program.
In 2011, Lux Research, an emerging technologies consulting firm, estimated total (public and
private) global nanotechnology funding for 2010 to be approximately $17.8 billion with corporate
R&D ($9.6 billion) accounting for a majority of funding for the first time.3 Cientifica, a privately
held nanotechnology business analysis and consulting firm, estimated global public investments
in nanotechnology in 2010 to be approximately $10 billion per year, with cumulative global
public investments through 2011 reaching approximately $67.5 billion. Cientifica also concluded
that the United States has fallen behind both Russia and China in nanotechnology R&D funding
on a purchasing power parity (PPP) basis (which takes into account the price of goods and
services in each nation), but still leads the world in real dollar terms (adjusted on a currency
exchange rate basis).4
Global investments in nanotechnology already have begun to yield economic benefits as products
incorporating nanotechnology enter the marketplace. These products are estimated to have
produced $200 billion in revenues in 2008, including $80 billion in the United States.5 By tapping
the unique properties that emerge at the nanoscale, proponents maintain that nanotechnology
holds the potential for products that could transform existing industries and create new ones,
clean and protect the environment, extend and improve the quality of our lives, and strengthen
national security. Most nanotechnology products currently on the market—such as faster
computer processors, higher density memory devices, lighter-weight auto parts, stain-resistant
clothing, antibiotic bandages, cosmetics, and clear sunscreen—are evolutionary in nature,
offering incremental improvements in characteristics such as performance, aesthetics, cost, size,
and weight.
Evolutionary nanotechnology products, however, represent only a small fraction of what many
see as the substantial longer-term economic and societal promise of nanotechnology. One
estimate projects nanotechnology product revenues will reach $3.1 trillion by 2015,6 while
3 Working Party on Nanotechnology, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, OECD /NNI
International Symposium on Assessing the Economic Impact of Nanotechnology, Background Paper 2: Finance and
Investor Models in Nanotechnology, March 16, 2012, p. 4.
4 Cientifica, Global Funding of Nanotechnologies and Its Impact, July 2011, http://cientifica.eu/blog/wp-content/
uploads/downloads/2011/07/Global-Nanotechnology-Funding-Report-2011.pdf.
5 Mihail C. Roco, Chad A. Mirkin, and Mark C. Hersam, “The Long View of Nanotechnology Development: The NNI
at Ten Years,” in Nanotechnology Research Directions for Societal Needs in 2020: Retrospective and Outlook
(Springer, 2011), p. 4.
6 Lux Research, “Overhyped Technology Starts to Reach Potential,” press release, July 22, 2008,
(continued...)
Congressional Research Service
2
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
another estimate projects revenues will reach $2.95 trillion by 2015, of which almost half will
come from semiconductors.7, 8
Many nanotechnology advocates—including business executives, scientists, engineers, medical
professionals, and venture capitalists—assert that in the longer term, nanotechnology, especially
in combination with information technology, biotechnology, and the cognitive sciences, may
deliver revolutionary advances, including:
• new prevention, detection, and treatment technologies that could reduce
substantially death and suffering from cancer and other deadly illnesses;9
• new organs to replace damaged or diseased ones;10
• contact lenses, skin patches, and glucose-sensing tattoos that monitor diabetics’
blood sugar levels and warn when too high or low;11
• clothing that protects against toxins and pathogens;12
• clean, inexpensive, renewable power through energy creation, storage, and
transmission technologies;13
• inexpensive, portable water purification systems that provide universal access to
safe water;14
• energy efficient, low-emission “green” manufacturing systems;15
• high-density memory systems capable of storing the entire Library of Congress
collection on a device the size of a sugar cube;16
• agricultural technologies that increase crop yield and improve nutritional value,
reducing global hunger and malnutrition;17
(...continued)
http://www.luxresearchinc.com/press/RELEASE_Nano-SMR_7_22_08.pdf.
7 Cientifica, Halfway to the Trillion Dollar Market: A Critical Review of the Diffusion of Nanotechnologies, 2007,
http://www.cientifica.eu/files/Whitepapers/A%20Reassessment%20of%20the%20Trillion%20WP.pdf.
8 While views vary on how to calculate nanotechnology’s contribution to these products, the consensus is that
nanotechnology is likely to have a significant economic impact and transformative effect on many industries.
9 National Cancer Institute website. http://nano.cancer.gov/resource_center/tech_backgrounder.asp
10 Ibid.
11 Aslan, Kadir; Lakowicz, Joseph R.; and Geddes, Chris D. “Nanogold plasmon resonance-based glucose sensing.
Wavelength-ratiometric resonance light scattering,” Analytical Chemistry, 2005, Vol. 77. National Institute of Diabetes
and Digestive and Kidney Disease, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, Strategic
Plan for Pediatric Urology,, February 2006.
12 Risbud, Aditi. “Fruit of the Nano Loom,” Technology Review, February 2006.
13 Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology (NSET) Subcommittee, National Science and Technology Council
(NSTC), Executive Office of the President (EOP), Nanoscience Research for Energy Needs, December 2004.
14 Risbud, Aditi. “Cheap Drinking Water from the Ocean,” Technology Review, June 2006.
15 Selko, Adrienne. “New Nanotechnology-Based Coatings Are Energy Efficient and Environmentally Sound,”
Industry Week, August 22, 2007. “Tomorrow’s Green Nanofactories,” Science Daily, July 11, 2007.
16 Interagency Working Group on Nanoscience, Engineering, and Technology, NSTC, EOP, National Nanotechnology
Initiative—Leading to the Next Industrial Revolution, http://www.ostp.gov/NSTC/html/iwgn/iwgn.fy01budsuppl/
nni.pdf.
17 U.S. Department of Agriculture, 21st Century Agriculture: A Critical Role for Science and Technology, June 2003;
(continued...)
Congressional Research Service
3
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
• self-repairing materials;18
• powerful, small, inexpensive sensors that can warn of minute levels of toxins and
pathogens in air, soil, or water;19 and
• decontaminated industrial sites through environmental remediation.20
While some applications of nanotechnology have proven market-ready, much fundamental
research remains ahead, including efforts to advance understanding of nanoscale phenomena;
characterize nanoscale materials; understand how to control and manipulate nanoscale particles;
develop instrumentation and measurement methods; and understand how nanoscale particles
interact with humans, animals, plants, and the environment. In addition, several federal
agencies—such as the Departments of Defense, Energy, and Homeland Security—see the
potential for nanotechnology to help address mission requirements. Historically, the federal
government has played a central role in funding these types of research and development
activities.
Though federal nanoscale science, engineering, and technology R&D had been underway for over
a decade, the NNI was first initiated as a Presidential technology initiative in 2000.21 The original
participating agencies were the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Department of Defense
(DOD), the Department of Energy (DOE), the Department of Commerce’s (DOC) National
Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA), and the Department of Health and Human Services’ National Institutes
of Health (NIH). In 2012, 26 agencies participate in the NNI, including 15 that have received
appropriations to conduct and/or fund nanotechnology R&D. Since its first year of funding in
FY2001, the NNI’s annual appropriations grew nearly four-fold to an estimated $1.7 billion in
FY2012. President Obama has requested $1.8 billion in NNI funding for FY2013.22
In 2003, Congress provided a statutory foundation for some of the activities of the NNI through
the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act of 2003 (P.L. 108-153). The act
established a National Nanotechnology Program (NNP) and provided authorizations for a subset
of the NNI agencies, namely the NSF, DOE, NASA, NIST, and Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA).23 The act, however, did not address the participation of several agencies that fund
(...continued)
and Nanoscale Science and Engineering for Agriculture and Food Systems: Draft Report of the National Planning
Workshop to the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture,
July 2003.
18 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, Nanotechnology in Space Exploration, August 2004, http://www.nano.gov/
nni_space_exploration_rpt.pdf.
19 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, Nanotechnology and the Environment, May 2003, http://www.nano.gov/
NNI_Nanotechnology_and_the_Environment.pdf.
20 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Proceedings of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Workshop on
Nanotechnology for Site Remediation, October 2005.
21 The White House, “National Nanotechnology Initiative: Leading to the Next Industrial Revolution,” press release,
January 21, 2000, http://clinton4.nara.gov/WH/New/html/20000121_4.html; and “Steering the technology that will
redefine life as we know it,” Industrial Biotechnology, Vol. 1, No. 3, Fall 2005, http://www.nsf.gov/crssprgm/nano/
reports/mcr_ind_biotech_interview.pdf.
22 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Supplement to the President’s FY2013
Budget, February 2012.
23 While many provisions of this act have no sunset provision, FY2008 was the last year of agency authorizations
included in the act.
Congressional Research Service
4
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
nanotechnology R&D under the NNI, including DOD, NIH, and the Department of Homeland
Security (DHS). Nevertheless, coordination of nanotechnology R&D activities across all NNI
funding agencies continues under the National Science and Technology Council’s (NSTC’s)
Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology (NSET) Subcommittee.24 According to the
NSET Subcommittee’s 2004 NNI Strategic Plan, “For continuity and to capture this broader
participation, the coordinated federal activities as a whole will continue to be referred to as the
National Nanotechnology Initiative.” Accordingly, the functions and activities established under
the act are incorporated into the executive branch’s implementation of the NNI.
The thrust of the NNI has primarily been the development of fundamental scientific knowledge
through basic research. Investments at mission agencies, such as DOD, have supported
nanotechnology applications development for which they are a primary customer. Other
investments have supported infrastructural technologies. For example, NIST has contributed to
developing tools and standards that enable measurement and control of matter at the nanoscale,
thereby supporting the conduct of R&D and the ability to manufacture nanoscale materials and
products. As understanding of nanotechnology has matured, the NNI has worked with a variety of
industry organizations to facilitate the movement of research results from the laboratory bench to
the marketplace in fields as disparate as semiconductors, chemicals, energy, concrete, and forest
products.
The NNI agencies also have begun to address research needs and regulatory issues related to
environmental, health, and safety, as well as issues such as public understanding and workforce
education and training. The NNI agencies actively engage in a variety of international fora, such
as the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the International
Standards Organization (ISO), to cooperatively address nanotechnology issues related to EHS,
metrology25 and standards, nomenclature, and nanoscale materials characterization.
Maintaining U.S. leadership poses a variety of technical, economic, and policy challenges,
including:
• safeguarding the environment and ensuring human health and safety;
• creating the standards, reference materials, nomenclature, methods, and tools for
metrology to enable the manufacturing of nanoscale materials and products;
• developing a world-class scientific and technical nanotechnology workforce;
• translating research results into products, including effective technology transfer
to the private sector;
• understanding public perceptions and attitudes and fostering public
understanding;
• addressing ethical, legal, and societal implications;
• protecting intellectual property;
24 Prior to P.L. 108-153, the Bob Stump Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2003 (P.L. 107-314) required DOD
to “provide for interagency cooperation and collaboration on nanoscale research and development.” The NSET
Subcommittee is a subcommittee of the NSTC Committee on Technology.
25 Metrology is the science of measurement, including the equipment and processes used to produce a measurement.
Congressional Research Service
5
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
• securing investment capital for early-stage research, development, and
commercialization; and
• fostering and facilitating international cooperation and coordination.
Proponents of the NNI assert that nanotechnology is one of the most important emerging and
enabling technologies26 and that U.S. competitiveness, technological leadership, national security,
and societal interests require an aggressive approach to the development and commercialization
of nanotechnology. Critics of the NNI hold a variety of competing views, asserting that
government is not doing enough, is doing too much, or is moving too quickly.
Some in industry have criticized the NNI for being overly focused on basic research and not
being aggressive enough in moving NNI-funded R&D out of government and university
laboratories and into industry. Others in industry have criticized the federal government for not
providing mechanisms to help advance nanotechnology R&D to the point where it becomes
economically viable for venture capitalists, corporations, and other investors to create products
and bring them to market. Some refer to this gap as the “valley of death.”27 Still others in industry
have criticized the NNI for not adequately supporting the development of metrology, standards,
equipment, and processes necessary to manufacture nanotechnology materials, products, and
systems at a commercial scale.
Conversely, supporters of industry-driven market investments contend that extensive government
support for nanotechnology may supplant the judgment of the marketplace by picking “winners
and losers” in technological development. For example, the size and directions of the NNI
investments may encourage industry to follow the government’s lead rather than independently
selecting R&D directions itself or, alternatively, may result in the promotion of a less effective
technology path over a more effective one. These supporters also assert that federal government
funding of scientific research is often wasteful, driven by political considerations and not
scientific merit.28
Some non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are critical of nanotechnology for its potential
adverse impacts on human health and safety and on the environment. They assert that the
government is pushing ahead too quickly in developing nanotechnology and encouraging its
commercialization and use without adequately investing in research focused on understanding
and mitigating negative EHS implications.29 They argue that the very characteristics that make
nanotechnology promising also present significant potential risks to human health and safety and
the environment. Some of these critics argue for application of the “precautionary principle,”
26 The Department of Commerce has characterized emerging and enabling technologies as those that “offer a wide
breadth of potential application and form an important technical basis for future commercial applications.” (ATP Rule,
15 C.F.R. Part 295).
27 The term “valley of death” is used by business executives, economists, and venture capitalists to describe the
development gap that often exists between a laboratory discovery and the market’s willingness to invest to advance the
discovery to a final commercial product. This gap occurs due to a variety of issues, such as technical risk, market
uncertainty, and likelihood of obtaining an adequate return on investment.
28 Crews, Clyde Wayne, Jr., “Washington’s Big Little Pork Barrel: Nanotechnology,” Cato Institute website, May 29,
2003.
29 Testimony of Andrew Maynard, Chief Science Advisor, Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies, Woodrow Wilson
International Center for Scholars, “Research on Environmental and Safety Impacts of Nanotechnology: Current Status
of Planning and Implementation under the National Nanotechnology Initiative,” hearing, Subcommittee on Research
and Science Education, House Committee on Science and Technology, October 31, 2007.
Congressional Research Service
6
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
which holds that regulatory action may be required to control potentially hazardous substances
even before a causal link has been established by scientific evidence.30 At least one NGO has
called for a moratorium on nanotechnology R&D and new commercial products incorporating
synthetic nanoparticles.31
National Nanotechnology Initiative
The National Nanotechnology Initiative is an interagency program that coordinates federal
nanoscale science, engineering, and technology R&D activities and related efforts among
participating agencies.
Vision and Goals
The National Science and Technology Council has stated the following vision for the NNI:
The vision of the NNI is a future in which the ability to understand and control matter at the
nanoscale leads to a revolution in technology and industry that benefits society. The NNI
expedites the discovery, development, and deployment of nanoscale science, engineering,
and technology to serve the public good, through a program of coordinated research and
development aligned with the missions of the participating agencies.32
To achieve its vision, the NNI has established four goals:
• advance a world-class R&D program;
• foster the transfer of new technologies into products for commercial and public
benefit;
• develop and sustain educational resources, a skilled workforce, and the
supporting infrastructure and tools to advance nanotechnology; and
• support responsible development of nanotechnology.33
30 “NGOs urge precautionary principle in use of nanomaterials,” EurActiv.com, June 14, 2007.
http://www.euractiv.com/en/environment/ngos-urge-precautionary-principle-use-nanomaterials/article-164619 Sass,
Jennifer. “Nanotechnology and the Precautionary Principle,” presentation, Natural Resources Defense Council, 2006.
http://docs.nrdc.org/health/hea_06121402a.pdf The precautionary principle has been used in other countries on some
issues. For example, the Biosafety Protocol to the 1992 Convention on Biological Diversity incorporates provisions
applying the precautionary principle to the safe handling, transfer, and trade of genetically modified organisms. For
further information, see CRS Report RL30594, Biosafety Protocol for Genetically Modified Organisms: Overview, by
Alejandro E. Segarra and Susan R. Fletcher.
31 ETC Group, “No Small Matter II: The Case for a Global Moratorium—Size Matters!,” Occasional Paper Series,
April 2003, http://www.etcgroup.org/upload/publication/pdf_file/165.
