Text of Senate Amendment 6088

On 2026-06-24, Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) delivered a floor speech titled "Text Of Senate Amendment 6088" in the Senate.

Text of Senate Amendment 6088

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 106 (Wednesday, June 24, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 106 (Wednesday, June 24, 2026)] [Senate] [Pages S3295-S3299] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] SA 6088. Mr. FETTERMAN (for himself and Mr. Budd) submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by him to the bill S. 4784, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2027 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows: At the end of title G, add the following: Subtitle H--National Programmable Cloud Laboratories Network SEC. ___1. SHORT TITLE. This subtitle may be cited as the ``National Programmable Cloud Laboratories Network Act of 2025''. SEC. ___2. DEFINITIONS. (a) Definitions.--In this subtitle: (1) Artificial intelligence.--The term ``artificial intelligence'' has the meaning given such term in section 5002 of the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 (15 U.S.C. 9401). (2) Biological data.--The term ``biological data'' means the information, including associated descriptors, derived from the structure, function, or process of a biological system that is either measured, collected, or aggregated for analysis. (3) Director.--Unless otherwise provided, the term ``Director'' means the Director of the National Science Foundation. (4) Institution of higher education.--The term ``institution of higher education'' has the meaning given the term in section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001). (5) Network.--The term ``Network'' means the National Programmable Cloud Laboratories Network. (6) Node.--The term ``node'' means a programmable cloud laboratory designated as part of the Network. (7) Non-designated laboratory.--The term ``non-designated laboratory'' means any Federal, academic, nonprofit, or private industry programmable cloud laboratory not selected as a node under section ___4. (8) Programmable cloud laboratory.--The term ``programmable cloud laboratory'' [[Page S3298]] means a physical laboratory that is equipped with research instrumentation and advanced manufacturing capabilities, including robotics and artificial intelligence, that can be securely and remotely programmed and controlled in order to conduct experiments and collect associated data. SEC. ___3. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. (a) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out the activities under this subtitle-- (1) $30,000,000 for fiscal year 2026; (2) $30,000,000 for fiscal year 2027; (3) $30,000,000 for fiscal year 2028; (4) $30,000,000 for fiscal year 2029; and (5) $30,000,000 for fiscal year 2030. (b) Derivation of Funds.--Amounts made available to carry out this subtitle shall be derived from amounts appropriated or otherwise made available to the National Science Foundation. SEC. ___4. NATIONAL PROGRAMMABLE CLOUD LABORATORIES NETWORK. (a) Purposes.--The purposes of the Network established under this subtitle are-- (1) to maintain leadership by the United States in advanced experimentation, biotechnology, laboratory automation, and artificial intelligence for scientific research, advanced manufacturing, long-term economic competitiveness, and national security; (2) to reduce the cost of federally funded research through automation and reproducibility; (3) to accelerate national competitiveness by transferring government-funded research to private-sector commercial applications; (4) to improve collaboration among federally funded national laboratories, institutions of higher education, and private industry; (5) to ensure that investment in programmable cloud laboratories results in measurable cost savings, efficiencies, and long-term fiscal sustainability; (6) to incentivize private-sector cost-sharing in research infrastructure and equipment; (7) to support workforce development aligned with the technical needs of industry in the United States; (8) to provide funding for nodes; (9) to advance the development of a domestic industrial base for scientific automation tools, biotechnology, artificial intelligence systems for experimentation, and robotics platforms for use in laboratory settings; and (10) to further programmable cloud laboratory research in areas such as materials science, biotechnology, chemistry, and other scientific or engineering disciplines where automation and cloud-enabled experimentation can deliver transformative results, including advanced materials synthesis and characterization, scalable biotechnology experimentation, and high-throughput chemical catalyst development. (b) Establishment; Awards.-- (1) In general.-- (A) Establishment.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this subtitle, the Director, in consultation with the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, shall designate and oversee a National Programmable Cloud Laboratories Network of not more than 6 nodes to support secure, standards-based, and cost-effective remote experimentation and automated research. (B) Awards.--The Director shall award a grant to each node, in an amount not greater than $5,000,000 per fiscal year for a period of not more than 5 years, to support the National Programmable Cloud Laboratories Network. (2) Assessment sequencing.--The assessment required under section ___6 shall be conducted only after the final designation of nodes under paragraph (1). (3) Nodes.--The Network shall consist of nodes that-- (A) enable programmable workflows and automated science; (B) provide access to advanced scientific and manufacturing instruments, including artificial intelligence-enabled tools; (C) collaborate to establish and adopt common standards, protocols, and best practices; and (D) support interoperability across and between nodes. (c) Application and Selection.-- (1) In general.--The Director shall issue a public solicitation for eligible entities to apply for node designation. (2) Eligible entities.--Eligible entities that may apply for designation as a node include-- (A) institutions of higher education; (B) nonprofit research organizations; (C) private sector research entities; and (D) consortia or collaborations of the entities described in subparagraphs (A) through (C). (d) Applications for Designation.--An eligible entity that desires to apply for designation as a node in the Network shall submit an application to the Director at such time and in such manner as the Director may require. The application shall include-- (1) a technical and programmatic plan for laboratory operations, automation capabilities, and data integration; (2) a plan to achieve long-term self-sustainability, including metrics, interim milestones, and a timeline for reducing reliance on Federal funding; and (3) evidence of non-Federal cost share, private capital, or other third-party contributions demonstrating self- sustainability potential. (e) Evaluation of Applicants.--The Director shall ensure that the process for selecting eligible entities for designation in the Network is competitive, merit-based, and transparent, through the evaluation of, with respect to each entity-- (1) pre-existing laboratory infrastructure and suitability for automated science; (2) capacity to support distributed, cloud-enabled programmable workflows for multiple users; (3) likelihood of achieving long-term sustainability without continued Federal funding; (4) demonstrated ability to collaborate with other nodes, academic partners, industry partners, or other Federal research agencies (as defined in section 10002 of the Research and Development, Competition, and Innovation Act (42 U.S.C. 18901)); (5) protocols for research security, cybersecurity, and responsible access; and (6) demonstration of user interest and research needs. (f) Designation.--In designating nodes, the Director shall-- (1) give preference to applicants demonstrating meaningful third-party cost share and pre-existing infrastructure; and (2) to the extent practicable, ensure that at least 1 node demonstrates the capability to support cloud-enabled biotechnology research, including automated experimentation or quality control workflows. (g) Responsibilities.--Each node selected by the Director shall-- (1) support the purposes described in subsection (a)(9); (2) facilitate collaboration among Network members to expand and integrate automated science capabilities and best practices; (3) actively participate with the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology in developing network- wide interoperability, data-sharing, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence-assisted experimentation standards; (4) support secure sharing of experimental data, including biological data, models, and results across institutions of higher education participating in the Network, if applicable; (5) provide a secure digital infrastructure to enable remote experimentation, artificial intelligence-assisted analysis, and reproducible science; (6) engage in public-private partnerships to streamline the transfer of technology developed using Network infrastructure; (7) develop and maintain a financial sustainability plan to reduce long-term reliance on Federal funds, including through user fees, licensing, consortia membership, or other revenue- generating models; (8) establish performance metrics, including scientific output, cost-effectiveness, academic engagement, private- sector engagement, user satisfaction, and reproducibility of results; and (9) where practicable, leverage commercially available hardware and software solutions to minimize cost and accelerate deployment of automated science capabilities. SEC. ___5. INTERAGENCY COLLABORATION. Not later than 180 days after all nodes of th