PREPARED BY LEWIS-BURKE ASSOCIATES LLC

View Full Report: Tufts Washington Update – June 25, 2019

Contents:

• Introduction
• Administration and Congressional Updates
  • House Passes First Spending Package for Fiscal Year 2020
  • House and Senate Armed Services Committees Approve FY 2020 National Defense Authorization Bills .
• Hearing Updates
  • House Science Committee Holds Hearing on Combating Sexual Harassment
• Agency Updates and Funding Opportunities
  • National Institutes of Health Advisory Committee to the Director Grapples with Sexual Harassment, Foreign Influence
  • Department of Defense Releases Funding Opportunity Announcement for Vannevar Bush Faculty Fellowship
  • Office of Naval Research Releases FY 2020 Funding Opportunity Announcement for Young Investigator Program
  • Institute of Education Sciences Education Research Grant Competitions Announced
  • National Institutes of Health Future Funding Opportunity for Specialized Centers of Excellence on Environmental Health Disparities Research
  • Department of Energy Office of Advanced Scientific Computing Research to Host Townhalls on the Future of Computing
  • Department of Transportation Releases FY 2019 Advanced Transportation and Congestion Management Technologies Deployment Competition

Lewis-Burke Associates LLC – June 20, 2019

The Department of Defense (DOD) released June 18 the fiscal year (FY) 2020 Vannevar Bush Faculty Fellowship (VBFF) funding opportunity announcement (FOA). The VBFF program is intended to attract and engage the best and brightest in academia to conduct a range of basic, unclassified research in areas of interest to DOD. DOD also utilizes the VBFF program to foster long-term relationships with outstanding academic researchers and increase the number of technical experts working on defense-related problems. DOD is particularly interested in ambitious “blue sky” research that will lead to revolutionary discoveries, new fields of research, or disruption of existing theories. The program solicitation was released by the Office of Naval Research (ONR) and is overseen by the Basic Research Office within the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research & Engineering. DOD will host a webinar on July 10, 2019 to provide a program overview, grant application information, topic areas of interest, and answer general questions (more information regarding the webinar is below).

Proposals are invited in the following DOD basic research areas:

1. Engineering Biology: DOD is interested in this research because of potential applications to specialty materials and biological sensing to improve many warfighter capabilities. The solicitation explicitly calls for “innovative and fundamental, basic research that will enable engineering biology through the understanding and controlling of biochemical processes, with the eventual goal of facilitating the engineering of complex natural or synthetic biological systems. Multidisciplinary research, potentially combining theoretical, computational, developmental, systems, physical, biophysical, biochemical, physiological, and/or biomolecular approaches, are likely necessary to make biology a scalable top-down engineering discipline.”
2. Quantum Information Science (QIS): DOD requests research for QIS to gain the advantage that quantum phenomena offer to provide revolutionary capabilities improving our foundational understanding of quantum information and processes, physical frameworks to support quantum information, and using quantum physics for detection purposes.
3. Cognitive Neuroscience: DOD is interested in basic research that provide insights to the mechanisms of human cognitive skills. The studies can be “theoretical, computational, neuronal, and molecular basic neuroscience research to study the mechanisms of human cognitive skills. In addition, research in neural activity and brain functions for the development of brain-machine interfaces and cognitive processes and demands for warfighters are of interest. Further, DOD states that “revolutionary research is needed to elucidate brain functions, their relationships with neuron structure, network topologies, brain chemistry, towards creating novel approaches in artificial intelligence.”
4. Novel Engineered Materials: DOD is focused on research for the discovery of new engineering materials that enable “transformative functionalities” as well as controlling material behaviors under extreme environments. In particular, DOD is looking for research that focuses on exploitation of novel materials’ properties that could impact multiple technologies, engineered materials with behaviors not observed in naturally occurring materials, and materials that include dynamic behavior considerations.
5. Applied Mathematics (theory and experiments) and Statistics: DOD seeks mathematical breakthroughs to provide the foundations to address future DOD challenges such as modeling complex network systems, compressive sensing, encryption and authentication, artificial intelligence, deep learning, and constructive mathematics. DOD also states the critical need for “numerical simulation of complex and large-scale physical phenomena associated with natural environments or engineered systems.”
6. Other fields of research with high potential: Applicants can submit a research proposal that does not fit into one of the aforementioned categories; all proposals must support DOD research priorities and focus on basic, transformative science that provides new thinking about the phenomena being studied including “combustion at high speed, multi-scale physical processes, propulsion, shielding concepts, etc.”

All awardees will receive the title of VBFF fellow and will be introduced to DOD’s critical research needs through interactions with DOD science and technology leaders, visits to DOD labs, and invitations to technical workshops.

Due Dates: White papers are required and due by August 16, 2019 at 11:59 PM EDT. Applicants must register on the AcquTrak portal by August 14, 2019 at 11:59 PM EDT to submit a white paper. Full proposals will be by invitation only and are due January 17, 2020 at 11:59 PM EST.

Total Funding and Award Size: DOD anticipates that awards will be made in the form of grants to U.S. institutions of higher education at a maximum award of $3 million over five years. The solicitation does not indicate how many awards DOD intends to make and notes DOD may not allocate fellowships equally among the topics. In FY 2019, 10 awards were made – three for quantum, three for materials/manufacturing, two for cognitive neuroscience, one for physics and one for information/social networks.

Eligibility and Limitations: The competition is open to accredited U.S. institutions of higher education (universities) with doctoral degree-granting programs. The program seeks outstanding faculty, who are either a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, with tenure and full-time research staff with the skill, knowledge, and resources necessary to conduct the proposed research as the principal investigator (PI). PIs may submit only one application in response to this funding opportunity. There is no limit to the number of applications an institution may submit.

Webinar: The webinar will be held on July 10, 2019. The webinar can be accessed as follows:

WebEx Meeting
Meeting Number: 734 968 495
Password: VBFF2019
https://noblis.webex.com/noblis/j.php?MTID=m3b9d993630478d83e551385b020f4a903

Join by Video System
Dial: 734968495@noblis.webex.com, you can also dial 173.243.2.68 and enter the meeting number.

Join by Phone
1 (844) 740-1264 (Toll Free)
1 (415) 655-0003 (Toll)
Access Code: 734 968 495

Sources and Additional Background:
• The full solicitation can be found at www.grants.gov under solicitation number “N00014-19-S-F010.”
• The announcement of the FY 2019 winners can be found at https://dod.defense.gov/News/News-Releases/News-Release-View/Article/1831652/dod-announces-2019-class-of-vannevar-bush-faculty-fellowship/.
• DOD’s overview of the VBFF program can be found at https://basicresearch.defense.gov/Programs/Vannevar-Bush-Faculty-Fellowship/.

PREPARED BY LEWIS-BURKE ASSOCIATES LLC

View full report: Tufts Washington Update – May 23, 2019

Contents

• Introduction
• Appropriations Updates
  • House Appropriations Committee Approves FY 2020 Defense Funding Bill
  • House Appropriations Committee Approves FY 2020 Energy and Water Development Funding Bill
  • House Appropriations Committee Approves Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Funding Bill
  • House Subcommittee Approves FY 2020 Commerce, Justice, Science Funding Bill
  • House Subcommittee Approves Interior-Environment FY 2020 Funding Bill
• Administration Updates
  • White House Releases FY 2020 Budget Amendment; Increased Funding for NASA
• Agency Updates and Funding Opportunities
  • Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency Announces Discover DSO Day
  • Department of Education Invites Institutions to Participate in Federal Work-Study Experiments under the Experimental Sites Initiative
  • Department of Energy Releases Information and Seeks Input on Future Competition for Quantum Centers
  • Department of Energy Announces $200 Million in Applied Energy Research Funding
  • Agriculture and Food Research Initiative Releases RFA for Foundational and Applied Science Program .