32 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative Strategic Plan, February 2011,
http://www.nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/2011_strategic_plan.pdf.
33 Ibid.
Congressional Research Service
7
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
History
Attempts to coordinate federal nanoscale R&D began in November 1996, as staff members from
several agencies met regularly to discuss their plans and programs in nanoscale science and
technology. This group continued informally until September 1998, when it was designated as the
Interagency Working Group on Nanotechnology (IWGN) under the NSTC. In August 1999,
IWGN completed its first draft of a plan for an initiative in nanoscale science and technology,
which was subsequently approved by the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and
Technology (PCAST) and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP).34
In his 2001 budget submission to Congress, then-President Clinton raised nanotechnology-related
research to the level of a federal initiative, officially referring to it as the National
Nanotechnology Initiative.35
Legislative Approach
Congress has played a central role in the National Nanotechnology Initiative, providing
appropriations for the conduct of nanoscale science, engineering, and technology research;
establishing programs; and creating a legislative foundation for the activities of the NNI.
Congressional funding for the NNI is provided through appropriations to each of the NNI-
participating agencies. The NNI has no centralized funding. The overall NNI budget is calculated
by aggregating the nanotechnology budgets for each of the federal agencies that conduct or
provide funding for nanoscale R&D.
In FY2001, the first year of NNI funding, Congress provided $464 million to eight agencies for
nanoscale R&D.36 The NNI has continued to receive support from both Congress and the White
House. Both the number of agencies participating in the NNI and the size of the federal
investment have grown. Currently 26 agencies participate in the NNI, 15 of which have received
appropriated funds for nanotechnology R&D.37 Total NNI funding in FY2012 is approximately
$1.7 billion,. The original six agencies identified at the launch of the NNI38 still account for the
vast majority of NNI funding (96.1% in FY2012).
34 National Nanotechnology Initiative website, http://www.nano.gov/html/about/history.html.
35 The White House, “National Nanotechnology Initiative: Leading to the Next Industrial Revolution,” press release,
January 21, 2000. http://clinton4.nara.gov/WH/New/html/20000121_4.html; and National Nanotechnology Initiative
website, http://www.nano.gov/html/about/history.html.
36 In its January 21, 2001 press release, “National Nanotechnology Initiative: Leading to the Next Industrial
Revolution,” announcing the establishment of the NNI, the White House identified only six participating agencies—
NSF, DOD, DOE, NIST, NASA, and NIH. Subsequently, EPA and DOJ reported nanotechnology R&D funding in
FY2001, bringing the total number of agencies funding nanotechnology R&D in FY2001 to eight.
37 NNI participants include agencies that either conduct or provide funding for nanotechnology R&D, as well as
agencies with missions that may affect the development, commercialization, and use of nanotechnology. For example,
in the latter case, the Food and Drug Administration may regulate (or not regulate) nanotechnology products, the U.S.
Patent and Trademark Office’s (USPTO) treatment of nanotechnology-related patents may affect the value of the
underlying intellectual property, and the execution of the missions of the Departments of Education and Labor could
affect the preparedness of the U.S. workforce for emerging nanotechnology jobs. Some nanotechnology R&D agencies
may also have non-R&D missions related to nanotechnology. For example, EPA conducts and funds R&D but also has
a regulatory mission that could affect nanotechnology research, development, production, use, and/or disposal.
38 The original six agencies identified at the launch of the NNI were the Department of Defense, Department of Energy,
(continued...)
Congressional Research Service
8
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act of 2003
Congress codified and further defined some of the NNI’s activities in the 21st Century
Nanotechnology Research and Development Act of 2003 which was passed by Congress in
November 2003, and signed into law (P.L. 108-153) by President Bush on December 3, 2003.39
The legislation received strong bipartisan support in both the House of Representatives, which
passed the bill on a recorded vote of 405-19, and in the Senate, which passed the bill by
unanimous consent.
Though this act is often referred to as the enabling legislation for the National Nanotechnology
Initiative, the act actually establishes a National Nanotechnology Program (NNP). The act
provides authorizations for five NNI agencies—the National Science Foundation, Department of
Energy, NASA, National Institute of Standards and Technology, and Environmental Protection
Agency—but not for the Department of Defense, National Institutes of Health, Department of
Homeland Security,40 or other NNI research agencies that collectively accounted for 46% of NNI
funding in FY2003.
The act created the NNP for the purposes of establishing the goals, priorities, and metrics for
evaluation of federal nanotechnology research, development, and other activities; investing in
federal R&D programs in nanotechnology and related sciences to achieve those goals; and
providing for interagency coordination of federal nanotechnology research, development, and
other activities undertaken pursuant to the NNP.
Key provisions of the act include:
• authorizing appropriations for the nanotechnology-related activities of the NSF,
DOE, NASA, NIST, and EPA for fiscal years 2005 through 2008, totaling $3.679
billion for the four year period;
• establishing a National Nanotechnology Coordination Office, with a director and
full time staff to provide administrative support to the NSTC;
• establishing a National Nanotechnology Advisory Panel (NNAP) to advise the
President and the NSTC on matters relating to the NNP;
• establishing a triennial review of the NNP by the National Research Council of
the National Academy of Sciences;
(...continued)
National Institute of Standards and Technology (Department of Commerce), National Science Foundation, National
Aeronautics and Space Administration, and National Institutes of Health (DHHS). The White House, “National
Nanotechnology Initiative: Leading to the Next Industrial Revolution,” press release, January 21, 2000.
http://clinton4.nara.gov/WH/New/html/20000121_4.html; and National Nanotechnology Initiative website.
http://www.nano.gov/html/about/history.html.
39 U.S. Congress. 2003. 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act. P.L. 108-153. 15 U.S.C. 7501.
108 Cong., December 3.
40 FY2003 funding attributed to DHS for the purpose of this calculation is based on nanotechnology R&D
appropriations received by the Department of Transportation’s Transportation Security Administration (TSA). TSA
was transferred to DHS in the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-296) which was enacted after the start of
FY2003.
Congressional Research Service
9
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
• directing the NSTC to oversee the planning, management, and coordination of
the program, including the development of a triennial strategic plan;
• directing the Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and
Technology to establish a program to conduct basic research on issues related to
the development and manufacture of nanotechnology, and to use the
Manufacturing Extension Partnership program to ensure results reach small- and
medium-sized manufacturing companies;
• directing the Secretary of Commerce to use the National Technical Information
Service to establish a clearinghouse of information related to commercialization
of nanotechnology research;
• directing the Secretary of Energy to establish a program to support consortia to
conduct interdisciplinary nanotechnology R&D designed to integrate newly
developed nanotechnology and microfluidic tools with systems biology and
molecular imaging;
• directing the Secretary of Energy to carry out projects to develop, plan, construct,
acquire, operate, or support special equipment, instrumentation, or facilities for
investigators conducting nanotechnology R&D; and
• directing the establishment of two centers, on a merit-reviewed and competitive
basis: (1) the American Nanotechnology Preparedness Center, to conduct,
coordinate, collect, and disseminate studies on the societal, ethical,
environmental, educational, legal, and workforce implications of
nanotechnology; and to identify anticipated issues related to the responsible
research, development, and application of nanotechnology, as well as provide
recommendations for preventing or addressing such issues; and (2) the Center for
Nanomaterials Manufacturing, to encourage, conduct, coordinate, commission,
collect, and disseminate research on new manufacturing technologies for
materials, devices, and systems with new combinations of characteristics, such
as, but not limited to, strength, toughness, density, conductivity, flame resistance,
and membrane separation characteristics; and to develop mechanisms to transfer
such manufacturing technologies to U.S. industries.
While the act establishes a National Nanotechnology Program, the executive branch continues its
broader effort under the NNI framework and name. According to the NNI’s 2004 Strategic Plan:
Many of the activities outlined in the Act were already in progress as part of the NNI.
Moreover, the ongoing management of the initiative involves considerable input from
Federal agencies that are not named specifically in the Act.... For continuity, and to capture
this broader participation, the coordinated Federal activities as a whole will continue to be
referred to as the National Nanotechnology Initiative.41
Reauthorization Efforts
The 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act provided a legislative
foundation for some of the activities of the NNI, authorized agency funding levels through
41 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative Strategic Plan, December 2004,
http://www.nano.gov/NNI_Strategic_Plan_2004.pdf.
Congressional Research Service
10
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
FY2008, and sought to address challenges associated with the development and
commercialization of nanotechnology. While many provisions of this act have no sunset
provision, FY2008 was the last year of agency authorizations included in the act.
Legislation to amend and reauthorize the act was introduced in the House in both the 110th
Congress and 111th Congress:
• H.R. 5940 (110th Congress) and S. 3274 (110th Congress) were both titled the
National Nanotechnology Initiative Amendments Act of 2008. The House passed
H.R. 5940 by a vote of 407-6; the Senate did not act on S. 3274.
• H.R. 554 (111th Congress), the National Nanotechnology Initiative Amendments
Act of 2009, contained essentially the same provisions as H.R. 5940 (110th
Congress). In February 2009, the House passed the bill by voice vote under a
suspension of the rules. The Senate did not act on H.R. 554.
• S. 1482 (111th Congress), the National Nanotechnology Initiative Amendments
Act of 2009, was introduced in the Senate and referred to the Committee on
Commerce, Science, and Transportation. No further action was taken.
• H.R. 820 (111th Congress), the Nanotechnology Advancement and New
Opportunities Act, also would have amended P.L. 108-153. The provisions of
H.R. 820 covered a variety of jurisdictions, thus the bill was assigned to multiple
House committees. No further action was taken.
• On May 7, 2010, the House Committee on Science and Technology reported the
America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010 (H.R. 5116, 111th Congress)
which included, as Title I, Subtitle A, the “National Nanotechnology Initiative
Amendments Act of 2010.” Provisions of this subtitle were nearly identical to the
provisions of H.R. 554 (111th Congress). This title was removed from the bill
prior to its enactment.
Although H.R. 2749, the Nanotechnology Advancement and New Opportunities Act, would
amend the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act, no comprehensive
reauthorization legislation has been introduced in the 112th Congress. For additional information,
see “Selected Nanotechnology Legislation in the 111th and 112th Congress.”
Structure
Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology (NSET) Subcommittee
The NNI is coordinated within the White House through the NSTC, the Cabinet-level council by
which the President coordinates science, space, and technology policies across the federal
government. Operationally, NNI coordination is accomplished through the Nanoscale Science,
Engineering, and Technology Subcommittee of the NSTC’s Committee on Technology (CT). The
NSET Subcommittee also has an informal reporting relationship to the NSTC’s Committee on
Science (CS). The NSET Subcommittee is led by an agency co-chair, currently from DOD, and
an OSTP co-chair. The NSET Subcommittee is comprised of representatives from 26 federal
Congressional Research Service
11
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
entities (including 15 that have funded, over the course of the NNI, nanotechnology R&D), OSTP
and the Office of Management and Budget.42
The NSET Subcommittee has established several working groups, each taking on efforts in key
subject areas.43 Among them:
National Environmental and Health Implications (NEHI)
The National Environmental and Health Implications (NEHI) working group was chartered to
provide for exchange of information among agencies that support research and those responsible
for regulations and guidelines related to nanotechnology products; to facilitate identification,
prioritization, and implementation of research and other activities required for the responsible
research, development, utilization, and oversight of nanotechnology; and to promote
communication of information related to research on environmental and health implications of
nanotechnology to other government agencies and non-government parties. To this end, the NEHI
working group seeks to identify and prioritize EHS research needs related to nanotechnology.
Sixteen NNI agencies (as well as OSTP and OMB) participate in the NEHI working group,
including agencies that fund safety-related nanotechnology research and/or have regulatory
authorities to guide the safe use of nanomaterials.
Nanomanufacturing, Industry Liaison, and Innovation(NILI)
The Nanomanufacturing, Industry Liaison, and Innovation (NILI) working group was chartered
to enhance collaboration and information sharing between U.S. industry and government on
nanotechnology-related activities to advance and accelerate the creation of new products and
manufacturing processes derived from discovery at the nanoscale. It also facilitates federal,
regional, state, and local nanotechnology R&D and commercialization activities. In addition, the
NILI working group is to create innovative methods for transferring federally funded technology
to industry. The NILI working group has facilitated collaborations between the NNI and the
semiconductor/electronics industry, chemical industry, forest products industry, and the Industrial
Research Institute.44
42 The agencies that participate in the NSET Subcommittee comprise the NNI. NSET Subcommittee members include
Forest Service, USDA; National Institute of Food and Agriculture, USDA; Agricultural Research Service, USDA;
Bureau of Industry and Security, DOC; Consumer Product Safety Commission; DOD; Department of Education; DOE;
DHS; Department of Justice; Department of Labor; Department of State; Department of Transportation; Department of
the Treasury; Director of National Intelligence; EPA; Food and Drug Administration, HHS; International Trade
Commission; NASA; NIH, Department of Health and Human Services (HHS); NIOSH, Center for Disease Control,
HHS; NIST, DOC; NSF; Nuclear Regulatory Commission; U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior; and
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, DOC. The Department of Commerce’s Technology Administration was a
participating agency in the NNI until its elimination in August 2007 under the America COMPETES Act (P.L. 110-69).
43 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Leading to
a Revolution in Technology and Industry-Supplement to the President’s FY2008 Budget, July 2007,
http://www.nano.gov/NNI_08Budget.pdf.
44 The Industrial Research Institute is an association of companies and federally funded laboratories with the mission of
improving R&D capabilities through the development and dissemination of best practices.
Congressional Research Service
12
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
Global Issues in Nanotechnology (GIN)
The Global Issues in Nanotechnology (GIN) working group was chartered to monitor foreign
nanotechnology programs and development; broaden international collaboration on
nanotechnology R&D, including safeguarding the environment and human health; and promote
U.S. commercial and trade interests in nanotechnology. The NEHI working group works with the
GIN working group to coordinate the U.S. position and participation in international activities
related to EHS implications of nanotechnology. The GIN working group facilitates international
collaboration on pre-competitive and non-competitive aspects of nanotechnology, and
international engagement on trade, commercialization and regulatory issues. Fourteen NNI
agencies participate in the GIN working group, as well as OSTP, OMB, and the Office of the U.S.
Trade Representative (USTR).
Nanotechnology Public Engagement and Communications (NPEC)
The Nanotechnology Public Engagement and Communications (NPEC) working group was
established to is “to encourage, coordinate, and support NNI member agencies and interagency
efforts toward educating and engaging the public, policy makers, and stakeholder groups
regarding nanotechnology, its applications and implications, and the work of the NNI.”45
National Nanotechnology Coordination Office
The National Nanotechnology Coordination Office (NNCO) provides administrative and
technical support to the NSET Subcommittee. Initially established in 2001 through a
memorandum of understanding among the NNI participating agencies, the NNCO was authorized
by the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act of 2003 (P.L. 108-153). The
NNCO was charged under the act with providing technical and administrative support to the
NSTC and NNAP; serving as the point of contact for information on federal nanotechnology
activities for the exchange of technical and programmatic information among stakeholders;
conducting public outreach; and promoting access to and early application of NNP technologies,
innovation, and expertise.
In addition, the NNCO serves as a liaison to academia, industry, professional societies, foreign
organizations, and others facilitating the exchange of technical and programmatic information.
The NNCO also coordinates preparation and publication of NNI interagency planning, budget,
and assessment documents, and maintains the NNI website, http://www.nano.gov.
The act authorizes the work of the NNCO to be funded by contributions from NSET
Subcommittee member agencies. According to the NNCO, funding is provided through a
memorandum of understanding signed by eight NNI agencies. In principle, each agency
contributes to the NNCO budget in proportion to its share of the President’s total nanotechnology
budget request for the signatory agencies. However, two of the signatories, EPA and DOT, had
sufficiently small enough nanotechnology budgets in the early years of the NNI that they were
not expected to contribute. EPA now contributes to funding the NNCO. Total NNCO funding
from the agencies in FY2012 was approximately $3 million.
