This is brilliant! Writing to the subcommittee members to say "Hey, I support this!" would be a good thing to do, especially if you're in the district that any of them is in. <br><br>Even if it doesn't come to pass, I find this really encouraging!<br>
<br>-- Rose/yarnivore<br><br><div class="gmail_quote">On Thu, Sep 23, 2010 at 10:27 AM, Bryan Bishop <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:kanzure@gmail.com">kanzure@gmail.com</a>></span> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); padding-left: 1ex;">
I got wind of this from Ted Hall ("the ShopBot guy") on the open<br>
manufacturing group. There's a good chance the committee won't get the<br>
bill out the door for general debate, but this is worth watching,<br>
talking about, and maybe supporting (somehow). Also, if you know<br>
anyone of the committee members (listed below) asking them "what's up"<br>
would be cool :-).<br>
<br>
National Fab Lab Network Act of 2010<br>
<a href="http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h111-6003" target="_blank">http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h111-6003</a><br>
<br>
full text:<br>
<a href="http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c111:h6003" target="_blank">http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c111:h6003</a>:<br>
<br>
"""<br>
HR 6003 IH<br>
<br>
111th CONGRESS<br>
<br>
2d Session<br>
<br>
H. R. 6003<br>
<br>
To provide for the establishment of the National Fab Lab Network to<br>
build out a network of community based, networked Fabrication<br>
Laboratories across the United States to foster a new generation with<br>
scientific and engineering skills and to provide a workforce capable<br>
of producing world class individualized and traditional manufactured<br>
goods.<br>
<br>
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES<br>
<br>
July 30, 2010<br>
<br>
Mr. FOSTER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the<br>
Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on<br>
Science and Technology, for a period to be subsequently determined by<br>
the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall<br>
within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned<br>
<br>
A BILL<br>
<br>
To provide for the establishment of the National Fab Lab Network to<br>
build out a network of community based, networked Fabrication<br>
Laboratories across the United States to foster a new generation with<br>
scientific and engineering skills and to provide a workforce capable<br>
of producing world class individualized and traditional manufactured<br>
goods.<br>
<br>
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United<br>
States of America in Congress assembled,<br>
<br>
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.<br>
<br>
This Act may be cited as the ‘National Fab Lab Network Act of 2010’.<br>
<br>
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.<br>
<br>
Congress finds the following:<br>
<br>
(1) The United States is the world leader in scientific research,<br>
discovery, and innovation.<br>
<br>
(2) There exists a strong social and economic incentive to create the<br>
fewest barriers to entry for those interested in furthering education,<br>
discovery, invention, and innovation in the scientific, technological,<br>
engineering, and mathematical fields.<br>
<br>
(3) The United States has a strong strategic interest in promoting a<br>
robust, well trained, highly capable, and geographically diverse<br>
manufacturing base.<br>
<br>
(4) MIT’s Center for Bits and Atoms has contributed significantly to<br>
the advancement of these goals through its work in creating and<br>
advancing Fabrication Laboratories (Fab Labs) in the United States and<br>
abroad.<br>
<br>
(5) A new kind of national infrastructure will be required in order to<br>
adequately take advantage of leading edge digital fabrication<br>
technologies to secure the United States’ leading position in<br>
scientific fields and to promote a robust manufacturing base.<br>
<br>
(6) A focused, dedicated national effort will be required in order to<br>
ensure the creation of such an infrastructure takes place as quickly<br>
and effectively as possible.<br>
<br>
SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL FAB LAB NETWORK.<br>
<br>
(a) Establishment- The National Fab Lab Network incorporated by this<br>
Act (hereinafter in this section referred to as the ‘NFLN’) is hereby<br>
authorized and empowered to receive either real or personal property<br>
and to hold the same absolutely or in trust, and to invest, reinvest,<br>
and manage the same in accordance with the provisions of its<br>
constitution and to apply said property and the income arising<br>
therefrom to the objects of its creation and according to the<br>
instructions of its donors.<br>
<br>
(b) In General- The National Fab Lab Network (NFLN) shall exist as a<br>
nonprofit entity whose purpose is to facilitate the piece by piece<br>
construction of an actual network of connected labs. The NFLN itself<br>
shall not represent an overseeing, regulating, or coordinating body of<br>
this distributed network, but will merely exist to facilitate its<br>
construction.<br>
<br>
(c) Definitions- In this section, the term ‘Fabrication Laboratory’<br>
also referred to as a ‘Fab Lab’ means a facility containing a variety<br>
of manufacturing and other fabrication tools operable by means of<br>
digital input as well as the software and computers required to design<br>
for and operate those tools. These labs serve a broad range of<br>
purposes, but each allow for clear guidelines for how members of the<br>
local community, local businesses, and academic or educational<br>