PREPARED BY LEWIS-BURKE ASSOCIATES LLC

View Full Report: Tufts Appropriations Update – May 22, 2019

The House Appropriations Committee approved the fiscal year (FY) 2020 Energy and Water Development appropriations bill with a vote of 31-21 on May 21. The bill’s jurisdiction includes civilian and defense-related programs of the Department of Energy (DOE), civil works projects of the Army Corps of Engineers, the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Reclamation, and related independent agencies. The Senate has not yet started consideration of FY 2020 appropriations bills.

The House Energy and Water bill would provide $37.1 billion for DOE, which is $1.4 billion, or 3.9 percent, above the FY 2019 enacted level, and $5.6 billion above the President’s budget request. The Committee’s top three funding priorities are:

• Renewable energy and energy efficiency programs to address climate change and accelerate deployment of energy technologies to maintain U.S. competitiveness, with a proposed increase of $273 million, or 11.5 percent, above the FY 2019 enacted level;
• • Maintenance and expansion of the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy’s (ARPA-E) research and development portfolio, with a proposed increase of $59 million, or 16.1 percent, above the FY 2019 enacted level; and
• • The National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA) science-based stockpile stewardship and nuclear weapons modernization activities, with a proposed increase of $661 million, or 6 percent, above the FY 2019 enacted level.

The House Appropriations Committee rejected all the steep cuts proposed by the Trump Administration for DOE research and development programs. Instead, all DOE programs would see increased funding except for fossil energy and nuclear energy research and development, which would be maintained at FY 2019 levels. Overall, the House bill advances all research programs of interest to universities, National Laboratories, and the broader research community.

The House Appropriations Committee once again rejected the Trump Administration’s focus on supporting only early-stage research because it would “forego the nation’s scientific capabilities in medium- and later-stage research and development and will not fully realize the technological advancements that can and should happen as a result of the Department’s applied energy activities.” The committee instead funded a more balanced, comprehensive research portfolio that includes “medium and later-stage research, development, deployment, and demonstration activities.” The committee further directed DOE to “expend funding in an expeditions manner, to include the timely issuance of funding opportunity announcements and awards of funds.” The committee would also direct DOE to expand opportunities for universities and develop solicitations in applied energy programs that “capitalize on the research infrastructure and expertise at universities across the country.”

Below is a summary of funding levels for relevant programs proposed in the bill, followed by a more detailed description of each program area:

• ARPA-E would not be terminated as proposed again in the FY 2020 President’s budget request and instead would see a $59 million or 16.1 percent increase compared to FY 2019.
• Four Energy Innovation Hubs would be fully funded and would focus on energy storage, solar fuels, critical materials, and desalination, which is a new topic.
• The bill would provide funding for two Clean Energy Manufacturing Innovation Institutes: an existing one and a new one focused on cybersecurity for manufacturing. Two other institutes would expire at the end of their current five-year awards.
• The bill would provide $809 million for the Exascale Computing Initiative, an increase of $173 million or 27 percent compared to the FY 2019 enacted level. The Office of Science (SC) would receive $500 million and NNSA would receive $309 million.
• SC would receive a 4 percent increase above the FY 2019 enacted level, with a priority on construction and maximizing operations of new science facilities and exascale computers, as well as new quantum and machine learning initiatives.
• Within SC, the highest priority is the Fusion Energy Sciences (FES) program, with a significant increase in funding for the construction of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) fusion energy project.
• The bill would provide $120 million for Energy Frontier Research Centers (EFRCs), enabling continued support for 31 existing centers and a $30 million competition for new centers.
• The four Bioenergy Research Centers would be fully funded at $100 million.
• The bill would support at least $168 million, consistent with the budget request, to maintain a core research program primarily for single Principal Investigators and small groups in quantum information science (QIS) and move forward with a competition for National Quantum Information Science Research Centers, but the bill does not allocate a specific funding amount for the centers and gives DOE discretion based on available funds.
• For applied energy programs, the bill provides increases for renewable energy, energy efficiency, grid modernization, and cybersecurity programs and keeps level funding for fossil and nuclear energy research and development programs.
• The bill establishes a new crosscutting program for long duration grid-scale energy storage that would advance a broad suite of energy storage technologies.
• The bill would provide $5 million to the Office of Technology Transitions to compete regional “incubators supporting energy innovation clusters.”
• The bill directs DOE to evaluate the benefits of creating a DOE foundation to leverage private sector funding to advance DOE-funded energy technologies.
• NNSA’s Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation program would see an increase of $269 million, or 12 percent above the FY 2019 enacted level, with increased funding for the academic alliance and partnerships program, inertial confinement fusion, exascale computing, and enhanced capabilities for subcritical experiments.
• The bill would fully fund the University Consortia for Nuclear Nonproliferation Research.

The Office of Science and ARPA-E

The House bill would provide $6.87 billion for SC, a $285 million, or 4.3 percent, increase above the FY 2019 enacted level. However, the additional funding would not be applied proportionally across the six SC program offices. Changes relative to FY 2019 would range from an increase of 22 percent for FES to a small decrease of 1.1 percent for Basic Energy Sciences (BES).

The report accompanying the bill would include support for several SC-wide initiatives. In keeping with FY 2019, the report includes language offering congressional support for investments in QIS within SC, including a competition for National Quantum Information Science Research Centers. While the report does not specify a funding level for these activities, the additional funding for SC would support the requested level of $168 million. Likewise, the report expresses support for SC-wide artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning activities without allocating funding. Similar to quantum, DOE would have the discretion to use $71 million in AI and machine learning investments, as proposed in the budget request. In keeping with ongoing Administration and congressional priorities, the bill would provide the requested $500 million for the SC portion of the Exascale Computing Initiative (ECI). The bill also encourages DOE to pursue collaborations with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) that leverage the Department’s research and instrumentation assets to address biomedical research challenges.

The bill would provide Advanced Scientific Computing Research (ASCR) with $956.5 million, an increase of $21 million or 2.2 percent over the FY 2019 level, and $35.7 million or 3.9 percent above the request. The bill would provide the Administration’s proposed level of $188.7 million for the Exascale Computing Project (ECP), a significant decrease of 19 percent from the FY 2019 level. This reduction signals the ramp-down of development activities in preparation for the planned deployment of exascale computing systems starting in 2021. The requested cut to ECP, coupled with modest growth to the ASCR topline, would accommodate a major increase of $24.4 million or 18.6 percent to fundamental research through the Mathematical, Computational, and Computer Science Research programs. Funding for the Leadership Computing Facilities at Argonne and Oak Ridge National Laboratories would also increase, including $275 million for ECI-related activities. Meanwhile, funding for the Computational Science Graduate Fellowship program would be held flat at $10 million.

Biological and Environmental Research (BER) would be funded at $730 million, an increase of $25 million or 3.5 percent over FY 2019 and 47.6 percent above the request. The bill would fully fund the Bioenergy Research Centers at $100 million and provide $10 million for microbiome research activities, including a microbiome database. The report expresses support for BER’s funding of university-led Earth systems modeling efforts and would maintain funding of $15 million for developing next-generation cloud-aerosol modeling as part of ECI. The report frames the need for these activities within the context of the National Climate Assessment. Additional allocations would include: $20 million for modeling and observation of land-water interfaces that leverages the capabilities and expertise of the National Laboratories and local universities; and $10 million to restart the Low Dose Radiation program, which was authorized into law in September 2018 under P.L. 115-246, the Department of Energy Research and Innovation Act.