45 NNI website, http://www.nano.gov/npec.
Congressional Research Service
13
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
Figure 1. Organizations With a Role in the National Nanotechnology Initiative
and Their Relationships
Source: Reproduced from The National Nanotechnology Strategic Plan, Nanoscale, Science, Engineering, and
Technology Subcommittee, National Science and Technology Council, The White House, February 2011.
Note: Executive Order 13539 designates the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology
(PCAST) as the National Nanotechnology Advisory Panel (NNAP), http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2010-04-27/
pdf/2010-9796.pdf.
Funding
The NNI supports fundamental and applied research on nanotechnology by funding research,
creating multidisciplinary centers of excellence, and developing key research infrastructure. It
also supports activities aimed at addressing the societal implications of nanotechnology, including
ethical, legal, human and environmental health, and workforce issues.
This section provides information on NNI funding from two perspectives: organizationally by
agency and functionally by program component area.
Agency Funding
The NNI budget is an aggregation of the nanotechnology components of the individual budgets of
NNI-participating agencies. The NNI budget is not a single, centralized source of funds that is
allocated to individual agencies. In fact, agency nanotechnology budgets are developed internally
Congressional Research Service
14
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
as part of each agency’s overall budget development process. These budgets are subjected to
review, revision, and approval by the Office of Management and Budget and become part of the
President’s annual budget submission to Congress. The NNI budget is then calculated by
aggregating the nanotechnology components of the appropriations provided by Congress to each
federal agency.
For FY2012, NNI R&D funding totals an estimated $1.697 billion, a $150.4 million (-8.1%)
decrease from FY2011. The overall reduction was driven primarily by cuts in the R&D budgets of
DOD (-$64.1 million, 15.1%), NSF (-$59.1 million, 12.2%), and DOE (-$30.8 million, -8.9%).
The chronology of NNI funding by agency is detailed in Table 1.
President Obama requested $1.767 billion in funding for the NNI in FY2013, an increase of $70.1
million (4.1%). The FY2013 NNI budget request would support a broad range of programs
among 16 agencies. Five agencies account for 96% of NNI funding in FY2012:46
• NSF (25.1%), which supports fundamental nanotechnology research across
science and engineering disciplines;
• DOD (21.3%), whose investments in nanotechnology are aimed at addressing the
department’s national security mission;
• DOE (18.6%), which supports nanotechnology research providing a basis for
new and improved energy efficiency, production, storage, and transmission
technologies;
• NIH (25.4%), which emphasizes nanotechnology-based biomedical advances
occurring at the intersection of biology and the physical sciences; and
• NIST (5.6%), which focuses on research in instrumentation, measurement,
standards, characterization, and nanomanufacturing.
Other agencies investing in mission-related nanotechnology R&D are: NASA; EPA; the National
Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), Forest Service, and Agricultural Research Service
(ARS) at the Department of Agriculture (USDA); the National Institute of Occupational Safety
and Health (NIOSH) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) at the Department of Health and
Human Services (HHS); DHS; Department of Justice (DOJ); Department of Transportation’s
(DOT) Federal Highway Administration (FHWA); and the Consumer Product Safety Commission
(CPSC).
46 Based on FY2010 actual funding levels.
Congressional Research Service
15
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
Table 1. NNI Funding, by Agency: FY2001-FY2012 and FY2013 Request
(in millions of current dollars)
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
ARRA
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
(P.L.
FY2010
FY2011
FY2012
FY2013
Agency
Actual
Actual
Actual
Actual
Actual
Actual
Actual
Actual
Actual
111-5)a
Actual
Actual
Estimate
Request
Department
of
Energy
88 89 134 202 208 231 236 245 332.6 293.2 373.8 346.2 315.4 442.5
National
Science
Foundation
150 204 221 256 335 360 389 409 408.6 101.2 428.7 485.1 426.0 434.9
National Institutes of Health (HHS)
40
59
78
106
165
192
215
305
342.8
73.4
456.8
408.6
409.6
408.7
Department of Defenseb
125 224 220 291 352 424 450 460 459.0
439.6 425.3 361.2 289.4
Nat’l Inst. of Standards and Tech. (DOC)
33
77
64
77
79
78
88
86
93.4
43.4
114.7
95.9
95.4
102.1
NASA
22 35 36 47 45 50 20 17 13.7
19.7 17.0 23.0 22.0
Environmental
Protection
Agency
5 6 5 5 7 5 8 12 11.6
17.7
17.4 17.5 19.3
Food and Drug Administration (HHS)
6.5
7.3
9.9
11.8
11.1
Nat’l Inst. for Occupational Safety (HHS)
3
4
7
7
6.7
8.5
10.0
10.0
10.0
Nat’l Inst. of Food and Agriculture (USDA)c
1 2 3 4 4 6 9.9
13.2
10.0 10.0 10.0
Department of Homeland Security
2
1
1
1
2
2
3
9.1
21.9
9.0
7.0
6.0
Forest Service (USDA)
2
3
5
5.4
7.1
10.0
5.0
5.0
Agricultural
Research
Service
(USDA)
2.0 2.0
Federal Highway Administration (DOT)
1
1
1
0.9
3.2
1.0
1.0
2.0
Consumer
Product
Safety
Commission
0.2 0.5
1.8 2.0 2.0
Department
of
Justice
1 1 1 2 2
<1 2 0 1.2
0.2
TOTALd
464 697 760 989
1,200
1,351
1,425
1,554 1,701.6 511.3 1,912.8
1,847.3 1,696.9 1767.0
Source: NNI website, http://www.nano.gov; NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Leading to a Revolution in
Technology and Industry, Supplement to the President’s FY2013 Budget, February 2012.
a. Funding figures for nanotechnology-related R&D under the ARRA are preliminary estimates.
b. According to NSTC, the DOD budgets shown above include congressionally directed funding of approximately $76 million in FY2006, $63 million in FY2007, $117
mil ion in FY2009, and $75 million in FY2010. According to NSTC, the 2008 DOD estimate “includes many earmarks that are outside the NNI plan.”
c. Formerly, the USDA Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES).
d. Totals may differ from the sum of the components due to rounding.
CRS-16
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
Program Component Area Funding
The 21st Century Nanotechnology R&D Act of 2003 called for the NSET Subcommittee to
develop categories of investment called Program Component Areas (PCA) to provide a means by
which Congress and the executive branch can be informed of and direct the relative investments
in these areas. The PCAs are categories of investments that cut across the needs and interests of
individual agencies and contribute to the achievement of one or more of the NNI’s goals. The
2004 NNI strategic plan identified seven PCAs. The 2007 NNI strategic plan split the seventh
PCA, Societal Dimensions, into two PCAs: Environment, Health, and Safety; and Education and
Societal Dimensions. A description of the seven initial PCAs and their current funding is provided
below,47 as well as a description of the two derivative PCAs.48 The chronology of NNI funding by
PCA is detailed in Table 2.
In the following analysis of funding for each of the PCAs, FY2013 request levels are compared to
FY2012 estimated levels.
Fundamental Phenomena and Processes
Fundamental Phenomena and Processes includes investments in the discovery and development
of fundamental knowledge pertaining to the new phenomena in the physical, biological, and
engineering sciences that occur at the nanoscale, as well as in understanding and articulation of
scientific and engineering principles related to nanoscale structures, processes, and mechanisms.
Under the President’s FY2013 request, funding for Fundamental Phenomena and Processes would
decrease to $498.2 million (down $11.9 million, 2.3% from the FY2012 estimated level) due
largely to a decrease in DOD funding of $24.0 million (-14.8%) which was partially offset by an
increase in DOE funding of $13.4 million (12.9%).49
Nanomaterials
Nanomaterials includes research investments to discover novel nanoscale and nanostructured
materials. This PCA also attempts to understand the properties of nanomaterials, and supports
R&D to enable the design and synthesis, in a controlled manner, of nanoscale materials with
targeted properties.
Under the President’s FY2013 request, funding for Nanomaterials would rise to $368.4 million
(up $57.7 million, 18.6% from the FY2012 estimated level), due almost entirely to an increase in
DOE funding in this PCA (up $63.9 million, 77.6%). This increase would be offset, in part, by a
proposed decrease in DOD funding (down $9.5 million, -22.6%).50
47 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative Strategic Plan, December 2004,
http://www.nano.gov/NNI_Strategic_Plan_2004.pdf.
48 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative Strategic Plan, December 2007,
http://www.nano.gov/NNI_Strategic_Plan_2007.pdf.
49 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Leading to
a Revolution in Technology and Industry, Supplement to the President’s FY2013 Budget, February 2012.
50 Ibid.
Congressional Research Service
17
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
Nanoscale Devices and Systems
Nanoscale Devices and Systems includes R&D investments that apply nanoscale science and
engineering principles to create novel devices and systems or to improve existing ones. It also
includes the use of nanoscale or nanostructured materials to achieve improved performance or
new functionality. To meet this definition, the enabling science and technology must be at the
nanoscale, but the systems and devices are not restricted to that size.
Under the President’s FY2013 request, funding for Nanoscale Devices and Systems would remain
essentially unchanged at $412.9 million (down $0.5 million, -0.1% from the FY2012 estimated
level). An increase in DOE funding to $39.7 million (up $30.6 million, 335.4%) in this PCA
would be offset by a decrease in DOD funding (down $31.2 million, -24.6).51
Instrumentation Research, Metrology, and Standards
The Instrumentation Research, Metrology, and Standards PCA includes R&D investments for
development of tools needed to advance nanotechnology research and commercialization.
Instrumentation for characterization, measurement, synthesis, and design of nanotechnology
materials, structures, devices, and systems is funded through this PCA. R&D and other activities
related to development of standards, including standards for nomenclature, materials,
characterization, testing, and manufacture, are also in this PCA.
Under the President’s FY2013 request, funding for Instrumentation Research, Metrology, and
Standards would fall to $69.2 million (down $6.0 million, -8.0% from the FY2012 estimated
level). Funding among agencies performing work in this PCA would remain largely unchanged.52
Nanomanufacturing
Nanomanufacturing R&D supports the development of scalable, reliable, cost-effective
manufacturing of nanoscale materials, structures, devices, and systems. It also includes R&D and
integration of ultra-miniaturized top-down processes and complex bottom-up processes.53
Under the President’s FY2013 request, funding for Nanomanufacturing would rise to $88.9
million (up $15.4 million, 21.0% from the FY2012 estimated actual level) due to increases in
funding for DOE (up $9.0 million), DOC (up $6.5 million, 70.2%), and NSF (up $5.0 million,
10.5%). These increases would be partially offset by a decrease in DOD funding (down $5.0
million, -45.5%).54
51 Ibid.
52 Ibid.
53 Top-down processes are those that achieve design features by removing material from a larger block of material;
bottom-up processes begin with smaller building blocks (atoms or molecules) and achieve design features by putting
them together, possibly using self-assembly or nanoscale additive manufacturing.
54 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Leading to
a Revolution in Technology and Industry, Supplement to the President’s FY2013 Budget, February 2012.
Congressional Research Service
18
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
Major Research Facilities and Instrumentation Acquisition
This PCA includes investments in the establishment and ongoing operations of user facilities and
networks, the acquisition of major instrumentation, and other activities related to infrastructure
for the conduct of nanoscale science, engineering, and technology R&D.
Under the President’s FY2013 request, funding for Major Research Facilities and Instrumentation
Acquisition would increase to $189.9 million (up $12.8 million, 7.2% over the FY2012 estimated
level), due entirely to an increase of $12.8 million (12.2%) in DOE funding for this PCA.55
Societal Dimensions
The Societal Dimensions PCA includes investments in research and other activities that address
the broad implications of nanotechnology to society. This includes assessing benefits and risks
through research directed at environmental, health, and safety impacts of nanotechnology
development; risk assessment of such impacts; education-related activities, such as development
of materials for schools, undergraduate programs, technical training, and public outreach; and
research directed at identifying and quantifying the broad implications of nanotechnology for
society, including social, economic, workforce, educational, ethical, and legal implications.
Under the 2007 NNI Strategic Plan, the Societal Dimensions PCA was divided into two separate
PCAs: Environment, Health, and Safety, and Education and Societal Dimensions. PCA reporting
now uses an eight PCA taxonomy. NSTC retroactively reported FY2007 Societal Dimensions
PCA spending in the new PCAs.56 The NSET Subcommittee characterizes the new PCAs as
follows:57
Environment, Health, and Safety
This PCA addresses research primarily directed at understanding the environmental, health, and
safety impacts of nanotechnology development and corresponding risk assessment, risk
management, and methods for risk mitigation.
Under the President’s FY2013 request, funding for Environment, Health, and Safety would rise to
$105.4 million (up $2.7 million, 2.6% from the FY2012 estimated level) due to increases in NIST
and EPA funding.58
Education and Societal Dimensions
This PCA addresses education-related activities such as development of materials for schools,
undergraduate programs, technical training, and public communication, including outreach and
engagement. Such activities include research directed at identifying and quantifying the broad
55 Ibid.
56 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative: FY2010 Budget & Highlights, May
2009, http://www.nano.gov/NNI_2010_budget_supplement.pdf.
57 Ibid.
58 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Leading to
a Revolution in Technology and Industry, Supplement to the President’s FY2013 Budget, February 2012.
Congressional Research Service
19
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
implications of nanotechnology society, including social, economic, workforce, educational,
ethical, and legal implications.
Under the President’s FY2013 request, funding for Education and Societal Dimensions would be
identical to the FY2012 estimated level of $34.2 million with no changes in any agency funding.59
59 Ibid.
Congressional Research Service
20
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
Table 2. NNI Funding, by Program Component Area, FY2006-FY2012 and FY2013 Request
(in millions of current dollars)
Change, FY2013 Req.
vs. 2012 Est.
ARRA
FY2006
FY2007
FY2008
FY2009
(P.L.
FY2010
FY2011
FY2012
FY2013
PCA
Actual
Actual
Actual
Actual
111-5)
Actual
Actual
Estimate
Request
Dollars
Percent
Fundamental Phenomena and Processes
455.9
480.6
478.5
479.2
130.6
490.5
567.9
510.1
498.2
-11.9
-2.3%
Nanomaterials
265.1 258.3 285.1 331.9 178.3 358.9 348.2 310.7 368.4 57.7
18.6%
Nanoscale Devices and Systems
319.6
344.7
372.7
435.2
68.0
542.1
454.7
413.4
412.9
-0.5
-0.1%
Instrumentation Research, Metrology, and
Standards
51.0 52.5 69.0 90.8 12.4 89.4 73.2 75.3 69.2 -6.0
-8.0%
Nanomanufacturing
33.8 48.1 47.1 75.6 28.5 84.8 92.0 73.5 88.9 15.4
21.0%
Major Research Facilities and
Instrumentation
Acquisition
152.4 152.4 196.4 177.6 72.5 190.2 185.8 177.0 189.9 12.8
7.2%
Societal
Dimensions
73.5
- Environment, Health, and Safety
48.3
67.9
74.5
12.0
90.2
88.0
102.7
105.4
2.7
2.6%
- Education & Societal Dimensions
39.2
37.7
36.8
9.0
66.9
37.5
34.2
34.2
0
0%
TOTALa
1,351.2 1,424.1 1,554.4 1,701.5 511.3 1,912.8 1,847.3 1,696.9 1,767.0
70.2
4.1%
Sources: NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Leading to a Revolution in Technology and Industry, Supplement to
the President’s FY2008 Budget, July 2007. NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, National Nanotechnology Initiative: FY2009 Budget & Highlights, February 2008. NSET
Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Leading to a Revolution in Technology and Industry, Supplement to the President’s
FY2010 Budget, May 2009. NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Leading to a Revolution in Technology and
Industry, Supplement to the President’s FY2011 Budget, The White House, February 2010. NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and
Development Leading to a Revolution in Technology and Industry, Supplement to the President’s FY2012 Budget, February 2011. NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National
Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Leading to a Revolution in Technology and Industry, Supplement to the President’s FY2013 Budget, February 2012.
a. Totals may differ from the sum of the components due to rounding.
