21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act of 2003

National Nanotechnology Program

The NRDA sought to rename the NNI, which had been created by President Bill Clinton, in 2000, as the National Nanotechnology Program (NNP). This name change has not been adopted. The NRDA did establish for the first time a multiyear funding cycle for nanoscale science and engineering, authorizing appropriations of $3.7 billion from fiscal year (FY) 2005 though FY 2008 for five of the federal agencies participating in the NNI (the National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the Environmental Protection Agency). The NRDA did not include a number of agencies that participate in the NNI, most notably the Department of Defense and the National Institutes of Health, which fall under different authorization and appropriation committees.

The Act established major centers, including an American Nanotechnology Preparedness Center to “identify anticipated issues related to the responsible research, development, and application of nanotechnology.” In response, in 2005, the National Science Foundation established two Centers for Nanotechnology in Society, at Arizona State University and at the University of California at Santa Barbara. The legislation also tasked the National Research Council to produce several reports, including one assessing the need for ensuring the responsible development of nanotechnology that was published in 2006. Finally, it created a National Nanotechnology Advisory Panel (NNAP), a body that is responsible for assessing NNP activities that are meant to address societal concerns, among other things. In 2004, President Bush designated the existing President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology as the NNAP.

Program Activities

The legislation does not explicitly lay out the objectives of the NNP. Instead, it defines 11 program activities, which reflect various motivations, and which fall into three general categories: scientific advancement, national competitiveness, and responsible development.

Seven of the 11 program activities are concerned with general objectives, methods and resources pertaining to scientific and technological aspects of nanotechnology funding, research, training, and application. For instance, activity 1 articulates the governing objective of this group of activities: “developing a fundamental understanding of matter that enables control and manipulation at the nanoscale.”

Three additional program activities comprise a second set that is focused on meeting economic and competitiveness pressures and opportunities. These activities prescribe “ensuring … global leadership,” “advancing productivity and industrial competitiveness,” and “accelerating” nanotechnology deployment. Two of these activities make explicit reference to the United States in national competitiveness terms. For instance, Program Activity 5 prescribes “ensuring United States global leadership in the development and application of nanotechnology.” Activity 7 identifies the primary means envisioned to achieve this goal: “accelerating the deployment and application of nanotechnology research and development in the private sector, including startup companies.”

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