The largest increase in terms of both percentage and total funding would go to FES. The office would receive an increase of $124 million or 22 percent above FY 2019 for a total of $688 million. The vast majority of the additional funding would be driven by a $98 million increase to the U.S. contribution to ITER and a $20 million increase to support the Matter in Extreme Conditions Petawatt Upgrade at SLAC. The growth in the topline would also enable a modest increase of $6 million to the FES research account. In addition, the report would provide $4 million for a new Fusion Public-Private Partnership Program to support basic research and development to advance U.S.-based fusion capabilities. Within 90 days of enactment, DOE would be required to provide a report to the Appropriations Committee on the “technical objectives, eligibility requirements, and funding profile in future fiscal years” for the new program.

High Energy Physics (HEP) would receive $1.045 billion, an increase of $65 million over the FY 2019 enacted level and $277 million above the President’s budget request. This topline level would support increases for the construction of the Long Baseline Neutrino Facility/Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (LBNF/DUNE) and Proton Improvement Plan II (PIP-II) accelerator upgrade to keep both projects on schedule. This funding level would also accommodate an increase for research activities, as well as facilities maintenance and modernization needs. Additional allocations would include $25 million for the Sanford Underground Research Facility, $50 million for accelerator research and development, and $98 million for the High Luminosity Large Hadron Collider (HL-LHC) upgrade at CERN. The report also includes language urging DOE to cultivate a balanced portfolio of small- to large-scale projects and “ensure adequate funding for research performed at universities and national laboratories.”

The bill would provide $735 million for Nuclear Physics (NP), an increase of $45 million or 6.5 percent over FY 2019 and 17.6 percent above the request. The growth in the topline would be driven entirely by a $54 million increase to the Operations and Maintenance account, within which $10 million would be directed toward early-stage research and development in support of the Electron Ion Collider (EIC), NP’s future flagship experiment. Funding for the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams would be decreased by $35 million as planned based on the construction schedule.

ARPA-E would not be terminated, as proposed in all three of the Trump Administration’s budget requests, and instead would receive an increase of $59 million over the FY 2019 enacted level. This increased funding would allow ARPA-E to create two additional focused programs. ARPA-E plans to support research on energy-smart farms, advanced nuclear reactors, performance-based energy resource feedback, optimization, and risk management for grid operations, and low-cost fusion energy devices and technologies. The House Appropriations Committee also included report language preventing DOE from using any appropriated funds to plan or execute the termination of the agency. In addition, the House report included language highlighting the scientific and economic value of ARPA-E-supported research and called previous proposals to eliminate the agency short-sighted.

Applied Energy Programs

The House bill would reject the budget request proposal to make steep cuts to all applied energy programs. Though the bill prioritizes renewable energy, energy efficiency, and grid modernization research efforts, it maintains a balanced approach by also maintaining stable funding for fossil and nuclear energy research.

The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) would receive $2.65 billion, which is $273 million, or 11 percent, above the FY 2019 enacted level and $2.3 billion above the budget request. The bill would increase all renewable energy and energy efficiency programs, though the level of increases varies from 20 percent for Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies to 7 percent for Geothermal Technologies. Some of the priorities identified in the sustainable transportation section of the House bill include innovative battery research for vehicles, as well as hydrogen and fuel cell technologies for stationary, vehicle, and portable power applications. Renewable energy priorities include research and development to improve photovoltaic cell technologies, overcome grid integration challenges, reduce the costs of solar adoption, as well as advance technologies for concentrated solar power, next generation offshore wind energy, and marine energy. The committee would encourage DOE to hold a workshop that includes “behavioral and social scientists to explore ways to improve the adoption rate of energy efficient technologies” and to support related research. The committee recommends energy efficiency priorities include research and development on advanced manufacturing and natural gas use in residential applications. The bill would provide $28 million to support two Clean Energy Manufacturing Innovation Institutes, including a new cybersecurity for manufacturing institute. However, the committee expressed concerns that such an institute would be duplicative of existing Department of Defense (DOD) efforts and recommended that DOE coordinate with DOD before issuing an award. The bill would also provide $25 million for the Critical Materials Institute (Energy Innovation Hub) and $20 million for the Desalination Hub, which would provide funding for the fourth year of the program.

Fossil Energy research and development would remain flat compared to the FY 2019 enacted level. Reflective of House Democrat priorities, FE would undergo a major shift from the narrow development of technologies focused largely on de-carbonized power generation to a wider array of activities aimed at addressing carbon storage and utilization in multiple sectors. This includes $10 million for research in direct air capture and $30 million for carbon utilization, including the conversion of carbon dioxide to higher-value products such as “chemicals, plastics, building materials, curing for cement…and biological conversion systems. The bill also directs the Office of Fossil Energy to partner with the Office of Science and the Bioenergy Technologies Office to develop a program based on the recommendations of two National Academy of Sciences reports, ‘‘Negative Emissions Technologies and Reliable Sequestration: A Research Agenda’’ and ‘‘Gaseous Carbon Waste Streams Utilization: Status and Research Needs.” While funding for carbon capture, storage, and utilization accounts would see slight increases, the portfolio of natural gas and unconventional fossil energy technologies would see a reduction below FY 2019 enacted of $3 million and $16 million, respectively.

The Office of Nuclear Energy (NE) would see a slight decrease of $8 million or 0.6 percent compared to FY 2019, but that level is $494 million or 60 percent above the budget request. The bill highlights strong support for the Nuclear Energy University Program, reminds DOE to set aside 20 percent of nuclear energy research and development funding for university-led research and development and infrastructure projects, and would provide no less than $40 million to support “R&D activities performed at U.S. colleges and universities.” The bill would also restore $5 million for the integrated university program which supports nuclear science and engineering.

The bill would advance the top DOE and congressional research and development priorities for nuclear energy, including:

• $100 million for light water and non-light water small modular reactors;
• $20 million for a new solicitation for at least two new public-private partnerships to advance non-light water reactor designs toward demonstration;
• $76 million for accident tolerant fuels;
• $45 million for high-assay low enriched uranium fuel recovery and production;
• $11 million for a hydrogen production demonstration at an existing nuclear reactor; and
• $65 million to complete conceptual design for a Versatile Advanced Reactor at Idaho National Laboratory

The bill would not provide any additional funding support for the Nuclear Energy Innovation Hub, with the last year of funding in FY 2019, and instead it would transfer the Hub activities to the nuclear energy advanced modeling and simulation program. The bill would not provide funding for the Yucca Mountain spent fuel repository and instead would allocate $25 million to move forward with interim storage. Further, it would direct the National Academy of Sciences to launch a study that “evaluates the merits and viability of different nuclear fuel cycles and technology options, including both existing and future technologies.” Consistent with a recommendation from the Blue Ribbon Commission of America’s Nuclear Future, the study would “account for linkages among all the elements of the fuel cycle (including waste transportation, storage, and disposal) and for broader safety, security, and non-proliferation concerns.”

The bill would provide a significant funding boost to grid modernization and cybersecurity programs. The Office of Electricity (OE) would be increased by $44 million or 28 percent compared to FY 2019 enacted levels. The bill would continue its strong support for the Grid Modernization Initiative (GMI), and direct DOE to “continue the ongoing work between the national laboratories, industry, and universities to improve the grid reliability and resiliency through the strategic goals” of the GMI. The bill’s top research and development priorities align with DOE’s priorities, including a North American energy resiliency model with improved grid cyber resilience, megawatt scale energy storage, advanced sensors and controls, and more resilient transmission assets.