CRS-21
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
Centers, Networks, and User Facilities
A key facet of the National Nanotechnology Initiative has been the development of an extensive
infrastructure of interdisciplinary research and education centers, networks, and user facilities.
The centers and user facilities are located at universities and federal laboratories across the
country.
Centers and networks provide opportunities and support for multidisciplinary research among
investigators from a variety of disciplines and research sectors, including academia, industry, and
government laboratories. Such multidisciplinary research not only can lead to advances in
knowledge, but also may foster relationships that further the development of basic research
results into devices and other applications.
Many agencies support such centers. Examples of federal and federally supported centers include:
• The National Science Foundation has established university-based centers
focused exclusively on nanotechnology, including 19 Nanoscale Science and
Engineering Centers (NSECs), 13 of which continue funding in FY2013; one
Engineering Research Center; one Science and Technology Center; four
Materials Research Science and Engineering Centers fully dedicated to
nanotechnology and 19 others with one or more interdisciplinary research
group(s) focused on nanoscale science and engineering topics; two Nanoscale
Science and Engineering Education Centers; and five Nanoscale Science and
Engineering Networks.60 NSF anticipates the establishment of three Nanosystems
Engineering Research Centers (NERCs) in 2012, becoming fully operational in
2013.61
• The NIH has established more than 28 centers, including eight university-based
Nanomedicine Development Centers; a Nanotechnology Characterization
Laboratory, established by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), in partnership
with NIST and the Food and Drug Administration; nine university-based Centers
of Cancer Nanotechnology Excellence, established under the NCI’s Alliance for
Nanotechnology in Cancer initiative; four university-based centers, established
by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute under its Program of Excellence
in Nanotechnology; and six university-based NCI Cancer Nanotechnology
Training Centers.62
• The Department of Defense supports three university-based nanotechnology
research centers, as well as the Institute for Nanoscience at the Naval Research
Laboratory.
• The Department of Energy has established five Nanoscale Science Research
Centers (NSRCs) co-located with its national labs.
• NIST has established a Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology (CNST).
60 NNI website, Centers and Networks, http://www.nano.gov/centers-networks.
61 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Leading to
a Revolution in Technology and Industry, Supplement to the President’s FY2013 Budget, February 2012.
62 NNI website, Centers and Networks, http://www.nano.gov/centers-networks.
Congressional Research Service
22
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
• NIOSH has established a Nanotechnology Research Center to conduct research
into the application of nanoparticles and nanomaterials in occupational safety and
health and the implications of nanoparticles and nanomaterials for work-related
injury and illness.
Many of the centers are designated as user facilities and are available to researchers not located at
the center. User facilities are designed to allow outside researchers to take advantage of facilities,
equipment, tools, and expertise. These shared resources provide researchers the opportunity to
conduct research, characterize materials, and test products using equipment and facilities that
their individual companies, universities, or organizations could not afford to acquire, support, or
maintain. Conditions for user access vary by facility and agency. In general, users are not charged
for pre-competitive, non-proprietary work leading to publication, and are charged on a cost-
recovery basis for proprietary work. In some cases, the user facilities are located at federal
government laboratories (e.g., the Department of Energy’s NSRCs, and the NIST CNST); other
user facilities are located at universities and supported with federal funds (e.g., NSF’s university-
based centers in the National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network (NNIN)).
As mentioned earlier, the 21st Century Nanotechnology R&D Act of 2003 directed the
establishment of two centers, the American Nanotechnology Preparedness Center and the Center
for Nanomaterials Manufacturing. According to the NSET Subcommittee, the requirement to
establish the American Nanotechnology Preparedness Center was met by NSF’s establishment of
the Network for Nanotechnology in Society, comprised of centers at the University of California,
Santa Barbara (with the participation of Harvard University and the University of South Carolina)
and the University of Arizona.63 These centers were funded under NSF’s Nanoscale Science and
Engineering Center (NSEC) program and did not include participation by any other NSET
Subcommittee agency.64 The NSET Subcommittee states that the requirement for establishing the
Center for Nanomaterials Manufacturing was met by NSF’s establishment of a National
Nanomanufacturing Network (NNN) comprised of four NSECs. The Center for Integrated
Hierarchical Manufacturing at the University of Massachusetts Amherst is the main node of the
NNN.65 The NNN NSECs were established by NSF in collaboration with DOD and NIST, but
exclusively with NSF funds.66
NNI Assessments by PCAST, NRC:
Selected Issues, Findings, and Recommendations
The 21st Century Nanotechnology R&D Act of 2003 (P.L. 108-153) requires periodic external
reviews of the National Nanotechnology Program (NNP) by the National Research Council
(NRC) of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS),67 and by the National Nanotechnology
Advisory Panel (NNAP), directing the President to “establish or designate a National
63 Private telephone communication between CRS and NSTC staff, January 31, 2008.
64 Private e-mail communication between CRS and NSF staff, January 31, 2008.
65 Private telephone communication between CRS and NSTC staff, January 31, 2008.
66 Private e-mail communication between CRS and NSF staff, January 31, 2008.
67 The NAS and NRC are part of the National Academies which also includes the National Academy of Engineering
and the Institute of Medicine.
Congressional Research Service
23
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
Nanotechnology Advisory Panel.” Both President Obama68 and President Bush69 issued executive
orders designating the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology to serve as the
NNAP. References to PCAST in this section refer to the council operating in its capacity as the
NNAP.
Under the act, the NNAP is to report to the President and Congress on its assessments of the NNP
at least once every two years on a variety of factors, including: trends and developments in
nanotechnology science and engineering; progress made in implementing the NNP; the need to
revise the program; the balance among the components of the program, including funding levels
for the program component areas; whether the program component areas, priorities, and technical
goals developed by the NSTC are helping to maintain U.S. leadership in nanotechnology; the
management, coordination, implementation, and activities of the program; and whether societal,
ethical, legal, environmental, and workforce concerns are adequately being addressed.
In addition, the act directs the NNCO to enter into an arrangement with NRC to conduct a
triennial review of the program. Each review is to include an evaluation of the technical
accomplishments of the program, including a review of whether the program has achieved the
goals under the metrics established by the NSTC; a review of the program’s management and
coordination across agencies and disciplines; a review of the funding levels at each agency for the
program’s activities and the ability of each agency to achieve the program’s stated goals with that
funding; an evaluation of the program’s success in transferring technology to the private sector;
an evaluation of whether the program has been successful in fostering interdisciplinary research
and development; an evaluation of the extent to which the program has adequately considered
ethical, legal, environmental, and other appropriate societal concerns; recommendations for new
or revised program goals; recommendations for new research areas, partnerships, coordination
and management mechanisms, or programs to be established to achieve the program’s stated
goals; recommendations on policy, program, and budget changes with respect to nanotechnology
research and development activities; recommendations for improved metrics to evaluate the
success of the program in accomplishing its stated goals; a review of the performance of the
NNCO and its efforts to promote access to and early application of the technologies, innovations,
and expertise derived from program activities to agency missions and systems across the federal
government and to U.S. industry; an analysis of the relative position of the United States
compared to other nations with respect to nanotechnology R&D, including the identification of
any critical research areas where the United States should be the world leader to best achieve the
goals of the program; and an analysis of the current impact of nanotechnology on the U.S.
economy and recommendations for increasing its future impact.
The PCAST has produced four assessments of the NNI; the NRC has produced one:
• The National Nanotechnology Initiative at Five Years: Assessment and
Recommendations of the National Nanotechnology Advisory Panel,
NNAP/PCAST, May 2005 (herein referred to as “First Assessment”).
• A Matter of Size: Triennial Review of the National Nanotechnology Initiative,
NAS/NRC, 2006.
68 Executive Order 13539.
69 Executive Order 13349.
Congressional Research Service
24
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
• The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Second Assessment and
Recommendations of the National Nanotechnology Advisory Panel,
NNAP/PCAST, April 2008 (herein referred to as “Second Assessment”).
• Report to the President and Congress on the Third Assessment of the National
Nanotechnology Initiative, NNAP/PCAST, March 2010, (herein referred to as
“Third Assessment”).
• Report to the President and Congress on the Fourth Assessment of the National
Nanotechnology Initiative, NNAP/PCAST, April 2012 (herein referred to as
“Fourth Assessment”).
The NRC is currently engaged in its second assessment. Selected findings and recommendations
of these assessments, as well as NSET’s responses to PCAST’s Third Assessment
recommendations, are grouped by broad issue area and discussed below.
NNI Program Management
In its Third Assessment, PCAST praised the NNI for having “distinguished itself during its first
decade as a successful cooperative venture,” and further described the initiative as well-organized
and well-managed.70 Nevertheless in both its Third Assessment and Fourth Assessment, PCAST
offered a number of recommendations for improving NNI program management. In its Third
Assessment, PCAST stated that “the NNCO should broaden its impact and efficacy and improve
its ability to coordinate and develop NNI programs and policies.” In this regard, PCAST
recommended that OSTP undertake the following actions:
• Require each agency in the NNI to have senior representatives with decision-making
authority participate in coordination activities of the NNI.
• Strengthen the NNCO to enhance its ability to act as the coordinating entity for the NNI.
• Dedicate 0.3% of NNI funding to the NNCO to ensure the appropriate staffing and
budget to effectively develop, monitor and assess NNI programs.71
In its 2013 budget supplement, NSET Subcommittee characterized these program management
recommendations as actions “unlikely or not needed.” With respect to requiring the participation
of senior agency representatives with decision-making authority, the NSET Subcommittee replied
that member agencies make their own decisions with regard to representation. The NSET
Subcommittee also responded to PCAST’s recommendation that the NNCO’s coordination
function be strengthened and better funded. First, the NSET Subcommittee reasserted that it is the
NSET Subcommittee, not the NNCO, that serves as the coordinating entity for the NNI, and that
the NNCO serves to provide administrative support to the NSET Subcommittee. Second, the
NSET Subcommittee stated that it did not support providing the NNCO a fixed percentage of the
overall NNI investment, explaining that NNCO activities are based on programmatic needs as
proposed each year by the NNCO and vetted by the NSET Subcommittee’s Budget Steering
Group.
70 PCAST, EOP, Third Assessment, March 12, 2010.
71 Ibid. Two other PCAST program management recommendations related to metrics and appointment of individuals to
the NNCO to lead interagency EHS and standards development efforts are discussed elsewhere in this section.
Congressional Research Service
25
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
In its Fourth Assessment, PCAST lauded the NNI’s “significant progress” in addressing several
issues identified in the Third Assessment, but expressed concern about the lack of progress in
others, notably “significant and persistent hurdles to an optimal structure and management of the
initiative.” In particular, PCAST noted that despite the publication in 2011 of the National
Nanotechnology Initiative Strategic Plan,72
individual agency contributions lack the cohesion of an overarching framework, and there is
no clear connection between the goals and objectives of the NNI strategic plan with those of
individual agencies.73
While recognizing that some agencies do not have dedicated nanotechnology programs, but rather
decentralized nanotechnology activities across multiple organizational units, PCAST
recommended the development of implementation plans by each agency—in consultation with
external stakeholders—that discuss the alignment of agency activities with the objectives of the
NNI strategic plan.
PCAST renewed its recommendations that each NSET agency have senior representatives with
decision-making authority participate in coordination activities of the NNI, and that NSET
dedicate 0.3% of NNI funding to the NNCO to ensure the appropriate staffing and budget to
effectively develop, monitor, and assess NNI programs (raising NNCO funding from
approximately $3 million to $5 million).74
To expand and strengthen the role of the NNCO in the NNI, PCAST also recommended
appointing the NNCO director as co-chair of the NSET Subcommittee and allowing non-federal
experts to serve as NNCO director.75
PCAST further recommended creating a standing PCAST Nanotechnology Steering Committee
of experts from industry, academia, and civil society to provide more frequent and in-depth
guidance.76 This recommendation raises the question of whether the role envisioned for the
NNAP, as authorized by the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act, is
appropriately being served by PCAST or whether it might be better served by the establishment
of a separate, dedicated entity. In its assessment of the NNI, the NRC recommended that
the federal government [should] establish an independent advisory panel with specific
operational expertise in nanoscale science and engineering; management of research centers,
facilities, and partnerships; and interdisciplinary collaboration to facilitate cutting-edge
research on and effective and responsible development of nanotechnology.77
Coming after President Bush’s designation of PCAST to serve as the legislatively mandated
NNAP, this recommendation may suggest the need for a separate, NNI-only focused entity to
serve as the NNAP. Critics of the use of PCAST to serve as the NNAP maintain that the scope
and depth of expertise needed to provide effective guidance on the NNI requires an independent
72 NSTC Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, National Nanotechnology Initiative Strategic Plan, February 2011,
http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/2011_strategic_plan.pdf.
73 PCAST, EOP, Fourth Assessment, April 2012.
74 Ibid.
75 Ibid
76 Ibid.
77 NRC, A Matter of Size: Triennial Review of the National Nanotechnology Initiative, 2006.
Congressional Research Service
26
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
panel of people with nanotechnology—specific and interdisciplinary expertise and an undivided
focus. Supporters of using PCAST for this function assert that a single advisory panel provides an
integrated perspective, reduces unnecessary cost and management burdens, and allows for
expertise to be added to the panel or accessed through non-member technical advisory groups.
Funding
A key question for federal policymakers is how much funding should be provided for
nanotechnology R&D, and how should this funding be directed among program component areas
and cross-cutting activities. NNI funding has grown from $464 million in FY2001 to an estimated
$1.697 billion in FY2012, however regular appropriations for the NNI have fallen $216 million
(-11.3%) from their peak in FY2010 ($1.913 billion).
In its Third Assessment, PCAST recommended that the federal government increase funding for
the NNI to ensure that the United States retains its
leadership role in the development and commercialization of nanotechnology in the face of
mounting competition from countries that have responded to the example set by the NNI.78
PCAST cautioned that in undertaking these new investments the NNI should maintain or expand
the level of funding devoted to basic nanotechnology research.
Similarly, in its assessment of the NNI, the NRC recommended
the federal government [should] sustain investments in a manner that balances the pursuit of
shorter-term goals with support for longer-term R&D and that ensures a robust supporting
infrastructure, broadly defined. Supporting long-term research effectively will require
making new funds available that do not come at the expense of much-needed ongoing
investment in U.S. physical sciences and engineering research.79
U.S. Technological and Industrial Leadership
Given the economic, societal, and national security potential of nanotechnology, Congress
maintains ongoing interest in the competitive position of the United States in this emerging field.
In its Fourth Assessment, PCAST asserted that the NNI “remains a successful cooperative
venture” that has had a “catalytic and substantial impact” on the growth of the U.S.
nanotechnology industry, and concluded that
the United States is today, by a wide range of measures, the global leader in this exciting and
economically promising field of research and technological development.80
78 PCAST, EOP, Report to the President and Congress on the Third Assessment of the National Nanotechnology
Initiative, March 12, 2012, http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/microsites/ostp/pcast-nni-report.pdf.
79 NRC, A Matter of Size: Triennial Review of the National Nanotechnology Initiative, 2006, http://books.nap.edu/
catalog.php?record_id=11752.
80 PCAST, EOP, Report to the President and Congress on the Fourth Assessment of the National Nanotechnology
Initiative, April 2012, http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/microsites/ostp/
PCAST_2012_Nanotechnology_FINAL.pdf.
Congressional Research Service
27
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
PCAST attributed the U.S. leadership position in nanotechnology, in large part, to the NNI.
The assertion of U.S. leadership in nanotechnology echoes PCAST’s findings in its Third
Assessment. That assessment, however, noted that U.S. leadership was threatened by several
aggressive competitors:
The United States is clearly the world’s leader in nanotechnology R&D and
commercialization based on research funding, total number of papers in the most significant
scientific publications, patents filed and granted, private sector funding for new and existing
companies developing nanotechnologies, and sales of nanotechnology-based products.