purposes can be pursued with the labs’ resources consistent with a<br>
charter to be established by the NFLN.<br>
<br>
(d) Functions- The functions of the NFLN shall be the following:<br>
<br>
(1) To serve as the coordinating body for all efforts to create a<br>
coordinated, collaborative network of Fab Labs in the United States.<br>
<br>
(2) To serve as the first point of contact for organizations<br>
interested in constructing and operating a Fab Lab and to maintain a<br>
first-come first-serve wait list of those organizations.<br>
<br>
(3) To work out to the satisfaction of NFLN staff and board members<br>
the ability of interested organizations to successfully host a Fab<br>
Lab. In particular, the staff and board members of the NFLN shall<br>
examine the ability of the organization to supply a physical location<br>
for the lab, their financial ability to pay for sufficient staff to<br>
operate the lab and train its users, an ability to engage the local<br>
community or other sufficient user base, and an awareness of those<br>
long term obligations.<br>
<br>
(4) To match those organizations who meet with the NFLN’s approval for<br>
those criteria specified in paragraph (3) with available sources of<br>
funding and individuals with personal experience in establishing and<br>
operating Labs in other organizations so as to expedite the process of<br>
making new Labs operational. In general, the NFLN should not bring to<br>
this stage or continue to engage with those organizations that do not<br>
meet the NFLN’s approval on those criteria described in paragraph (3).<br>
<br>
(5) To advertise or perform other outreach activities to those<br>
organizations that might have interest in or otherwise benefit from<br>
creating a Fab Lab, and to notify those organizations of the specific<br>
purposes the NFLN can perform.<br>
<br>
(e) Purposes- In carrying out its functions, the NFLN’s purposes and<br>
goals shall be--<br>
<br>
(1) to facilitate the construction of a new type of information and<br>
digital fabrication infrastructure; specifically, in all its actions<br>
to facilitate and encourage the construction of a decentralized<br>
network of connected Fab Labs;<br>
<br>
(2) to promote the goals of greater science, technology, engineering,<br>
and math education, workforce development in the areas of<br>
manufacturing and product design, increased innovation and invention<br>
in the private sector, as well as scientific and academic discovery<br>
through the use of distributed digital fabrication tools; and<br>
<br>
(3) to seek to establish at least one Fab Lab per every 700,000<br>
individuals in the United States in the first ten years of its<br>
operation.<br>
<br>
(f) Funding- The NFLN may accept donations from private individuals,<br>
corporations, government agencies, or other organizations.<br>
"""<br>
<br>
referred to the Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation:<br>
<a href="http://science.house.gov/subcommittee/tech.aspx" target="_blank">http://science.house.gov/subcommittee/tech.aspx</a><br>
<br>
people:<br>
David Wu (Oregon)<br>
Donna F. Edwards (Maryland)<br>
Ben Ray Luján (New Mexico)<br>
Paul D. Tonko (New York)<br>
Harry E. Mitchell (Arizona)<br>
Gary Peters (Michigan)<br>
John Garamendi (California)<br>
Bart Gordon (Tennessee)<br>
Adrian Smith (Nebraska)<br>
Judy Biggert (Illinois)<br>
W. Todd Akin (Missouri)<br>
Paul Broun (Georgia)<br>
Ralph M. Hall (Texas)<br>
<br>
also referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce:<br>
<a href="http://energycommerce.house.gov/" target="_blank">http://energycommerce.house.gov/</a><br>
<br>
people:<br>
Henry A. Waxman, California, Chairman<br>
John D. Dingell, MI,<br>
Joe Barton, TX, Ranking Member<br>
Edward J. Markey, MA<br>
Ralph M. Hall, TX<br>
Rick Boucher, VA<br>
Fred Upton, MI<br>
Frank Pallone, Jr., NJ<br>
Cliff Stearns, FL<br>
Bart Gordon, TN<br>
Ed Whitfield, KY<br>
Bobby L. Rush, IL<br>
John Shimkus, IL<br>
Anna G. Eshoo, CA<br>
John Shadegg, AZ<br>
Bart Stupak, MI<br>
Roy Blunt, MO, Deputy Ranking Member<br>
Eliot L. Engel, NY<br>
Steve Buyer, IN<br>
Gene Green, TX<br>
George Radanovich, CA<br>
Diana DeGette, CO, Vice Chair<br>
Joseph R. Pitts, PA<br>
Lois Capps, CA<br>
Mary Bono Mack, CA<br>
Mike Doyle, PA<br>
Lee Terry, NE<br>
Jane Harman, CA<br>
Mike Rogers, MI<br>
Jan Schakowsky, IL<br>
Sue Wilkins Myrick, NC<br>
Charles A. Gonzalez, TX<br>
John Sullivan, OK<br>
Jay Inslee, WA<br>
Tim Murphy, PA<br>
Tammy Baldwin, WI<br>
Michael C. Burgess, TX<br>
Mike Ross, AR<br>
Marsha Blackburn, TN<br>
Anthony D. Weiner, NY<br>
Phil Gingrey, GA<br>
Jim Matheson, UT<br>
Steve Scalise, LA<br>
G. K. Butterfield, NC<br>
Parker Griffith, AL1<br>
Charlie Melancon, LA<br>
Robert E. Latta, OH2<br>
John Barrow, GA<br>
Baron P. Hill, IN<br>
Doris O. Matsui, CA<br>
Donna M. Christensen, VI<br>
Kathy Castor, FL<br>
John P. Sarbanes, MD<br>
Christopher S. Murphy, CT<br>
Zachary T. Space, OH<br>
Jerry McNerney CA<br>
Betty Sutton, OH<br>
Bruce L. Braley, IA<br>
Peter Welch, VT<br>
<br>
The sponsor was Bill Foster:<br>
<a href="http://www.govtrack.us/congress/person.xpd?id=412257" target="_blank">http://www.govtrack.us/congress/person.xpd?id=412257</a><br>
<a href="http://foster.house.gov/" target="_blank">http://foster.house.gov/</a><br>
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/CongressmanBillFoster" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/CongressmanBillFoster</a><br>
<br>
- Bryan<br>
<a href="http://heybryan.org/" target="_blank">http://heybryan.org/</a><br>
1 512 203 0507<br>
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</blockquote></div><br>