The report specifically calls out efforts to “support the integration of sensors into the nation’s electric distribution systems, fundamental research and field validation of microgrid controllers and systems, and transactive energy concepts, including studies and evaluations of energy usage behavior in response to price signals.” The report would also direct DOE to establish a crosscutting program for long duration grid-scale energy storage that would advance a broad suite of energy storage technologies and examine technical, regulatory, and market issues to achieve cost, performance, reliability, and resilience targets. This effort would be coordinated with the SC, EERE, NE, and FE and is consistent with the Administration’s request for an Advanced Energy Storage Initiative.

The House bill would also boost funding for the Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response (CESER). It would fund research and development activities under the cybersecurity for energy delivery systems program at $95 million, an increase of $5.5 million or 5.7 percent above FY 2019 enacted levels. The committee specifically calls out $10 million to “isolate automated systems and remove vulnerabilities that could allow unauthorized access to the grid through digital software systems and $4 million for new university-based research of “scalable cyber-physical platforms for resilient and secure electric power systems that are flexible, modular, self-healing, and autonomous.” Overall, the committee “places a high priority on ensuring the protection of the grid against cyberattacks and extreme weather events caused by climate change.”

National Nuclear Security Administration

The House bill would fund NNSA at $15.9 billion, $666 million above the FY 2019 enacted level and $591 million below the President’s budget request. This is the first time in five years that the House has released an Energy-Water bill that would provide less funding than requested for NNSA. The biggest increase would be for nuclear weapons activities, which would grow $661 million or 6 percent above the FY 2019 enacted level, but still $648 million below the budget request. The bill would also reject new projects proposed in the Nuclear Posture Review. Specifically, it would provide no funding to complete a new low-yield submarine launched missile and would significantly reduce funding for a new nuclear intercontinental ballistic missile warhead until NNSA completes an assessment of alternatives and provides independent cost estimates.

Funding for research, development, testing, and evaluation activities, which support applied research and engineering programs for the stockpile stewardship program, would be funded at $2.3 billion, an increase of $269 million or 12 percent above the F 2019 enacted level. The bill would fund the academic alliance and partnership program at $56 million, an increase of $2.6 million or 4.8 percent above the FY 2019 enacted level. This would fully fund university-led Centers of Excellence and calls for a new “cooperative education pilot initiative focused on workforce readiness in disciplines such as materials science, manufacturing, and engineering.” The bill would also increase funding for the inertial confinement fusion program by $20 million for a total of $565 million to fully support target production and academic user programs. The bill also calls for an independent JASON advisory committee review of the program to assess the value and effectiveness of the program and recommend future research priorities. Further, it would provide the full $309 million request to support NNSA’s exascale research and infrastructure improvement efforts.

The House bill would also provide $2.1 billion for nonproliferation, $145 million above FY 2019. The bill includes $15 million to fully fund the three University Consortia for Nuclear Nonproliferation Research.

Department of Energy
(In thousands of $)

Source: The Energy and Water Development Appropriations Bill, 2020 Committee Report is available at https://appropriations.house.gov/sites/democrats.appropriations.house.gov/files/FY2020%20E&W%20Report%20Draft.pdf.

PREPARED BY LEWIS-BURKE ASSOCIATES LLC

View full report: Tufts Washington Update – May 8, 2019

Contents

• Introduction
• Administration and Policy Updates
  • President Trump Issues Cybersecurity Workforce Executive Order
• Agency Updates
  • National Science Foundation Outlines New Direction for Social Behavioral and Economic (SBE) Sciences Programs
  • National Science Board Seeks Nominations for Board Members for 2020-2026 Term
  • National Institute of Standards and Technology Releases Request For Information on AI Standards
• Funding Opportunities
  • National Science Foundation Releases Dear Colleague Letter Related to Coastlines and People (CoPe).
  • National Science Foundation Releases Request For Information for Future Convergence Accelerator Topics
  • National Science Foundation Releases Joint Dear Colleague Letter with UKRI on Bioinformatics, Microbiome, Quantum Biology and Synthetic Biology/Synthetic Cell
  • Department of Defense Releases New Funding Opportunity Announcement for the Minerva Research Initiative
  • Army Futures Command Releases Broad Agency Announcement for Disruptive Applications
  • U.S. Agency for International Development Releases New Partnerships Initiative (NPI)

May 1, 2019 | Lewis-Burke Associates LLC

IN THIS ISSUE

On the Front Lines: Air Force Reveals 2030 S&T Strategy for Future Dominance
After a yearlong study involving regional meetings across the nation with customers and stakeholders, Secretary of the Air Force Heather Wilson–in one of her final acts before leaving office– debuted the Air Force 2030 Science and Technology (S&T) Strategy. The strategy defines three objectives that will enable the Air Force to “dominate time, space, and complexity in future conflicts across all operating domains to project power and defend the home land” in preparation for great power competition with Russia and China.
 
The first objective – develop and deliver transformational strategic capabilities – defines five new technical capabilities that will enable the Air Force to be a global air and space power:

1. Global Persistent Awareness
2. Resilient Information Sharing
3. Rapid, Effective Decision-Making
4. Complexity, Unpredictability, and Mass
5. Speed and Reach of Disruption and Lethality

Lewis-Burke highlighted in its detailed analysis of the President’s FY 2020 Budget Request that these areas were presented together in the Air Force request for applied research and advanced technology development (6.2 and 6.3) budget activities, with new funding included for prototyping and experimentation to advance the development of Air Force weapons systems and warfighting concepts. The S&T strategy refers to this technology maturation effort as “vanguard” programs that seek to integrate multiple programs across Air Force S&T to enable and demonstrate new warfighter concepts.  These “vanguard” programs will be conducted independently by portfolio managers working with warfighters and future force designers.  “High-risk by design, their [vanguard] goal answers specific questions and informs future decisions by including the direction of future acquisition programs and identifying gaps where more research is still needed,” according to the S&T strategy.  In further support of the strategy, many research and development programs contained in the Air Force’s proposed FY 2020 budget prioritize high-tech efforts like multi-source, multi-intelligence analytics while cutting traditional sensor and imaging fusion programs.
 
The second objective defines reforms to the management of Air Force S&T with the creation of a chief technology officer (CTO).  The CTO is charged to lead the planning of S&T, coordinate with all stakeholders and customers, and manage the Air Force enterprise to include direct oversight of the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL). This objective unifies the multiple voices and dispersion of efforts across the Air Force to create a cohesive effort internally and a single face to outside stakeholders.
 
The third objective is to “deepen and expand the scientific and technical enterprise.” This objective speaks to enhancing recruitment and retention of scientists and engineers to include active duty Air Force STEM personnel by expanding the Air Force’s presence through technical personnel exchanges with universities, leveraging and expanding the Army Research Laboratory’s open campus concept for the Air Force, and creating partnerships with other government agencies, universities and industry.
 
For the university community, specific initiatives of interest include:

1. “Maintain a higher percentage of research sponsored by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research at universities in order to connect the Air Force to the broader scientific community and ensure access to the most competitive research laboratories.”
2. “Significantly expand competition for and engagement of university-based Air Force research through competitive grants awards, including the funding of doctoral students, summer faculty research experiences, and sabbaticals at Air Force laboratories in order to connect basic scientific talent outside of the Air Force to important Air Force problems.”
3. “Evaluate service pilots like the U.S. Army Research Laboratory’s open campus program potentially expanding engagement and formally integrating them into Air Force procedures.”
4. “Establish visiting professor or research faculty positions for Air Force researchers in research universities.”
5. “Provide a service to connect industry, individuals, universities, and government research centers with experts inside the Air Force science and technology enterprise. Encourage deeper dialogue between the Air Force science and technology enterprise and new connections to identify novel partnerships and potential opportunities for innovation.”
6. “Strengthen partnerships to increase tech transition – expand constructs such as centers of excellence (COE) to capitalize on basic research successes and provide opportunities for deeper university engagement at the applied research level where the Air Force can gain technological advantage.”
7. “Identify and support opportunities for multi-service or multi-agency funded research initiatives to create new synergies and leverage resources and technical talent.”