However, foreign competitors, particularly China, South Korea, Germany, and Japan, are
making gains on many of these same metrics. China in particular has significantly increased
its share of nanotechnology research publications and patents and now supports
nanotechnology as a larger fraction of its total scientific research compared to the United
States....Though still the leader in nanotechnology R&D and commercialization, the United
States is losing ground to foreign competitors, particularly China, South Korea, Germany,
and Japan, on a number of key metrics of research output and commercial activity. 81
PCAST’s Fourth Assessment noted that “in addition to China, South Korea, and other early
movers, the Russian Nanotech Corporation (RUSNANO) is now also rising as a major player,
second only to the United States in its nanotechnology R&D spending.”82 PCAST cited data from
Lux Research indicating that RUSNANO had increased its funding by nearly 40% to $1.05
billion, and planned to increase funding to nearly $1.5 billion by 2015.
PCAST’s assessment of the U.S. leadership position is founded not on sales, growth, or market
share of commercial products—common measures of global competitiveness for established
products—but rather on metrics that may serve as early indicators of potential innovation, such as
the U.S. share of scientific publications and patents. The use of such metrics may not be
universally accepted as predictive of leadership position. Technological leadership—or even
leadership in innovation—does not ensure that the economic benefits from such leadership will
accrue to the United States. Companies may choose to manufacture products or conduct other
value-added activities outside the United States. If the assessment of national competitiveness is
expanded to include value-added activities and jobs generated or retained within the United
States, then the metrics for assessing leadership might change.
Technology Commercialization
Technology commercialization involves the movement of scientific and technological insights
into products and services. It is the process by which knowledge created by investments in R&D
is translated into economic benefits (e.g., strengthening existing firms and establishing new ones,
creating jobs, producing new products, reducing the cost of existing products and improving their
performance, delivering returns to investors) and societal benefits (e.g., offering new and
improved sources of renewable energy, reducing pollution and remediating environmental
damage, improving human heath).
81 PCAST, EOP, Third Assessment, March 12, 2010.
82 PCAST, EOP, Fourth Assessment, April 2012.
Congressional Research Service
28
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
In its Third Assessment, PCAST recommended that, to maintain the U.S. leadership position in
nanotechnology,
the NNI increase its emphasis on nanomanufacturing and commercial deployment of
nanotechnology-enabled products, and that the agencies within the NNI must interact and
cooperate more with one another to ease the translation of scientific discovery into
commercial activity.83
In this regard, PCAST made a number of recommendations. Among them:
• double federal funding for nanomanufacturing over five years;
• launch at least five government-industry-university partnerships modeled after
the Nanoelectronics Research Initiative;
• for each Nanotechnology Signature Initiative (NSI), develop milestones, promote
strong education components, and create public-private partnerships to leverage
the outcomes;
• fund at least five NSIs over the next two to three years—including ones in
priority areas such as homeland security, national defense, and human health—at
annual levels of $20 million to $40 million each;
• tap the Department of Commerce and the Small Business Administration for
advice on how the NNI can best ensure its programs create new jobs in the
United States, including mechanisms for coordinating with state efforts; and
• for DOE, DOD, NIST, NIH, NCI, and FDA to clarify the development pathway
and to make sustained investments to accelerate technology transfer to the
marketplace.84
In its 2013 budget supplement, NSET responded to PCAST’s commercialization-focused
recommendations stating that “key NNI agencies” were on track to double their
nanomanufacturing investments over five years, while maintaining their investments in
fundamental nanotechnology research. NSET also said that interagency task forces for the three
initial NSIs were developing coordination plans with milestones, that there was a likelihood that
two additional NSIs would be added within the next year, and that its NILI working group was
working in conjunction with the NNCO’s Industry and State liaison to produce a work plan that
includes job creation and outreach to states and industry. With respect to clarifying the
development pathway, NSET asserts that it is employing well-established mechanisms, such as
the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program and the Small Business Technology
Transfer (STTR) program, and are developing new programs to accelerate technology transfer
and to clarify regulatory pathways.85
In its Fourth Assessment, PCAST continued its emphasis on an enhanced focus on
commercialization efforts, and lauded the NNI’s response to commercialization-related
recommendations the council made in its previous assessment, specifically:
83 PCAST, EOP, Third Assessment, March 12, 2010.
84 Ibid.
85 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Supplement to the President’s 2013
Budget, February 2012.
Congressional Research Service
29
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
• development of an NNCO Industry and State Liaison position and expanded
efforts by the NNCO in supporting nanotechnology commercialization;
• the NILI working group’s development of an agenda focused on job creation and
state outreach, as well as mechanisms to incorporate industrial input in NNI
planning;
• DOE programs that include industrial partners to overcome technological barriers
to nanotechnology commercialization;
• NIST’s plans to start the Advanced Manufacturing Technology Consortia in
FY2013 to speed development and commercialization of new products and
services, including nanotechnology; and
• NIH’s creation of the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences to
accelerate translation of promising technologies and clinical studies.86
Nevertheless, the PCAST co-chairs also noted in their transmittal letter to President Obama that
additional work in a number of areas was still required to facilitate commercialization and U.S.
leadership in nanotechnology:
... additional efforts are needed in four areas: strategic planning, program management,
metrics for assessing impact, and increasing support for research on environmental, health,
and safety issues associated with nanotechnology. Continued lack of attention to these
concerns will make it harder for the U.S. to maintain its leadership role in the
commercialization of nanotechnology.87
Standards
Standards are likely to play a critical role in many aspects of nanotechnology R&D and
commercialization, among them the development of research tools, conduct of research,
reproducibility of experimental results, development and enforcement of regulations, materials
characterization, nanomanufacturing, and product testing and evaluation.
In its Second Assessment, PCAST found that
Progress across the breadth of NNI-supported R&D critically depends upon the development
and implementation of standards for nanomaterial identification, characterization, and risk
assessment.88
In its Third Assessment, PCAST re-asserted the importance of standards stating that “the
establishment of standards is essential to growth of most new technologies, and nanotechnology
is no exception,”89 and recommending that the NNCO serve as the coordinating agency for
86 PCAST, EOP, Fourth Assessment, April 2012.
87 Ibid.
88 PCAST, EOP, Second Assessment, April 2008.
89 PCAST, EOP, Third Assessment, March 12, 2010.
Congressional Research Service
30
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
collaborating with stakeholders on enabling programs such as metrology; standards including
size, shape and composition of nanomaterials, and databases of physical and chemical
properties of nanomaterials; and manufacturing safety. 90
In support of this role, PCAST also recommended that an individual be appointed to the NNCO
to lead interagency coordination of standards development efforts.91 In its 2013 budget
supplement, NSET responded that it had appointed then-NNCO Director Clayton Teague to serve
in this capacity.92
Economic Impact Metrics and Data Collection
In its Third Assessment, PCAST highlighted the need for economic impact metrics and data
collection, recommending the development of NNI economic impact metrics; making economic
impact an explicit metric in the second decade of the NNI; and lodging responsibility with a
statistical agency (such as the DOC’s Bureau of Economic Analysis) to estimate job creation and
the value of nanotechnology products and products incorporating nanotechnology components,
rather than relying on funding agencies for such estimates.93
In its 2013 budget supplement, NSET responded that the NNCO had engaged in discussions with
the Department of Commerce about economic metrics, provided support for a symposium on the
economic value of nanotechnology, and requested the NRC identify metrics to assess the success
of nanotechnology as part of the council’s triennial review of the NNI.94
In its 2006 assessment, the NRC also recommended a focus on development of metrics and a
greater role for the DOC in economic data collection and analysis:
[The NRC recommends] the NSET Subcommittee carry out or commission a study on the
feasibility of developing metrics to quantify the return to the U.S. economy from the federal
investment in nanotechnology R&D. The study should draw on the Department of
Commerce’s expertise in economic analysis and its existing ability to poll U.S. industry.
Among the activities for which metrics should be developed and relevant data collected are
technology transfer and commercial development of nanotechnology.95
Few efforts have been made within the federal government to understand the economic impacts
of the nation’s investments in the NNI. Identification and tracking of data that could serve as an
indicator of success in commercializing nanotechnology research or the effects on U.S. job
creation or retention has not been formalized. To the extent that federal assessments of the
economic contribution of and/or potential for nanotechnology products have occurred, they have
not been performed with analytical rigor. Although the Commerce Department retains its
economic analysis expertise, resident primarily in the Economics and Statistics Administration’s
90 Ibid.
91 Ibid.
92 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Supplement to the President’s 2013
Budget, February 2012.
93 PCAST, EOP, Third Assessment, March 12, 2010.
94 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Supplement to the President’s 2013
Budget, February 2012.
95 NRC, A Matter of Size: Triennial Review of the National Nanotechnology Initiative, 2006.
Congressional Research Service
31
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
Bureau of Economic Analysis, the department’s Technology Administration, which led
Commerce’s NNI activities and had government-wide responsibilities for technology transfer
activities, was eliminated in August 2007.96 Prior to its elimination, the Technology
Administration contracted for two studies that could contribute to addressing this NRC
recommendation: an analysis of barriers to nanotechnology commercialization performed by the
University of Illinois at Springfield, and an analysis of innovation metrics conducted by the
Alliance for Science and Technology Research in America (ASTRA). These reports are publicly
available at Commerce Department websites.97
Nanotechnology Workforce Education and Training
With nanotechnology advocates promising the creation of many new jobs—some have estimated
the number to be in the millions—as a result of global nanotechnology investments, some have
asserted that the country must prepare students for nanotechnology research, engineering, and
production jobs.98 Assessing which industries are likely to create such jobs, which skills will be
needed, and in what timeframe are key challenges. If workers with nanotechnology-specific skills
are needed and no workers are available domestically (e.g., U.S. citizens, resident aliens, or those
in the United States on work visas), potential employers may opt to establish or move operations
outside the United States to tap workers with those skills abroad. Conversely, if students are
trained for jobs that do not emerge or do not emerge in the same timeframe as students are
entering the job market, this investment may be lost. In addition, potential students may be
discouraged from pursuing future nanotechnology-related studies.
In its Third Assessment, PCAST found that the United States remained unchallenged in educating
nanotechnology researchers. According to PCAST, NSF supports the training and education of
about 10,000 students and teachers in nanoscale science and engineering, funds the development
of new curricula for nanotechnology education, and is expanding the outreach efforts of the
National Center for Nanotechnology Applications and Career Knowledge. However, PCAST also
noted that a large number of foreign students return to their home countries after completing their
education.
The United States still trains the majority of Ph.D. students in nanoscience and
nanotechnology, and though many of these students wish to remain in the United States after
completing their degree programs, the data show that over one-third of these students return
to their home countries and contribute to the development of nanotechnology R&D programs
throughout the world. 99
While acknowledging that the United States may gain some benefits from training
nanotechnology researchers that return to their home countries, PCAST recommended the federal
96 The Technology Administration was eliminated in the America COMPETES Act (P.L. 110-69).
97 College of Business Management, University of Illinois at Springfield, Barriers to Nanotechnology
Commercialization, September 2007, http://www.osec.doc.gov/Report-
Barriers%20to%20Nanotechnology%20Commercialization.pdf; and ASTRA, Innovation Vital Signs Project, July
2007. http://www.ntis.gov/ta_reports/Report-InnovationVitalSigns.pdf.
98 Phillip J. Bond, Under Secretary for Technology, U.S. Department of Commerce, remarks, “Nanotechnology:
Economic Opportunities, Societal and Ethical Challenges,” NanoCommerce 2003, December 9, 2003.
http://www.technology.gov/Speeches/PJB_031209.htm Sizing Nanotechnology’s Value Chain, Lux Research, October
2004.
99 PCAST, EOP, Third Assessment, March 12, 2010.
Congressional Research Service
32
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
government undertake efforts to retain scientific and engineering talent trained in the United
States
by developing a program to provide U.S. Permanent Resident Cards for foreign individuals
who receive an advanced degree in science or engineering at an accredited institution in the
United States and for whom proof of permanent employment in that scientific or engineering
discipline exists.100
PCAST also recommended that NNI agencies continue making investments in innovative and
effective education, and that the NNCO should consider commissioning a comprehensive
evaluation of the outcomes of the overall investment in NNI education.101
In its 2013 budget supplement, NSET responded to PCAST’s Third Assessment workforce
education and training recommendations stating that NNI agencies were contributing to the
development of nanotechnology curricula for students in grade school through postdoctoral
training, and that NSF is considering supporting an external study to evaluate the NNI’s
investment in education. In addition, while acknowledging the need to undertake efforts to retain
U.S. educated foreign scientific and engineering talent in the United States, NSET stated that it
did not endorse specific approaches at this time. 102
Close coordination among the Departments of Commerce, Education, and Labor might help to
align federal education and training efforts better with the labor market for nanotechnology
workers. In its 2006 assessment, the NRC recommended the NSET Subcommittee “create a
working group on education and the workforce that engages the Department of Education and
Department of Labor as active participants.”103 An NSET Subcommittee working group on
education and the workforce has not been established.
Environmental, Health, and Safety-Related Issues
Environmental, health, and safety issues related to nanotechnology research, development, use,
and disposal continue to be a focus of NNI assessments. Some analysts have described
nanotechnology as a two-edged sword. On the one hand, some are concerned that nanoscale
particles may enter and accumulate in vital organs, such as the lungs and brains, potentially
causing harm or death to humans and animals, and that the diffusion of nanoscale particles in the
environment might harm ecosystems. On the other hand, some analysts believe that
nanotechnology has the potential to deliver important EHS benefits such as reducing energy
consumption, pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions; remediating environmental damage;
curing, managing, or preventing diseases; and offering new safety-enhancing materials that are
stronger, self-repairing, and able to adapt to provide protection.
Stakeholders generally agree that concerns about potential detrimental effects of nanoscale
materials and devices—both real and perceived—must be addressed to protect and improve
human health, safety, and the environment; create public faith and confidence in the safety of
100 Ibid.
101 Ibid.
102 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Supplement to the President’s 2013
Budget, February 2012.
103 NRC, A Matter of Size: Triennial Review of the National Nanotechnology Initiative, 2006.
Congressional Research Service
33
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
nanotechnology products; enable accurate and efficient risk assessment, risk management, and
cost-benefit trade-offs; reduce EHS and related regulatory uncertainties that may impede
investment;104 foster innovation; and ensure that society can enjoy the widespread economic and
societal benefits that nanotechnology may offer.
PCAST’s Third Assessment found that:
In the absence of more detailed scientific evidence—and effective assessment and
communication of the evidence that does exist—the distinction between plausible and
implausible risks remains unclear. The resulting uncertainty threatens to undermine
confidence and trust among investors, businesses, and consumers, and could jeopardize the
success of nanotechnology. This is not a hypothetical threat. Consumer and advocacy groups
already have raised concerns over the use of engineered nanomaterials in products as diverse
as clothing, fuel additives, and sunscreens. Businesses have been hampered by regulatory
uncertainty. A number of industries have shied away from nanotechnology for fear of
consumer rejection in the face of speculative concerns.105
In its 2006 assessment, the National Research Council recommended expansion of funding for
EHS nanotechnology research. The NRC specifically noted the need for assessing the effects of
engineered nanomaterials on public health and the environment and recommended the
development of effective methods to estimate the exposure of humans, wildlife, and other
ecological receptors to source material; assess effects on human health and ecosystems of both
occupational and environmental exposure; and characterize, assess, and manage the risks
associated with exposure.106 While the NRC asserted the need for additional EHS research, it did
not quantify how much more was needed.
In its Third Assessment, PCAST credited the NNI with increasing funding for EHS-focused
research. Funding for EHS-related nanotechnology research across all agencies grew from $37.7
million in FY2006 to $90.2 million in FY2010. In FY2012, EHS funding is estimated to total
$102.7 million.