Given this is a strategy document and the Secretary is soon to depart, Lewis-Burke encourages clients to work with Lewis-Burke on ways to reach out to program managers and Air Force S&T leaders to offer support for strategy implementation.  Potential ideas to support implementation of the strategy include discussing COE topic areas, sabbatical opportunities, and policies that would enable an “open door” to the academic community.  Additionally, the AFOSR Director position is open to applications until May 9, 2019.
 
Sources and Additional Information:

• The press release announcing the strategy can be found at https://afresearchlab.com/news/new-air-force-science-technology-strategy-puts-focus-on-speed/.
• The full strategy can be found at https://afresearchlab.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Air-Force-Science-and-Technology-Strategy.pdf.

VIEW FROM THE HILL

Space Force Faces Skepticism from Congress
Members of House and Senate Armed Services Committees (HASC/SASC) voiced bipartisan concern about the redundancy of the proposed U.S. Space Force with existing national security space programs during separate hearings in April on fiscal year (FY) 2020 budget priorities.  At an April 3^rd HASC hearing, General John “Jay” Raymond, Commander of Air Force Space Command, defended the unique, essential roles of the U.S. Space Force and the Space Development Agency (SDA).  Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense and Global Security Kenneth Rapuano added that Space Force is a “fundamental component” to meeting U.S. national security needs.  Rapuano’s opening statement addressed concerns about maintaining U.S. superiority in space, stating that both U.S. reliance on space and adversarial international competition are at an “all-time high.”  Rapuano emphasized that the U.S. is losing its marginal advantage and continuously stated that we are not postured for the current global competition in space. 
 
Members of SASC echoed HASC members’ skepticism at an April 11^th hearing on the proposal to establish a U.S. Space Force.  Senators stressed that creating a separate structure risks isolating space from the other military Services and would create more bureaucracy.  Although research was not discussed at length, Senator Martin Heinrich (D-NM) raised specific concerns about duplication of efforts related to the role of the newly-established Space Development Agency (SDA) within the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (USD(R&E)).  More details regarding the SDA are provided in the article below.  Members at both hearings expressed confusion about the differentiation between U.S. Space Command and the U.S. Space Force.  General Joseph Dunford, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, clarified for the Senate that U.S. Space Command would be singularly focused on integrating all space-related operations, while Space Force would oversee training, acquisition, and organization.

Congress to Army Futures Command: Proceed with Caution
Congressional leaders urged the Army to educate and include them in decisions related to its massive reorganization and establishment of Army Futures Command (AFC), particularly since it involves reducing, delaying, and eliminating 186 programs to divert funding toward its six modernization priorities.  Army leadership testified on its modernization efforts in a series of hearings last month before the House Armed Services Committee (HASC), Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) Subcommittee on Airland, and the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense (HAC-D). 
 
While appropriators and authorizers generally supported the Army’s efforts to better position themselves for great power competition, HAC-D Chairman Pete Visclosky (D-IN) and Ranking Member Ken Calvert (R-CA) noted that the Army’s previous attempts at large modernization efforts had failed and questioned the witnesses on what they were doing to mitigate risk and ensure the organization would function properly.  Rep. Visclosky and SASC Airland Subcommittee Chairman Tom Cotton (R-AR) both encouraged the Army to educate Congress and state delegations to build support among Members whose constituents may be impacted by the reorganization.  Members asked what the Army is doing to balance its modernization priorities for future conflicts with the current needs of warfighters and how the Army would continue to interact with small businesses and non-traditional partners to address its science and technology needs.
 
AFC, headquartered at the University of Texas in Austin, is designed to bring together warfighters, scientists, concept developers and field testers, requirements writers, and acquisition officials to significantly hasten the development of new tactics and technologies.  To pursue this goal, AFC is reorganizing multiple Army research, acquisition, and operational requirements around its six modernization priorities, in order to break down the bureaucratic barriers impeding rapid fielding of new systems for the warfighter.  In the hearings, witnesses noted that AFC seeks to be fully operational by the end of July with 500 new hires, 400 civilians and 100 military, at its Austin headquarters.  AFC is currently at about 40 percent capacity, according to Lt. Gen James Richardson, AFC’s Deputy Commander.  Richardson noted that most personnel associated with the eight cross functional teams, who are leading the efforts around the Army’s modernization priorities, would not be relocating to Austin.

Congress Announces NDAA Markup Schedule
The House and Senate Armed Services Committees (HASC/SASC) have announced their markup schedules for the fiscal year (FY) 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).  In the House of Representatives, HASC scheduled its subcommittee markups for June 4-5, 2019 and its full committee markup for June 12, 2019.  Chairman Adam Smith (D-WA) anticipates full House consideration of the FY 2020 NDAA to take place in July 2019.
 
SASC scheduled its subcommittee markups for the week of May 20, 2019, most of which are closed to the public.  The full committee markup is scheduled for May 22-23, which is also closed and classified at the Secret level.  The House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee (HAC-D) has scheduled its defense appropriations bill markup for May 15, 2019.
 
Sources and Additional Information:

• The HASC markup schedule can be found at https://armedservices.house.gov/press-releases?ID=7F693CBB-9544-46D9-8539-64B58988A687.

The SASC markup schedule can be found at https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/hearings/19-05-22-schedule-for-armed-services-full-committee-markup-of-the-national-defense-authorization-act-for-fiscal-year-2020.

NATIONAL SECURITY NEWS

Space Development Agency Director Outlines Plans for New LEO Space Architecture
The Department of Defense’s (DOD) new Space Development Agency (SDA) has announced the broad contours of its proposed communications and transport network in low-Earth orbit (LEO).  SDA Director Fred Kennedy, who unveiled the concept at the 35th annual Space Symposium in early April in Colorado Springs, asserted that development of this new network would be the main priority for the nascent SDA and will address eight key priorities identified in a recent DOD report on national security space:

1. “Persistent global surveillance for advanced missile targeting;
2. Indications, warning, targeting, and tracking for defense against advanced missile threats;
3. Alternative positioning, navigating, and timing (PNT) for a GPS-denied environment;
4. Global and near-real time space situational awareness;
5. Development of deterrent capability;
6. Responsive, resilient, common ground-based space support infrastructure (e.g., ground stations and launch capability);
7. Cross-domain, networked, node-independent battle management command, control, and communications (BMC3), including nuclear command, control, and communications (NC3); and 
8. Highly-scaled, low-latency, persistent, artificial intelligence-enabled global surveillance.”

Kennedy noted that the new architecture would borrow significantly from innovations already pioneered by the commercial sector.  This position aligns with those articulated by high-level DOD officials, who noted that SDA’s primary emphasis would center on systems and architectures for space operations rather than the development of new technologies, at a recent Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) hearing.  Kennedy expanded on this by outlining SDA’s intent to build resilience into this new system by working with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and commercial partners to manufacture “commodities which we can update and replace or upgrade on short order.” 

Not all current DOD officials are supportive of the plan.  Outgoing Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson was particularly critical of what she characterized as a “one size fits all” approach that is an insufficient alternative to more complex architectures.  A more detailed plan will be presented to DOD leadership by the end of fiscal year (FY) 2019 with initial deployments planned for 2022. 

Source and Additional Information:

• The Final Report on the Organizational and Management Structure for the National Security Space Components of the Department of Defense is available at https://media.defense.gov/2018/Aug/09/2001952764/-1/-1/1/ORGANIZATIONAL-MANAGEMENT-STRUCTURE-DOD-NATIONAL-SECURITY-SPACE-COMPONENTS.PDF.

Defense Innovation Board Solicits Public Input on DOD Principles for Ethical AI
In an effort to increase transparency and build public trust, the Defense Innovation Board (DIB) held a public listening session on April 25^th in Stanford, CA, to obtain feedback on DIB’s efforts to create principles for ethical and responsible use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) at the Department of Defense (DOD).  DIB, chaired by Alphabet Inc.’s former executive chairman Eric Schmidt, is DOD’s advisory committee tasked with considering how to improve the internal operations and culture of the Department.  DIB was tasked by DOD in July 2018 to consult the public in developing recommendations for AI Principles for Defense.  This effort follows public and industry concerns about DOD’s use of AI.  Most notably, this includes reports of Google ending its contract with the Pentagon to work on Project Maven, a DOD program to develop AI for analyzing images from drones, after employees protested that their work would be used to support lethal military operations.
 
During the listening session, the Board said it would not shy away from hearing from AI skeptics, DOD critics, and non-traditional DOD partners as it wants to engage all stakeholders to build public trust in DOD’s use of AI.  Chuck Allen, DOD’s Deputy General Counsel for International Affairs, discussed the Department’s strong commitment to ethics and legality across all DOD programs.  He noted that DOD’s AI Strategy, released in 2018, focuses on leading the way in military ethics and compliance with the laws of war, known as International Humanitarian Law.  Allen noted that AI, if used responsibly, can provide better situational awareness to make more accurate decisions and prevent collateral damage.  DOD is developing AI support for first responders and humanitarian operations, he said.  However, he acknowledged DOD’s awareness that if AI is not used responsibly, it can lead to unintended engagements that may cause civilian casualties and collateral damage.  For this reason, DOD recognizes the need to embrace a diversity of ideas when developing AI.
 
Attendees included several academic AI researchers, civil society groups, and former members of the military.  While attendees’ views on AI varied, many expressed concerns over a number of technical issues such as keeping humans in the decision-making loop for AI systems, preventing warfighters’ overreliance on AI in decision making, preventing the manipulation of data to disrupt AI systems (known as adversarial AI), and ensuring that AI systems explained their decisions in a transparent matter. 
 
DIB will continue to collect written public comments until September 30, 2019. Those interested in submitting comments may do so on the public listening session’s webpage, linked above, or via email at osd.innovation@mail.mil.

OUSD(R&E) Launches New Website
The Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (OUSD(R&E)) launched a new public website, https://www.cto.mil.  Dr. Lisa Porter, Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for R&E, stated that the website’s goal is to engage with the broader research and development community to bring “new capabilities and technology” to the warfighter.  The website launch follows the April 25^th DOD Lab Day, which showcased innovative R&D in Department labs, warfare centers, and engineering centers.

President Trump Announces Military Nominations
Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick M. Shanahan announced on April 9^th that President Trump made the following General Officer nominations:

• Army Gen. Mark A. Milley for appointment to the rank of general, and assignment as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Pentagon, Washington, District of Columbia.  
• Air Force Gen. John E. Hyten for appointment to the rank of general, and assignment as vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Pentagon, Washington, District of Columbia. 
• Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Eric M. Smith for appointment to the rank of lieutenant general, and assignment as deputy commandant for Combat Development and Integration, Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps; and commanding general, Marine Corps Combat Development Command.  
• Air Force Maj. Gen. Eric T. Fick for appointment to the rank of lieutenant general, and assignment as director, Joint Strike Fighter Program, Office of the Secretary of Defense, Arlington, Virginia.
• Air Force Maj. Gen. Marc H. Sasseville for appointment to the rank of lieutenant general, and assignment as commander, Continental U.S. North American Aerospace Defense Command Region; and commander, First Air Force (Air Forces Northern), Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida.  

An additional 23 nominations for the rank of major general were announced on April 3^rd.

Sources and Additional Information:

• The press release for April 9 nominations can be found at https://dod.defense.gov/News/News-Releases/News-Release-View/Article/1809880/general-officer-announcements/.
• The press release for April 3 nominations can be found at https://dod.defense.gov/News/News-Releases/News-Release-View/Article/1804896/general-officer-announcements/.

Defense Personnel Changes
Dr. Justin Sanchez, Director of the Biological Technologies Office (BTO) at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), is joining Battelle as a technical fellow.  Sanchez will be the company’s second fellow and joining Dr. Amy Heintz, who is an expert in advanced materials.  Battelle’s technical fellows lead the company’s technical investment strategies across industry, government, and academia.  Dr. Brad Ringeisen, the Deputy Director of DARPA BTO, is serving as Acting Director.

Dr. Alexander Titus, who handled defense and national security matters at McKinsey & Company, was named Assistant Director of Defense Research & Engineering (R&E) for Biotechnology at the Department of Defense (DOD).  As Assistant Director, Titus leads all R&E efforts within the biotechnology portfolio, including DOD’s modernization efforts and innovation strategy.

Dr. Matthew Daniels, advisor in the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) and the office of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Administrator, was named the new Technical Director of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) in the office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (USD(R&E)).  In this new role, Daniels will develop a Department-wide AI/ML strategy.

Mr. Brett Goldstein, advisor to the Navy on cybersecurity and former Chief Data Officer and Chief Information Officer for the City of Chicago, will be the new Director of the Defense Digital Service (DDS).  Goldstein will leave his tech investment firm, Ekistic Ventures, to take on the role.  Goldstein is replacing DDS Director Chris Lynch, who led the launch of the “hacking contests” across the Services, which led to the discovery of thousands of vulnerabilities in DOD websites.  DDS is known for its commitment to solving digital issues in the DOD, including fixing issues with the JEDI cloud contract and the Defense Travel System (DTS). 

Dr. Barton Halpern, former Picatinny Arsenal scientist, will be the new director of the Army Research Office (ARO).  Halpern will oversee ARO’s annual budget of $450 million and lead ARO’s development and discovery of Army defense technologies and capabilities.  Halpern was also named a member of the Senior Executive Service.  At Picatinny, Halpern served as a portfolio manager for science and technology (S&T).

FUNDING AND ENGAGEMENT OPPORTUNITIES

AFOSR Releases BAA for Research Interests
The Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) released a broad agency announcement (BAA) for research interests in two broad areas: Engineering and Information Sciences (RTA) and Physical and Biological Sciences (RTB).  The announcement remains open until superseded and proposals are reviewed on a rolling basis, although some specific topics may recommend specific dates.  Of note, the solicitation lists its international offices to include the International Student Exchange Program (ISEP).  The solicitation also states that AFOSR may award commercial grants to for-profit organizations.  Additionally, there may be an opportunity for short-term efforts called “Sprints,” which are defined as an opportunity to showcase basic research impact in performing grant-relevant research and development activities within the context of the Department of Defense (DOD) or sub-component experiments and initiatives at the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) or other DOD facilities.  The full solicitation can be found under solicitation number “FA9550-19-S-0003” on www.grants.gov.
 