PCAST also indentified six potential EHS hurdles facing the NNI: leadership and accountability
in identifying and addressing cross-cutting issues and ensuring a sound, risk-based approach to
R&D and applications; more active engagement with stakeholders; connecting research to
decision-making; framing the EHS risk issue; development of a clear multi-stakeholder research
strategy; and targeted funding for EHS research.107 With respect to these hurdles, PCAST made
four EHS-related recommendations:
Risk Identification: The NSET Subcommittee’s NEHI working group should develop clear
principles to support the identification of plausible risks associated with the products of
nanotechnology.
Strategic Planning: The NSET Subcommittee’s NEHI working group should further
development and implement a cross-agency strategic plan that links EHS research activities
with knowledge gaps and decision-making needs within government and industry.
104 For more information on regulatory issues associated with nanotechnology, see CRS Report RL34332, Engineered
Nanoscale Materials and Derivative Products: Regulatory Challenges, by Linda-Jo Schierow.
105 PCAST, EOP, Third Assessment, March 12, 2010.
106 NRC, A Matter of Size: Triennial Review of the National Nanotechnology Initiative, 2006.
107 PCAST, EOP, Third Assessment, March 12, 2010.
Congressional Research Service
34
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
Organizational Changes: The NSET Subcommittee and OSTP should foster administrative
changes and communications mechanisms ... [by assigning] an individual to NNCO to
oversee interagency efforts than address nanotechnology EHS; [expanding] the NEHI charter
to enable the group to address cross-agency nanotechnology-related policy issues more
broadly; and [exploring] mechanisms that enable the NEHI working group to more
effectively receive input and advice from nongovernment experts in the field of emergent
risks.
Information Resources: The NSET Subcommittee’s NEHI working group should develop
information resources on cross-cutting nanotechnology EHS issues that are relevant to
businesses, health and safety professionals, researchers, and consumers.108
In its 2013 budget supplement, NSET responded to PCAST’s Third Assessment EHS
recommendations by noting its:
• release of NNI Environmental, Health, and Safety (EHS) Research Strategy,109
which it asserted provides clear principles to guide identification of plausible
risks;
• designation of a individual within the NNCO to lead interagency coordination
efforts in EHS research;
• NEHI working group’s establishment of a framework for taking comments from
stakeholders and providing information on crosscutting EHS issues; and
• NEHI working group’s coordination with the administration’s recently
established Emerging Technology Interagency Policy Committee.110
PCAST’s Fourth Assessment lauded the “significant progress” made by the NNI to address
potential EHS risks of nanotechnology, noting the rapid growth rate for EHS-focused research
funding compared to overall NNI funding; the implementation of PCAST’s earlier
recommendation to identify a central coordinator for EHS-research within the NNCO; and for
development and release of an EHS research strategy, articulating an approach that incorporates
the “evolving research needs and the strategic research plans of three relevant agencies.”111
PCAST noted that the NNI strategy aligned with the findings of a January 2012 NRC report, A
Research Strategy for Environmental, Health, and Safety Aspects of Engineered Nanomaterials,112
specifically with respect to
the importance of a life cycle approach to assessing risks, the need for more research on
human and environmental exposure to nanomaterials, better tools for measuring and tracking
108 Ibid.
109 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, NNI Environmental, Health, and Safety (EHS) Research Strategy, 2011,
http://www.nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/nni_2011_ehs_research_strategy.pdf.
110 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Supplement to the President’s 2013
Budget, February 2012.
111 PCAST, EOP, Fourth Assessment, April 2012.
112 NRC, Committee to Develop a Research Strategy for Environmental, Health, and Safety Aspects of Engineered
Nanomaterials, A Research Strategy for Environmental, Health, and Safety (EHS) Aspects of Engineered
Nanomaterials (ENMs), 2012, http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=13347.
Congressional Research Service
35
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
nanomaterials, and the need for cross-cutting informatics infrastructure for nanotechnology-
related EHS research.113
However, PCAST expressed concerns about “a lack of integration between nanotechnology-
related EHS research funded through the NNI and the kind of information policymakers need to
effectively manage potential risks from nanomaterials.”114 To address this concern, PCAST
recommended that OSTP and the NSET Subcommittee expand the charter of the NEHI working
group to enable the group to address cross-agency nanotechnology-related policy issues more
broadly, and that the NNI should ensure close integration of its efforts with those of the Emerging
Technologies Interagency Policy Coordination Committee (ETIPC).115 PCAST also
recommended additional funding for cross-cutting areas of EHS that promote knowledge transfer
such as informatics, partnerships, and instrumentation development.116
Some advocates for increased focus on nanotechnology-related EHS issues have proposed the
establishment of a separate agency or office devoted to nanotechnology EHS research, and/or to
set aside a particular percentage of NNI funding for EHS research In its Second Assessment,
PCAST found these proposals to be “misguided” and potentially counterproductive as such
approaches may direct resources away from research “on beneficial applications and on risk.”
The panel also concluded that nanotechnology does not raise ethical concerns unique from those
accompanying other technological advances.117
Societal Implications
The term “societal implications” in the context of the NNI refers to the effects, broadly speaking,
that advances in nanotechnology research and application may have on individuals, groups, and
society as a whole. With nanotechnology holding potential breakthroughs in areas such as
materials and manufacturing, medicine and healthcare, environment and energy, biotechnology
and agriculture, electronics and information technology, and national security,118 the societal
implications—including ethical, economic, and legal implications—may be both deep and
widespread.
Understanding the potential societal implications of nanotechnology is considered important to
federal efforts to maximize nanotechnology’s potential positive effects and minimize its potential
negative effects. Beginning with its first review of the NNI, PCAST stressed the importance of
research aimed at understanding the societal implications of nanotechnology and recommended
113 PCAST, EOP, Fourth Assessment, April 2012.
114 Ibid.
115 The Emerging Technologies Interagency Policy Coordination Committee was created jointly in 2010 by OSTP,
OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, and the Office of the United States Trade Representative. The
ETIPC members include assistant secretary-level representatives from about 20 Federal agencies.
116 PCAST, EOP, Fourth Assessment, April 2012.
117 PCAST, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Second Assessment and Recommendations of the National
Nanotechnology Advisory Panel, May 2005, http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/microsites/ostp/PCAST-
NNAP-NNI-Assessment-2008.pdf.
118 NSF, Societal Implications of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, March 2001, http://www.wtec.org/loyola/nano/
NSET.Societal.Implications/nanosi.pdf.
Congressional Research Service
36
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
the NNI actively work to inform the public about nanotechnology and to confront societal issues
in an open, straightforward, and science-based manner. 119
PCAST has continued to stress the importance of a strong NNI program in societal implications,
recommending in its Fourth Assessment:
The NSET Subcommittee should develop a clear expectation and strategy for programs in
the societal dimensions of nanotechnology. An effective program in societal implications
would have well-defined areas of focus, clearly articulated outcomes as well as plans for
assessing and evaluating those outcomes, and partnerships that leverage the value of its
activities. Ultimately, the inclusion of such programs in the NNI has the goal of streamlining
nanotechnology innovation and its positive impact on society, and the creation of new jobs,
opportunities and a robust economy.120
Some critics of the NNI hold deep reservations about the ethical, societal, economic, and legal
implications of nanotechnology. Some of these concerns are common to many technologies, such
as the allocation of risk and benefit during manufacturing. For example, a neighborhood located
near a production facility may bear risks associated with exposure to the byproducts (or products)
of nanoscale manufacturing, while gaining few of the benefits. Concerns about possible adverse
effects of nanoscale particles on human health and the environment resulting from their small
particle size and unique characteristics may result in increased attention to such costs and benefits
with respect to nanoscale material production. Currently, nanotechnology EHS risks are not well
understood and may be acute, pose no more risk than other manufacturing processes, or perhaps
even less.
Privacy rights are another issue associated with the products of nanotechnology. Nanotechnology
may enable the production of highly sensitive, inexpensive sensors that could be deployed
ubiquitously in commercial and public settings. While these sensors may allow beneficial
applications, such as check-out-free purchases from stores or the monitoring of the environment
for toxic substances, critics argue that they could also impinge on the privacy rights of individuals
if, for example, the sensors could detect chemicals related to the use of tobacco, alcohol, or illegal
substances without the permission of the individual. Such information might be later applied in
law enforcement, life insurance, health insurance, or employment decisions.121 Others express
concern that the economically disadvantaged and less educated—both individuals and nations—
might be unable or less able to take part in the benefits that nanotechnology products could
offer.122
119 PCAST, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative at Five Years: Assessment and Recommendations of the
National Nanotechnology Advisory Panel, May 2005, http://www.nano.gov/html/res/
FINAL_PCAST_NANO_REPORT.pdf.
120 PCAST, EOP, Fourth Assessment, April 2012.
121 Moore, Fiona M., “Implications of Nanotechnology Applications: Using Genetics as a Lesson,” Health Law Review,
Vol. 10, No. 3, 2002. http://www.law.ualberta.ca/centres/hli/pdfs/hlr/v10_3/10.3moorefrm.pdf.
122 Smith, Richard H., “Social, Ethical, and Legal Implications of Nanotechnology,” Societal Implications of
Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (The Netherlands:Kluwer Academic Publishers, 2001).
Congressional Research Service
37
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
Selected NNI Reports
The NNI’s coordinating body, the NSTC’s NSET Subcommittee, produces a variety of reports
that serve to inform Congress and other key stakeholders of the initiatives’ current activities,
investments, and priorities. This section presents summaries of some of these reports.
The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Leading
to a Revolution in Technology and Industry, Supplement to the President’s
FY2013 Budget123
Each year the NSET Subcommittee publishes a supplement to the President’s annual budget
request. This report meets the annual reporting requirement of the 21st Century Nanotechnology
Research and Development Act (P.L. 108-153, 15 USC §7501) as well as DOD reporting
requirements under 10 USC §2358. The FY2013 NNI budget supplement provides a summary of
NNI activities in FY2011 and FY2012. It also provides a detailed view of NNI funding in the
President’s FY2013 budget request, including a breakout of FY2011, FY2012, and proposed
FY2013 funding for each program component area. The report describes proposed changes in
agency R&D budgets, as well as in the balance of investments by PCA. Of particular note:
• President Obama has proposed an overall NNI budget for FY2013 of $1.767
billion, a $70.1 million (4.1%) increase from the FY2012 funding level.
However, the requested level is $145.8 million (-7.6%) less than the NNI’s peak
funding of $1.913 billion in FY2010.
• Funding for EHS R&D in FY2013 would rise to $105.4 million, a $2.7 million
(2.6%) increase over FY2012.
• Funding for nanomanufacturing R&D in FY2013 would rise to $88.9 million, a
$15.4 million (21.0%) increase over FY2012.
• Funding for nanomaterials R&D in FY2013 would rise to $368.4 million, a $57.7
million (18.6%) increase over FY2012.
• Funding for fundamental phenomena and processes research in FY2013 would
fall to $498.2 million, a decrease of $11.9 million (-2.3%) from FY2012.
Environmental, Health, and Safety Research Strategy124
The 2011 Environmental, Health, and Safety Research Strategy revises and replaces the 2008
strategy. The NSTC states that the strategy is “grounded in the principles of risk assessment and
product life cycle analyses.”125 Risk assessment provides a process for understanding the
magnitude of the potential exposure to humans and the environment and the magnitude of the
123 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Leading to
a Revolution in Technology and Industry, Supplement to the President’s FY2013 Budget, February 2012,
http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/nni_2013_budget_supplement.pdf.
124 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, Environmental, Health, and Safety Research Strategy, October 2011,
http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/nni_2011_ehs_research_strategy.pdf.
125 Ibid.
Congressional Research Service
38
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
potential hazard or effects presented by a nanomaterial, allowing risk-benefit comparisons among
nanomaterials, between a nanomaterial and non-nanomaterials, or for a single nanomaterial.
Performing such risk assessments at different stages of the life cycle of products (e.g.,
development, manufacture, commercialization, disposal, end-of-life), allowed for the
identification of critical risk assessment data needs. These needs were then translated into
nanotechnology-related EHS research needs, and organized into six categories: (1) Nanomaterial
Measurement Infrastructure, (2) Human Exposure Assessment, (3) Human Health, (4)
Environment, (5) Risk Assessment and Risk Management Methods, and (6) Informatics and
Modeling. For each category, the strategy provided an overview, specified a goal, and identified
the current research needs. The strategy also included a chapter on implementation, including
targeting and accelerating EHS research, linking EHS research needs and goals to the NNI
Strategic Plan, and disseminating EHS research needs and knowledge.
The National Nanotechnology Initiative Strategic Plan (2011)126
The 21st Century Nanotechnology R&D Act of 2003 (P.L. 108-153) requires the NSTC to develop
an NNI strategic plan every three years. This plan is to guide the program’s activities to meet the
goals, priorities, and anticipated outcomes of the participating agencies. In addition, the act
requires the triennial strategic plan to address how the program intends to move results out of the
laboratory and into application for the benefit of society, its plan for long-term funding for
interdisciplinary R&D, and the allocation of funding for interagency projects.
The 2011 National Nanotechnology Strategic Plan maintains the overall vision, four goals, and
eight program component areas of the 2007 NNI Strategic Plan.127 The 2011 plan highlights the
roles and interests of NNI participating agencies, establishes specific objectives for each of the
four NNI goals, and includes a chapter on future directions for the NNI. In particular, the report
highlights the Administration’s NNI “signature initiatives,” multi-agency efforts
intended to enable the rapid advancement of science and technology in the service of
national economic, security, and environmental goals by focusing resources on critical
challenges and R&D gaps.
These initiatives include Nanotechnology for Solar Energy Collections and Conversion,
Sustainable Nanomanufacturing—Creating the Industries of the Future, and Nanoelectronics for
2020 and Beyond. The report also emphasizes the importance of collaborative efforts,
highlighting the role of the Nanotechnology Characterization Laboratory (NCL), a partnership
between the National Cancer Institute, NIST, and FDA. The purpose of the NCL is to accelerate
the transition of basic nanoscale particles and devices into clinical use by providing the necessary
infrastructure and characterization services to nanomaterial developers.
The report also summarizes the stakeholder input it solicited in support of the development of the
strategic plan. In particular, stakeholders helped to identify promising areas of nanotechnology
research and proposed future nanotechnology signature initiatives; emphasized the importance of
education and training to prepare U.S. scientists, engineers, technicians, and patent examiners;
126 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Strategic Plan, February 2011,
http://www.nano.gov/nnistrategicplan211.pdf.
127 NSET Subcommittee, NSTC, EOP, The National Nanotechnology Strategic Plan, December 2007,
http://www.nano.gov/NNI_Strategic_Plan_2007.pdf.
Congressional Research Service
39
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
identified successful models for technology transfer; and recommended strategies for increasing
interagency collaboration.
Selected Nanotechnology Legislation in the 111th
and 112th Congresses
S. 1662—Nanotechnology Regulatory Science Act of 2011
S. 1662, the Nanotechnology Regulatory Science Act of 2011, was introduced on October 6,
2011, and referred to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. The bill
would amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) to require the Secretary of
Health and Human Services to establish within the Food and Drug Administration a program for
the scientific investigation of nanomaterials included or intended for inclusion in products
regulated under the FFDCA to address the potential toxicology of such materials; the effects of
such materials on biological systems; and the interaction of such materials with biological
systems.