ARO Releases BAA for Development of Quantum Algorithms
The Army Research Office (ARO) released a broad agency announcement (BAA) for the development of quantum algorithms.  The solicitation seeks proposals that will develop new quantum computing algorithms for “hard computational problems, develop insights into the power of quantum computation, and consider issues of quantum complexity and computability.”  ARO anticipates multiple three-year awards, and proposals are expected to request up to a total of $750,000 over the three-year period.  White papers, which are not required but strongly encouraged, are due on June 5, 2019 at 4:00 PM ET and proposals are due on August 1, 2019 at 4:00 PM ET.  The full solicitation can be found under solicitation number “W911NF-19-S-0010” on www.grants.gov. 

ARO Releases BAA for Trapped Ion Quantum Computing Systems
The Army Research Office (ARO) released a broad agency announcement (BAA) for Trapped Ion Qubits to address challenges associated with implementing high-fidelity and high-stability gates with trapped ion systems.  The BAA seeks to reduce noise levels, explore novel quantum information, and develop critical supporting technology for specific ion systems.  Proposals should address one of the three BAA goals:

1. Highly stable high fidelity trapped ion systems
2. Novel encoding and entanglement generation schemes
3. Key supporting technology to enable highly stable high fidelity trapped ion systems

ARO anticipates multiple three-year awards, and proposals are expected to request less than $1.5 million per year for goals 1 and 2 and less than $500,000 per year for goal 3.  White papers are due on June 11, 2019 at 4:00 PM ET, and full proposals are due on August 16, 2019 at 4:00 PM ET.  The full solicitation can be found under solicitation number “W911NF-19-S-0011” on www.grants.gov. 

AFRL Seeks Research on Robust and Efficient Computing Architectures, Algorithms, and Applications for Embedded Deep Learning
The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) released a funding opportunity for “Robust and Efficient Computing Architectures, Algorithms, and Applications for Embedded Deep Learning.”  AFRL seeks to achieve significantly reduced size, weight, and power consumption (SWaP) for deployable artificial intelligence and machine learning embedded computing capabilities for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C4ISR) applications and SWaP-constrained aircraft.  Of particular interest are advanced computing architectures, algorithms, and brain-inspired processing called neuromorphic computing.  The full solicitation can be found under solicitation number “FA875019S7007” at www.fbo.gov.

IARPA Announces Proposers Day for Space-Based Machine Automated Recognition Technique (SMART) Program
The Intelligence Advance Research Projects Activity (IARPA) announced it will host a proposers day on May 29, 2019 in Washington, DC in anticipation of its new broad agency announcement (BAA) for the Space-Based Machine Automated Recognition Technique (SMART) Program.  The SMART program seeks to develop tools for “broad-area search (BAS) over diverse environments to detect construction and other anthropogenic activities using time-series spectral imagery.”  The SMART program relies on spatial information as well as multi-spectral and multi-temporal capabilities.  Attendees must register by close of business on May 22, 2019 on this site.  The full proposers day announcement and draft BAA can be found under solicitation number “IARPA-BAA-19-04” on www.fbo.gov.

DHS CISA/S&T Solicits Secure and Resilient Mobile Network Infrastructure (SRMNI)
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) jointly published a five-year broad agency announcement (BAA) looking to develop new mobile communications security standards.  The solicitation would establish a research and development (R&D) project for a Secure and Resilient Mobile Network Infrastructure (SRMNI).  The project would investigate emerging and current challenges that slow down the federal adoption of mobile communications technologies, including risks associated with 5G innovation.  CISA and S&T will be holding a joint SRMNI Industry Day on May 16, 2019 to introduce the solicitation to mobile security leaders and experts.  The solicitation can be found under solicitation number “70RSAT19RB00000001” on www.fbo.gov.  

DARPA Announces Proposers Day for GEO Robotic Servicing Program
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) plans to host a proposers day on May 22, 2019 at the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) in Washington, DC for its Robotic Servicing of Geosynchronous Satellites (RSGS) program.  The RSGS program’s goal is to increase the resilience of U.S. space assets through building robots that can “operate in orbit to support satellites and other space-based infrastructure.”  The proposers day will provide an overview of the program, and registration for the RSGS proposers day ends on May 6, 2019 at 12:00 PM ET.  Attendance is limited to three per organization.  More information on how to register can be found in the full solicitation under solicitation number “DARPA-SN-19-49” on www.fbo.gov.

DARPA Announces Second ERI Summit 
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) announced its second annual Electronics Resurgence Initiative (ERI) Summit, which will be held in Detroit, Michigan on July 15-17, 2019.  ERI is DARPA’s five-year investment to improve electronics performance through collaboration among industry, university researchers, and the defense industrial base.  The 2019 Summit presentations will highlight the current achievements and collaborations of ERI programs, especially for semiconductor designers, manufacturers, and the electronics user base.  Registration is required and will close on June 24, 2019, or until the full capacity of 900 attendees is reached.  More information can be found here.
 
DARPA BTO Releases Office-wide BAA
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Biological Technologies Office (BTO) released an office-wide broad agency announcement (BAA) on April 23 for research ideas for new topics not already covered by current BTO programs or solicitations.  BTO’s mission is to conduct research in the cross-section of biology, engineering, computer science, mathematics, and the physical sciences, which includes breakthrough research in medicine, human-machine interfaces, environmental readiness and capabilities, and other research areas.  BTO anticipates making multiple awards, and proposal abstracts and full proposals will be accepted on a rolling basis until April 23, 2020 at 4:00 PM ET.  More information, including eligibility and submission information, can be found under solicitation number “HR001119S0048” on www.grants.gov. 

DARPA DSO Releases Opportunity on Teaching AI to Leverage Overlooked Residuals (TAILOR)
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Defense Sciences Office (DSO) released a solicitation on Teaching AI to Leverage Overlooked Residuals (TAILOR) under its Artificial Intelligence Exploration (AIE) program.  Under this opportunity, DARPA seeks to explore how AI systems can incorporate contextual reasoning and make counterfactual predictions, in order to help humans think through complex issues such as human performance optimization.  DARPA anticipates funding awards of up to $1 million but does not specify the number of proposals it will fund.  Proposals should be submitted through http://baa.darpa.mil no later than May 28, 2019 at 4:00 PM ET.  TAILOR is one of a series of opportunities that DARPA has released under the AIE program, a key facet of DARPA’s effort to ensure that the U.S. maintains a technological advantage in artificial intelligence (AI) research, development, and innovation.  More information on the TAILOR opportunity can be found under solicitation number “DARPA-PA-18-02-07” on www.fbo.gov.

DARPA I2O Releases BAA for ASIST Program
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Information Innovation Office (I2O) released a broad agency announcement (BAA) for its Artificial Social Intelligence for Successful Teams (ASIST) program.  The ASIST program will “develop foundational AI theory and systems that demonstrate the basic machine social skills needed to infer the goals and situational knowledge of human partners, predict what they will need, and offer context aware actions in order to perform as adaptable and resilient AI teammates.”  Therefore, research proposals should focus on machine social intelligence in a teaming context.  The ASIST program includes three technical areas (TAs):

• TA1: AI Agent Architectures
• TA2: Cognitive Modeling of Individuals and Teams
• TA3: Environment and Evaluation

DARPA anticipates making four to six awards for TA1, multiple smaller awards for TA2, and one award for TA3.  Proposals are due on May 17, 2019 at 12:00 PM ET.  The full solicitation can be found under solicitation number “HR001119S0034” on www.grants.gov.

DARPA MTO Releases BAA for AISS Program
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Microsystems Technology Office (MTO) released a broad agency announcement (BAA) for its Automatic Implementation of Secure Silicon (AISS) program.  The AISS program seeks to develop a “novel design flow for digital integrated circuits” to protect advanced chips from attacks.  The program’s two specific goals are the development of 1) automatic generation of on-chip security subsystems and 2) automatic generation of processor systems or platforms.  The AISS program also emphasizes the importance of security and design economics in Power, Area, Speed, and Security (PASS).  Full proposals are due on May 20, 2019.  The full solicitation can be found under solicitation number “HR001119S0044” on www.grants.gov.