H.R. 2749—Nanotechnology Advancement and New
Opportunities Act
H.R. 2749, the Nanotechnology Advancement and New Opportunities Act, was introduced on
August 1, 2011, and referred to four House committees: the Committee on Science and
Technology, the Committee on Energy and Commerce, the Committee on Ways and Means, and
the Committee on Homeland Security. The purpose of the bill is to ensure the development and
responsible stewardship of nanotechnology. The provisions of this bill are essentially identical to
those in H.R. 820 (111th Congress). The bill would:
• establish a $100 million Nanomanufacturing Investment Partnership at the
Department of Commerce to work with private investors to advance the
commercialization of nanomanufacturing technologies and to increase the
commercial application of federally supported research results;
• establish a 15% tax credit, taken over five years, for the purchase of up to $10
million of stock in qualified nanotechnology companies;
• establish a grant program within the DOC to support the establishment and
development of nanotechnology incubators by non-profit entities and degree-
granting institutions;
• require the NNCO Director to prepare a report to Congress on a nanotechnology
research strategy for government and industry that will ensure the development
and responsible stewardship of nanotechnology;
• provide a tax credit of 50% for nanotechnology education and training expenses
for businesses and individuals;
• authorize an annual appropriation of $15 million for FY2012 through FY2015 for
the NSF to conduct a grant program for the development of curriculum materials
for interdisciplinary nanotechnology courses at institutions of higher education;
Congressional Research Service
40
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
• direct the NSF to establish, through its Advanced Technological Education
program, a program to encourage manufacturing companies to enter into
partnerships with occupational training centers for the development of training to
support nanomanufacturing; and
• direct the Secretary of Energy to submit a report to Congress containing a
strategy for increasing interaction among scientists and engineers at DOE
national laboratories and the informal science education community to prepare
appropriate exhibits for school age children and the general public.
In addition, the bill would have amended the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and
Development Act of 2003 to:
• authorize $10 million for NSF to establish a center for the development of
computer-aided design tools for nanotechnology applications;
• authorize an annual appropriation of $30 million for the DOE to conduct a grant
program for nanotechnology research to address the need for “clean, cheap,
renewable energy”;
• authorize an annual appropriation of $30 million for the EPA for a grant program
for nanotechnology research to address technologies for the remediation of
pollution and other environmental protection technologies;
• authorize an annual appropriation of $30 million for the DHS to conduct a grant
program for nanotechnology research to address the need for sensors and
materials related to homeland security needs; and
• authorize an annual appropriation of $30 million for the DHHS to conduct a
grant program for nanotechnology research to address health-related applications.
H.R. 2359—Safe Cosmetics Act of 2011
H.R. 2359, the Safe Cosmetics Act of 2011, was introduced on June 24, 2011, and referred to two
House committees: the Committee on Energy and Commerce and the Committee on Education
and the Workforce. The bill would amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to provide
for the regulation of cosmetics by the Secretary of Health and Human Services. Among its
provisions are several related to nanotechnology. Under the bill, the Secretary of HHS would be
authorized to require that minerals and other particulate ingredients be labeled as “nano-scale” on
a cosmetic ingredient label or list if not less than 1% of the ingredient particles in the cosmetic are
100 nanometers or smaller in not less than 1 dimension, and that other ingredients in a cosmetic
be designated with scale-specific information on a cosmetic ingredient label or list if such
ingredients possess scale-specific hazard properties. The bill would also require the Secretary of
HHS to monitor developments in the scientific understanding of any adverse health effects related
to the use of nanotechnology in the formulation of cosmetics and to consider scale specific hazard
properties of ingredients when reviewing or evaluating the safety of cosmetics and ingredients. In
addition, the bill would require manufacturers to submit to the Secretary a statement for each
cosmetic that includes an ingredient list, including the particle size range of any nanoscale
cosmetic ingredients.
Congressional Research Service
41
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
S. 493—SBIR/STTR Reauthorization Act of 2011
S. 493, the SBIR/STTR Reauthorization Act of 2011, was introduced in the Senate on March 4,
2011, and referred to the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship. The bill was
reported with amendments but without a written report on March 9, 2011. On May 4, 2011, a
cloture motion on the bill failed. As part of the larger purpose of reauthorizing the SBIR and
STTR programs, S. 493 would require agencies with SBIR and STTR programs to give
consideration to research topics identified in the NSTC/NSET’s national nanotechnology strategic
plan mandated by P.L. 108-153 and related documents, and to give special priority to applications
for the support of projects related to nanotechnology and other specified fields of application.
Section 501 (Research Topics and Program Diversification) of S. 493, which contained the
nanotechnology related provisions, was incorporated in its entirety in S. 1867, the National
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012. This bill was passed by the Senate, but the
provision was not included in the final enacted version of the House bill (H.R. 1540, P.L. 112-81).
Title I, Subtitle A, H.R. 5116 (111th Congress)—National
Nanotechnology Initiative Amendments Act of 2010
The provisions of Title I, Subtitle A of H.R. 5116 (111th Congress), the National Nanotechnology
Initiative Amendments Act of 2010, were nearly identical to H.R. 554 (111th Congress) (see “H.R.
554 (111th Congress)—National Nanotechnology Initiative Amendments Act of 2009” below).
H.R. 5116 changed the name of the act from the “National Nanotechnology Initiative
Amendments Act of 2009,” to “National Nanotechnology Initiative Amendments Act of 2010,”
and removed the term “interdisciplinary” from a provision establishing “green nanotechnology”
research centers. The Senate removed this title before the bill was enacted.
H.R. 554 (111th Congress)—National Nanotechnology Initiative
Amendments Act of 2009
H.R. 554 (111th Congress), the National Nanotechnology Initiative Amendments Act of 2009, was
introduced on January 15, 2009, and passed by the House of Representatives on February 11,
2009. The bill was referred to the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee on
February 12, 2009. The purpose of the bill was to authorize activities for support of
nanotechnology research and development and for other purposes. Among its provisions, the bill
would have amended the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act of 2003
to:
• require the NSTC triennial strategic plan to include near-term and long-term
objectives, the anticipated timeframe for achieving near-term objectives, and
metrics for assessing progress; cooperative and collaborative activities in R&D
and technology transition supported by the states; and proposed research in areas
of national priority;
• require the NSTC annual nanotechnology report supplementing the President’s
budget request to include a breakout of spending for the development and
acquisition of research facilities and instrumentation for each program
component area, and a breakout of spending on all activities related to ethical,
legal, environmental, and societal implications;
Congressional Research Service
42
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
• direct NNP agencies to support the activities of committees involved in the
development of standards for nanotechnology and allow agencies to reimburse
the travel costs of scientists and engineers who participate in activities of such
committees;
• direct the agencies to fund the National Nanotechnology Coordination Office,
and to do so in proportion to each agency’s share of the previous year’s NNP
budget;
• require the NNCO to develop and maintain a publicly accessible database of
projects funded under the Environmental, Health, and Safety, the Education and
Societal Dimensions, and the Nanomanufacturing program component areas;
• require the NNCO to develop, maintain, and publicize information on
nanotechnology facilities supported by the NNP, including at a minimum the
terms and conditions for the use of each facility, a description of the capabilities
of the instruments and equipment available for use at the facility, and a
description of the technical support available to assist users of the facility;
• require the establishment of a National Nanotechnology Advisory Panel (NNAP)
“as a distinct entity.” Currently, under the provisions of presidential Executive
Order 13349, the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology
serves as the NNAP;128
• direct the NNCO to enter into an arrangement with the National Research
Council to conduct a triennial review of the NNP, and authorizes funds for
FY2010, FY2011, and FY2012; and
• define nanotechnology as “the science and technology that will enable one to
understand, measure, manipulate, and manufacture at the nanoscale, aimed at
creating materials, devices, and systems with fundamentally new properties or
functions,” and define nanoscale as “one or more dimensions of between
approximately 1 and 100 nanometers.”
In addition, the bill would have:
• required the designation of a White House Office of Science and Technology
Policy associate director to serve as the “Coordinator for Societal Dimensions of
Nanotechnology” and would charge the coordinator with convening and chairing
a panel of federal agency representatives and others to develop, maintain,
implement, and monitor an annual EHS research plan that includes, among other
things, standards related to nanotechnology nomenclature; standards for methods
and procedures for detecting, measuring, monitoring, sampling, and testing
engineered nanoscale materials for environmental, health, and safety impacts;
and standard reference materials for EHS testing;
• required the National Science Foundation to provide grants to establish
Nanotechnology Education Partnerships to recruit and help prepare secondary
school students to pursue postsecondary level courses of instruction in
nanotechnology;
128 Executive Order 13349, http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/cfr_2005/janqtr/3CFR13349.htm.
Congressional Research Service
43
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
• directed the NSTC to establish an Education Working Group under the NSET
Subcommittee to coordinate, prioritize, and plan NNP educational activities;
• directed certain NNP agencies to provide companies access to their supported
facilities to assist in the development of prototypes of nanoscale products,
devices, or processes for determining proof of concept;
• directed NNP agencies to encourage nanotechnology-related submissions to their
Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology
Transfer (STTR) programs;
• directed NIST to encourage nanotechnology-related submissions to its
Technology Innovation Program (TIP), and directs the TIP advisory Board to
provide advice to NIST to accomplish this, and to provide an assessment of the
adequacy of TIP resources allocated to nanotechnology related projects;
• directed the NSTC to actively pursue industry liaison groups for all industries;
• directed the NNP to coordinate and leverage federal investments with
nanotechnology research, development, and technology transition initiatives
supported by the States;
• directed the NNP to support nanotechnology R&D activities directed toward
application areas that have the potential for significant contributions to national
economic competitiveness and for other significant societal benefits, such as
nano-electronics, energy efficiency, health care, and water remediation and
purification;
• directed the NNP to support research on the development of instrumentation and
tools required for the rapid characterization of nanoscale materials and for
monitoring of nanoscale manufacturing processes, and to support approaches and
techniques for scaling the synthesis of new nanoscale materials to achieve
industrial-level production rates; and
• directed certain NNP-supported interdisciplinary research centers to support
research on methods and approaches to environmentally benign nanoscale
products and nanoscale manufacturing processes, as well as related technology
transfer and education activities.
S. 1482 (111th Congress)—National Nanotechnology Amendments
Act of 2009
S. 1482 (111th Congress), the National Nanotechnology Amendments Act of 2009, was introduced
on July 21, 2009, and referred to the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee.
The purpose of the bill was to reauthorize the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and
Development Act and to expand the scope of the National Nanotechnology Program (NNP).
Among its provisions, the bill would have:
• required the NNP to solicit and draw upon the perspectives of the industrial
community to promote the rapid commercial development of nanoscale-enabled
devices, systems, and technologies and to coordinate research in determining the
Congressional Research Service
44
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
key physical and chemical characteristics of nanoparticles and nanomaterials that
may pose environmental, health, and safety risks;
• required the NNCO and other appropriate agencies and councils to issue
guidance to agencies that describes a strategy for transitioning research into
commercial products and technologies and how the program will coordinate or
conduct research on the environmental, health, and safety issues related to
nanotechnology;
• required the NSTC triennial strategic plan to include near-term and long-term
objectives, the anticipated timeframe for achieving near-term objectives, and
metrics for assessing progress; cooperative and collaborative activities in R&D
and technology transition supported by the states; how the NNP intends to
encourage and support interdisciplinary research; and proposed research in areas
of national priority;
• encouraged joint interagency solicitation of grant applications in high priority,
multi-disciplinary research areas;
• required participating agencies to support the activities of the committees of
standards setting bodies involved in the development of standards for
nanotechnology;
• required each participating agency to provide funds to support the work of the
NNCO. Authorizes appropriations to: (1) NIST for the development of
nanotechnology standards; and (2) NSF, for use by the NNCO, to develop and
maintain a public information database of NNP projects in EHS; education;
public outreach; ethical, legal, and other societal issues; and of nanotechnology
facilities accessible for use by individuals from academia and industry;
• made the National Nanotechnology Advisory Panel (NNAP) a distinct entity, and
requires the NNAP to establish a subpanel to enable it to assess whether societal,
ethical, legal, environmental, and workforce concerns are adequately addressed
by the NNP;
• revised provisions for triennial external review of the NNP;
• required the designation of a “coordinator for societal dimensions of
nanotechnology,” within OSTP, to convene a panel to develop a research plan,
and requires the coordinator to enter into an arrangement with the National
Science Board to create a report that identifies the broad goals and needs of EHS
researchers;
• directed the NSTC to establish an interagency Education Working Group to
coordinate, prioritize, and plan formal and informal educational activities
supported under the NNP, including activities to help participants understand the
EHS implications of nanotechnology;
• provided for one or more grants to establish Nanotechnology Education
Partnerships to recruit and help prepare secondary school students to pursue
postsecondary level courses in nanotechnology;
• required agencies supporting nanotechnology research facilities to provide access
to representatives from industry and other stakeholders for the transfer of
Congressional Research Service
45
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
research results or assist in developing proof-of-concept prototypes of nanoscale
products, devices, or processes;
• directed NIST, in its Technology Innovation Program, and all agencies with
Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology
Transfer (STTR) programs, to encourage the submission of nanotechnology
related grant proposals;
• set, for the NNP, the objective of establishing industry liaison groups for all
industry sectors that would benefit from nanotechnology applications;
• required coordination and leveraging of federal investments with nanotechnology
research, development, and technology transition initiatives supported by state
governments;
• required the NNP to support nanotechnology R&D in areas of national
importance (e.g., economic competitiveness, energy production, water
purification, agriculture, and health care; in environmental, health, and safety
research on the risks of nanoparticles) and in ethical, legal, and societal issues
related to nanotechnology;
• required the NNP to support a wide array of research in support of
nanomanufacturing;
• required the director of the NNCO to review and report on nanomanufacturing
research and research facilities;
• required an NNAP review of the nanomanufacturing program component area
and the capabilities of nanotechnology research facilities supported by the NNP;
• set forth provisions regarding NNP nanoscale characterization and metrology
research; and
• required deliberative public input in the decision making processes affecting
policies for the research, development, and use of nanotechnology, and
authorizes $2.0 million for the NNCO to carry out this responsibility.
S. 596 (111th Congress)—Nanotechnology Innovation and Prize
Competition Act of 2009
S. 596 (111th Congress), the Nanotechnology Innovation and Prize Competition Act of 2009, was
introduced on March 16, 2009, and referred to the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation
Committee. The purpose of the bill was to establish an award program to honor achievements in
nanotechnology. Under the bill, the Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards
and Technology is directed to award prizes to individuals and companies for achievement in one
or more of the following areas: improvement of the environment, consistent with EPA’s Twelve
Principles of Green Chemistry; development of alternative energy that has the potential to lessen
the dependence of the United States on fossil fuels; and/or improvement of human health,
consistent with regulations promulgated by the FDA. The bill would have authorized financial
prizes for being the first to achieve a specific criteria, as well as recognition prizes, made as part
of the previously established National Technology and Innovation Medal award program. The bill
would have authorized $2 million annually for the financial prizes as well as $750,000 annually
for administration of the prize competitions.
Congressional Research Service
46
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
H.R. 820 (111th Congress)—Nanotechnology Advancement and New
Opportunities Act
H.R. 820 (111th Congress), the Nanotechnology Advancement and New Opportunities Act, was
introduced on February 3, 2009, and referred to four House committees: the Committee on
Science and Technology, the Committee on Energy and Commerce, the Committee on Ways and
Means, and the Committee on Homeland Security. The purpose of the bill was to ensure the
development and responsible stewardship of nanotechnology. The provisions of this bill are
nearly identical to those of H.R. 2749, introduced in the 112th Congress (described above).
H.R. 2647 (111th Congress)—National Defense Authorization Act
for Fiscal Year 2010
Section 242 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 (H.R. 2647, P.L. 111-
84) amends the Department of Defense’s nanotechnology reporting responsibilities to align with
those required of other agencies under the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and
Development Act (P.L. 108-153). H.R. 2647 was signed into law on October 28, 2009.
S. 3117 (111th Congress)—Promote Nanotechnology in Schools Act
S. 3117 (111th Congress), the Promote Nanotechnology in Schools Act, was introduced on March
15, 2010, and referred to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. The
purpose of the bill was to strengthen the capacity of eligible institutions (i.e., secondary schools,
community colleges, two-year and four-year institutions of higher education, and informal
learning science centers) to provide instruction in nanotechnology. The bill would have
authorized a program at the National Science Foundation for this purpose that would offer
eligible institutions grants of up to $400,000 (subject to a 25% match from non-federal sources)
to assist in the purchase and maintenance of nanotechnology equipment and software, to develop
and provide educational services, and to support teacher education and certification. The bill
would have authorized $15 million for FY2010 and “such sums as may be necessary” for FY2011
through FY 2013.
H.R. 4502 (111th Congress)—Nanotechnology Education Act
H.R. 4502 (111th Congress), the Nanotechnology Education Act, was introduced on February 19,
2010, and referred to the House Committee on Science and Technology’s Subcommittee on
Research and Science Education. The purpose of the bill was to strengthen the capacity of eligible
institutions (i.e., secondary schools, community colleges, four-year institutions of higher
education, and informal learning science centers) to provide instruction in nanotechnology. The
bill would have authorized a program for this purpose at the National Science Foundation that
would offer eligible institutions grants of up to $400,000 (subject to a 25% match from non-
federal sources) to assist in the purchase and maintenance of nanotechnology equipment and
software, to develop and provide educational services, and to support teacher education and
certification. The bill would have authorized $40 million for FY2011 and “such sums as may be
necessary” for FY2012 through FY 2014.
Congressional Research Service
47
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
S. 2942 (111th Congress)—Nanotechnology Safety Act of 2010
S. 2942 (111th Congress), the Nanotechnology Safety Act of 2010, was introduced on January 21,
2010, and referred to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. The bill
would have required the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish within 180 days a
program for the scientific investigation of nanoscale materials included or intended for inclusion
in FDA-regulated products, to address the potential toxicology of such materials, the effects of
such materials on biological systems, and interaction of such materials with biological systems.
The bill would have authorized $25 million per year for fiscal years 2011 to 2015.
H.R. 5786 (111th Congress)—Safe Cosmetics Act of 2010
H.R. 5786 (111th Congress), the Safe Cosmetics Act of 2010, was introduced on July 20, 2010,
and referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce and the House Committee on
Education and Labor. The bill would have required the Secretary of Health and Human Services
to monitor developments in the scientific understanding of any adverse health effects related to
the use of nanotechnology in the formulation of cosmetics and to consider scale specific hazard
properties of ingredients when conducting or reviewing safety substantiation of cosmetic
ingredients. In addition, the bill would have required manufacturers to submit to the Secretary a
statement for each cosmetic that includes an ingredient list, including the particle size of any
nanoscale cosmetic ingredients. The bill would also have given the Secretary authority to require
labeling of cosmetics disclosing the use of nanoscale ingredients.
Concluding Observations
Many expect nanotechnology to bring significant economic and societal returns. The United
States was the first government to launch a national-level nanotechnology program and has
invested more than any other nation. As a result of this focus and these sustained investments,
many experts believe that the United States enjoys a technological leadership position in
nanotechnology. Other nations are investing heavily and some industrialized and emerging
economies have formidable capabilities in nanotechnology. Assessments of the National
Nanotechnology Initiative have concluded that the effort is well-managed and has been successful
in achieving its objectives so far. However, these assessments have recognized that the NNI faces
a variety of challenges in ensuring that the full promise of nanotechnology is realized and that the
United States remains the global leader in nanoscale science, engineering, and technology.
Congress may choose to address some or many of the issues addressed in the body of this report
in the course of deliberation on the reauthorization of the 21st Century Nanotechnology R&D Act
of 2003 or, alternatively, in separate legislation.
The 21st Century Nanotechnology R&D Act’s funding authorizations extended through FY2008.
The 109th Congress, 110th Congress, and 111th Congress, considered legislation to reauthorize the
program. If the 112th Congress opts to consider reauthorization of the act, some of the issues it
may wish to consider include budget authorization levels for the covered agencies; R&D funding
levels, priorities, and balance across the program component areas; administration and
management of the NNI; translation of research results and early-stage technology into
commercially viable applications; environmental, health, and safety issues; ethical, legal, and
societal implications; education and training for the nanotechnology workforce; metrology,
Congressional Research Service
48
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
standards, and nomenclature; public understanding; and international dimensions. Consideration
may also be given to the establishment of an independent review panel and to coordination of the
timing for the NNAP assessment, the NRC assessment, and the NSET Subcommittee’s strategic
plan for the NNI.
Congressional Research Service
49
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
Appendix A. Selected Reports on the National
Nanotechnology Initiative
Reports of the Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology
Subcommittee of the National Science and Technology Council
The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Leading to a Revolution in
Technology and Industry, Supplement to the President’s FY2013 Budget, February 2012.
http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/nni_2013_budget_supplement.pdf
Environmental, Health, and Safety Research Strategy, October 2011. http://nano.gov/sites/default/
files/pub_resource/nni_2011_ehs_research_strategy.pdf
Policy Principles for the U.S. Decision-Making Concerning Regulation and Oversight of
Applications of Nanotechnology and Nanomaterials, June 2011. http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/
default/files/omb/inforeg/for-agencies/nanotechnology-regulation-and-oversight-principles.pdf
The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Leading to a Revolution in
Technology and Industry, Supplement to the President’s FY2012 Budget, March 2011.
http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/nni_2012_budget_supplement.pdf
Regional, State, and Local Initiatives in Nanotechnology: Report of the National Nanotechnology
Initiative Workshop, February 2011. http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/
nni_2012_budget_supplement.pdf
National Nanotechnology Initiative Strategic Plan, February 2011. http://nano.gov/sites/default/
files/pub_resource/2011_strategic_plan.pdf
National Nanotechnology Initiative Signature Initiative: Nanotechnology for Solar Energy
Collection and Conversion, July 2010. http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/
nnisiginitsolarenergyfinaljuly2010.pdf
National Nanotechnology Initiative Signature Initiative: Sustainable Nanomanufacturing –
Creating the Industries of the Future, July 2010. http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/
nni_siginit_sustainable_mfr_revised_nov_2011.pdf
National Nanotechnology Initiative Signature Initiative: Nanoelectronics for 2020 and Beyond,
July 2010. http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/
nni_siginit_nanoelectronics_jul_2010.pdf
nanoEHS Series: Risk Management Methods & Ethical, Legal, and Societal Implications of
Nanotechnology: Report of the National Nanotechnology Initiative Workshop, March 2010.
Communicating Risk in the 21st Century: The Case of Nanotechnology, February 2010.
http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/berube_risk_white_paper_feb_2010.pdf
Congressional Research Service
50
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Leading to a Revolution in
Technology and Industry, Supplement to the President’s FY2011 Budget, February 2010.
nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/nni_2011_budget_supplement.pdf
nanoEHS Series: Nanomaterials and Human Health & Instrumentation, Metrology, and Analytical
Methods: Report of the National Nanotechnology Initiative Workshop, November 2009.
http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/nanoandhumanhealthandinstrumentation.pdf
The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Leading to a Revolution in
Technology and Industry, Supplement to the President’s FY2010 Budget, May 2009.
http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/nni_2010_budget_supplement.pdf
Nanotechnology-Enabled Sensing, Report of the National Nanotechnology Initiative Workshop,
May 2009. http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/NNI-Nanosensors-stdres.pdf
nanoEHS Series: Human and Environmental Exposure Assessment Workshop Materials,
February 2009. http://nano.gov/node/122
The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Leading to a Revolution in
Technology and Industry, Supplement to the President’s FY2009 Budget, September 2008.
http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/nni_09budget.pdf
Strategy for Nanotechnology-Related Environmental, Health, and Safety Research, February
2008. http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/nni_ehs_research_strategy.pdf
The National Nanotechnology Initiative Strategic Plan, December 2007. http://nano.gov/sites/
default/files/pub_resource/nni_strategic_plan_2007.pdf
Prioritization of Environmental, Health, and Safety Research Needs for Engineered Nanoscale
Materials, August 2007. http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/
prioritization_ehs_research_needs_engineered_nanoscale_materials.pdf
The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Leading to a Revolution in
Technology and Industry, Supplement to the President’s FY2008 Budget, July 2007.
http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/nni_08budget.pdf
Manufacturing at the Nanoscale: Report of the National Nanotechnology Initiative Workshop,
January 2007. http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/
manufacturing_at_the_nanoscale.pdf
The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Environmental, Health, and Safety Research Needs for
Engineered Nanoscale Materials, September 2006. http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/
pub_resource/nni_ehs_research_needs.pdf
The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Leading to a Revolution in
Technology and Industry, Supplement to the President’s FY2007 Budget, July 2006.
http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/nni_07budget.pdf
The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Leading to a Revolution in
Technology and Industry, Supplement to the President’s FY2006 Budget, March 2005.
http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/nni_06budget.pdf
Congressional Research Service
51
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
The National Nanotechnology Initiative Strategic Plan, December 2004.
Research Directions II: Long-Term Research and Development Opportunities in Nanotechnology,
Report of the National Nanotechnology Initiative Workshop, September 2004. http://nano.gov/
sites/default/files/pub_resource/research_directionsii.pdf
Nanotechnology in Space Exploration, August 2004. http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/
pub_resource/space_exploration_rpt_0.pdf
Nanoscience Research for Energy Needs: Report of the National Nanotechnology Initiative
Grand Challenge Workshop, March 2004. http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/nni_energy_rpt.pdf
Nanoelectronics, Nanophotonics, & Nanomagnetics: Report of the National Nanotechnology
Initiative Workshop, February 2004. http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/
nni_electronic_photonics_m.pdf
Instrumentation and Metrology for Nanotechnology: Report of the National Nanotechnology
Initiative Workshop, January 2004. http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/
nni_instrumentation_metrology_rpt.pdf
Nanotechnology: Societal Implications-Maximizing Benefits for Humanity: Report of the
National Nanotechnology Initiative Workshop, December 2003. http://nano.gov/sites/default/
files/nni_societal_implications.pdf
Nanobiotechnology: Report of the National Nanotechnology Initiative Workshop, October 2003.
http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/nni_nanobiotechnology_rpt.pdf
Regional, State, and Local Initiatives in Nanotechnology, September-October 2003. [No URL
available.]
National Nanotechnology Initiative: Research and Development Supporting the Next Industrial
Revolution, Supplement to the President’s FY2004 Budget. August 2003. http://nano.gov/
sites/default/files/pub_resource/nni04_budget_supplement.pdf
Materials by Design: Report of the National Nanotechnology Initiative Workshop, June 2003.
http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/nni_materials_by_design.pdf
Nanotechnology and the Environment: Report of the National Nanotechnology Initiative
Workshop, May 2003. http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/
nanotechnology_and_the_environment_app_imp.pdf
National Nanotechnology Initiative: The Initiative and Its Implementation Plan, Detailed
Technical Report Associated with the Supplemental Report to the President’s FY2003 Budget,
June 2002.
Societal Implications of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, March 2001. http://www.wtec.org/
loyola/nano/NSET.Societal.Implications/report-grayscale.pdf
National Nanotechnology Initiative: The Initiative and Its Implementation Plan, Detailed
Technical Report Associated with the Supplemental Report to the President’s FY2001 Budget,
July 2000. http://nano.gov/sites/default/files/pub_resource/nni_implementation_plan_2000.pdf
Congressional Research Service
52
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
Report of the Interagency Working Group on Nanoscience,
Technology, and Engineering (NSET Subcommittee Predecessor)
Nanotechnology Research Directions, IWGN Workshop Report, September 1999. http://nano.gov/
sites/default/files/pub_resource/research_directions_1999.pdf
Nanotechnology: Shaping the World Atom by Atom, 1999. http://www.wtec.org/loyola/nano/
IWGN.Public.Brochure/IWGN.Nanotechnology.Brochure.pdf
Agency Reports
Defense Nanotechnology Research and Development Program, Office of the Director of Defense
Research and Engineering, Department of Defense, December 2009. http://nano.gov/sites/default/
files/pub_resource/dod-report_to_congress_final_1mar10.pdf
Current Intelligence Bulletin 60: Interim Guidance for Medical Screening and Hazard
Surveillance for Workers Potentially Exposed to Engineered Nanoparticles, National Institute for
Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Department of
Health and Human Services. February 2009.
http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2009-116/pdfs/2009-116.pdf
Progress Toward Safe Nanotechnology in the Workplace: A Report from the NIOSH
Nanotechnology Research Center, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention, Department of Health and Human Services, June 2007.
http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2010-104/pdfs/2010-104.pdf
Approaches to Safe Nanotechnology in the Workplace: Managing the Health and Safety Concerns
Associated with Engineering Nanomaterials, National Institute for Occupational Safety and
Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Department of Health and Human
Services, March 2009.
External Reviews
Report to the President and Congress on the Fourth Assessment of the National Nanotechnology
Initiative, PCAST (acting as the NNAP), April 2012. http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/
files/microsites/ostp/PCAST_2012_Nanotechnology_FINAL.pdf
Review of Federal Strategy for Nanotechnology-Related Environmental, Health, and Safety
Research, Committee for Review of the Federal Strategy to Address Environmental, Health, and
Safety Research Needs for Engineered Nanoscale Materials, Committee on Toxicology, NRC,
2009. http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=12559#toc
Report to the President and Congress on the Third Assessment of the National Nanotechnology
Initiative, PCAST (acting as the NNAP), March 2010. http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/
files/microsites/ostp/pcast-nni-report.pdf
The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Second Assessment and Recommendations of the
National Nanotechnology Advisory Panel, PCAST (acting as the NNAP), April 2008.
Congressional Research Service
53
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/microsites/ostp/PCAST-NNAP-NNI-Assessment-
2008.pdf
A Matter of Size: Triennial Review of the National Nanotechnology Initiative, NRC, 2006.
http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=11752
The National Nanotechnology Initiative at Five Years: Assessment and Recommendations of the
National Nanotechnology Advisory Panel, PCAST (acting as the NNAP), May 2005.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/microsites/ostp/pcast-nni-five-years.pdf
Small Wonders, Endless Frontiers: A Review of the National Nanotechnology Initiative, NRC,
June 2002. http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?isbn=0309084547
Congressional Research Service
54
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
Appendix B. List of NNI and
Nanotechnology-Related Acronyms
ASTRA
Alliance for Science and Technology Research in America
CNST
Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology
CS
Committee on Science
CT
Committee on Technology
CSREES
Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service
DHHS
Department of Health and Human Services
DHS
Department of Homeland Security
DOC
Department of Commerce
DOD
Department of Defense
DOE
Department of Energy
DOJ
Department of Justice
DOT
Department of Transportation
EHS
Environmental, health, and safety
ELSI
Ethical, legal, and societal implications
EPA
Environmental Protection Agency
EOP
Executive Office of the President
EPSCoR
Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research
FFDCA
Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act
FHWA
Federal Highway Administration
GIN
Global Issues in Nanotechnology working group
ISO
International Standards Organization
IWGN
Interagency Working Group on Nanotechnology
NASA
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
NCI
National Cancer Institute
NEHI
National Environmental and Health Implications working group
NGO
Non-governmental organization
NIH
National Institutes of Health
NILI
National Innovation and Liaison with Industry working group
NIOSH
National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health
NIST
National Institute of Standards and Technology
NNAP
National Nanotechnology Advisory Panel
NNCO
National Nanotechnology Coordination Office
NNI
National Nanotechnology Initiative
NNIN
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network
NNN
National Nanomanufacturing Network
Congressional Research Service
55
The National Nanotechnology Initiative
NNP
National Nanotechnology Program
NPEC
Nanotechnology Public Engagement and Communications working group
NRC
National Research Council
NSET
Nanoscale Science, Engineering and Technology subcommittee
NSF
National Science Foundation
NSEC
Nanoscale Science and Engineering Center
NSI
Nanotechnology Signature Initiative
NSRC
Nanoscale Science Research Centers
NSTC
National Science and Technology Council
OECD
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development
OMB
Office of Management and Budget
OSTP
Office of Science and Technology Policy
PCA
Program Component Areas
PCAST
President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology
R&D
Research and development
SBIR
Small Business Innovation Research
STTR
Small Business Technology Transfer Research
TSA
Transportation Safety Administration
USDA
U.S. Department of Agriculture
USPTO
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
Author Contact Information
John F. Sargent Jr.
Specialist in Science and Technology Policy
jsargent@crs.loc.gov, 7-9147
Congressional Research Service
56