DARPA DSO Releases BAA for ONISQ Program
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Defense Sciences Office (DSO) released a broad agency announcement (BAA) for its Optimization with Noisy Intermediate-Scale Quantum devices (ONISQ) program.  The ONISQ program seeks to establish that Quantum Information Processing (QIP) using Noisy Intermediate-Scale Quantum (NISQ) devices has a “quantitative advantage” for solving combinatorial optimization problems.  The BAA states a particular interest in quantum heuristics for low-depth quantum circuits in addition to its interest in hybrid optimization approaches.  DARPA anticipates making multiple awards for a total of $33 million.  Full proposals are due on June 10, 2019 at 4:00 PM ET.  The full solicitation can be found under solicitation number “HR001119S0052” on www.grants.gov.

MForesight Announces Fourth National Manufacturing Summit
The Alliance for Manufacturing Foresight (MForesight) announced that its fourth annual summit will take place on June 18, 2019 in Washington, DC.  MForesight is a national consortium that focuses on advanced manufacturing technologies to strengthen U.S. manufacturing competitiveness.  This year’s summit theme is “Restoring the U.S. Innovation Ecosystem,” which will focus on promoting American leadership in advanced manufacturing domestically.  MForesight plans to release its summit agenda and registration in the next few weeks, which can be found on its website.

MDA Releases BAA for Applied Research and Advanced Technology Development Services
The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) released a broad agency announcement (BAA) for Advanced Technology Innovation (ATI) seeking white papers for ballistic missile defense research and development (R&D).  MDA’s Ballistic Missile Defense focuses on advanced research technology development, including sensors, kinetic energy systems, directed energy systems, battle management, and command control elements to protect the U.S. and its allies from ballistic missile threats.  The BAA is seeking white papers in eleven topic areas (listed in the full solicitation), which include radar and radio frequency, directed energy systems, computer science, mathematics, materials, modeling and simulation, AI related to machine learning, and other important research areas for MDA.  The solicitation is open to applicants from private industry, qualified accredited domestic educational institutions, and nonprofit organizations.  White papers may be submitted until April 1, 2021.  The full solicitation can be found under solicitation number “HQ0147-19-S-0002” on www.fbo.gov.

WHAT WE’RE READING

Solving One of the Hardest Problems of Military AI: Trust
DefenseOne reports on the emergence of trust in artificial intelligence (AI) issues as new technologies emerge.  The article cites the “trust gap” between humans and machine learning (ML), which powers AI, and suggests that human-machine trust issues can be addressed through technical improvements and building a better human-machine interface.  Read more here.

Current AI Projects at DHS
Emerj reports on how the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has integrated AI into its operations.  Currently, DHS uses artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technology in border security, emergency response, and prevention of domestic terrorism. The article cites the agency’s participation in the Silicon Valley Innovations Program (SVIP), which helps DHS update and sophisticate its technology.  Read more here.

Government Blockchain Spending to Increase Greatly by 2022
Nextgov reports that the federal government’s spending on blockchain will grow to $123.5 million by 2022, which is a nearly $113 million increase since 2017.  Blockchain is expected to be a go-to solution for asset management, identity management, and smart contracts within the federal government.  Blockchain will also likely become used as a “reference point” in future trade legislation.  Read more here.

The Army Is Getting Driverless Vehicles Ahead of the Public
Observer reports that the Pentagon has allocated an additional $3.7 billion for research in unmanned and autonomous technologies.  The Army plans to use autonomous combat trucks to avoid accidental casualties caused by driving.  Dr. Michael D. Griffin, the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, has predicted that the Army will have self-driving cars before the public.  Read more here.

PREPARED BY LEWIS-BURKE ASSOCIATES LLC

View full report: Tufts Washington Update – April 23, 2019

Contents

• Introduction
• Agency Updates and Funding Opportunities
  • Department of Energy Solicits Proposals for AI Research, Research Time at Leadership Computing Facilities
  • Department of Energy Releases Two Opportunities for Technology Enhancements and Maturation
  • U.S. Agency for International Development Releases Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Crop Improvement Solicitation
  • National Institute of Food and Agriculture Releases AFRI Sustainable Agricultural Systems Request for Applications

PREPARED BY LEWIS-BURKE ASSOCIATES LLC

View full report: Tufts Washington Update – April 9, 2019

Contents

• Introduction
• Funding Opportunities
  • National Science Foundation Releases Dear Colleague Letter on Models for Uncovering Rules and Unexpected Phenomena in Biological Systems
  • National Science Foundation and National Institute of Food and Agriculture Release Dear Colleague Letter for Research at the Intersection of Agricultural Science, Informatics, and Smart Communities
  • U.S. Department of Education Announces Teacher Quality Partnership Grant Program Application
  • Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency Defense Sciences Office Announces Opportunity to Meet with Program Managers
• Agency Updates
  • Department of Energy Upcoming Funding Opportunities and Future Research Directions for Applied Math, Computer Science, and High Performance Computing
• Hearing Updates
  • House Committees Hold Hearings on FY 2020 NASA Budget Request

Prepared by Lewis-Burke Associates LLC – March 21, 2019

View Full Report: Analysis of the President’s FY 2020 Budget Request for Federal Research, Health, and Higher Education Programs

Table of Contents
Executive Summary …………………………………………………………….………. 3
Department of Commerce ……………………………………………….…………….. 5
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ………………..………………. 5
National Institute of Standards and Technology …………………………………….. 7
Economic Development Administration ………………………………..……………. 9
Department of Defense ………………………………………………………………… 10
Department of Education ………………………………………………………………. 14
Department of Energy ………………………………………………………….………. 18
Department of Health and Human Services ………………………..……………… 23
National Institutes of Health ……………………………………………………………. 23
Food and Drug Administration ……………………………………………….……….. 28
Department of Health and Human Services (Other) ………………..……………. 30
Department of Homeland Security ……………………………………….………….. 36
Department of Justice ……………………………………………………………..…… 39
Department of Labor …………………………………………………………..……….. 42
Department of Transportation ……………………………………………..………….. 44
Department of State and U.S. Agency for International Development …………… 47
Environmental Protection Agency …………………………………………………….. 50
Institute of Museum and Library Services ……………………………………….….. 53
National Aeronautics and Space Administration …………………………………… 54
National Endowment for the Humanities & National Endowment for the Arts …. 59
National Science Foundation ……………………………………………….………… 61
U.S. Department of Agriculture ……………………………………………..………… 68
U.S. Geological Survey ………………………………………………………..……….. 71

PREPARED BY LEWIS-BURKE ASSOCIATES LLC

View full report: Tufts Washington Update – March 26, 2019

Contents

• Introduction
• Administration and Policy Updates
  • White House Announces Executive Order on Campus Free Speech and Student Outcomes
  • Department of Labor Publishes Proposed Rule on Overtime Pay
• Hearing Updates
  • House Science Committee Holds Hearing on Engineering Biology R&D
• Agency Updates and Funding Opportunities
  • National Science Foundation Releases Solicitation for Science and Technology Centers (STC): Integrative Partnerships
  • National Science Foundation Releases Convergence Accelerator Pilot Dear Colleague Letter
  • Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and National Science Foundation Announce New Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning Opportunities
  • National Endowment for the Humanities Releases Infrastructure and Capacity Building Challenge Grant Application
  • Health Resources and Services Administration Issues Opioid Workforce Expansion Program Solicitation for Behavioral Health Professionals