,,ii #aadth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #baac ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,september #cj1 #bjae ,mr4 ,coons 7for himself and ,mr4 ,daines7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,commerce1 ,science1 and ,transportation ,a ,,bill ,to harness the expertise1 ingenuity1 and creativity of all people to contribute to innovation in the ,united ,states and to help solve problems or scientific questions by encouraging and increasing the use of crowdsourcing and citizen science methods within the ,federal ,government1 as appropriate1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,crowdsourcing and ,citizen ,science ,act of #bjae4 #b4 ,sense of ,congress ,it is the sense of ,congress that-- 7#a7 the authority granted to ,federal agencies under the ,america ,,competes ,reauthorization ,act of #bjaj 7,public ,law #aaa-ceh7 to pursue the use of incentive prizes and challenges has yielded numerous benefits1 including-- 7,a7 paying only for success2 7,b7 establishing an ambitious goal without having to predict which team or approach is most likely to succeed2 7,c7 reaching out to individuals or a broader group of people to increase the number of minds tackling a problem2 7,d7 bringing out-of-discipline perspectives to bear2 and 7,e7 increasing cost-effectiveness to maximize the return on taxpayer dollars2 7#b7 granting ,federal agencies the direct1 explicit authority to use crowdsourcing and citizen science will-- 7,a7 remove ambiguity about whether an agency can use these techniques2 7,b7 encourage its appropriate use to advance agency missions2 and 7,c7 stimulate and facilitate broader public participation in the innovation process2 7#c7 crowdsourcing projects have a number of unique benefits1 including-- 7,a7 improving the delivery of government services with significantly lower ,federal or other public resource investments or at time scales or distribution scales that might not otherwise be possible2 7,b7 connecting citizens to the missions of ,federal agencies by promoting a spirit of open government and volunteerism2 7,c7 providing the acquisition of data at a greater geographic extent and in locations with a greater density or frequency than otherwise reasonably obtainable using conventional methods2 and 7,d7 enabling citizens to address community and research-based concerns by gathering1 analyzing1 and sharing data and information2 7#d7 citizen science has additional benefits1 including-- 7,a7 advancing and accelerating scientific research through group discovery1 the cocreation of knowledge1 and the inclusion of diverse perspectives2 7,b7 improving science literacy and providing skills needed to excel in science1 technology1 engineering1 and math1 thereby increasing ,american competitiveness2 7,c7 furthering science diplomacy through the worldwide collaboration between scientists and citizens2 and 7,d7 building trust and understanding between citizens and science and between citizens and scientists2 and 7#e7 since participants in crowdsourcing and citizen science projects participate in crowdsourcing or citizen science for a variety of reasons1 ,federal agencies should consider meaningful incentives to engage and retain participants depending on the range of motivations for potential participants1 including-- 7,a7 receiving attribution for their contributions to research2 7,b7 learning new skills and knowledge or educating others2 7,c7 connecting with new individuals or communities and building relationships2 and 7,d7 knowing that their work is helping to solve meaningful problems and contributing to broader scientific endeavors for the benefit of society4 #c4 ,crowdsourcing and citizen science 7a7 ,definitions ,in this section3 7#a7 ,citizen science ,the term citizen science means a form of open collaboration in which individuals or organizations participate in the scientific process in various ways1 including-- 7,a7 enabling the formulation of research questions2 7,b7 creating and refining project design2 7,c7 conducting scientific experiments2 7,d7 collecting and analyzing data2 7,e7 interpreting the results of data2 7,f7 developing technologies and applications2 7,g7 making discoveries2 and 7,h7 solving problems4 7#b7 ,crowdsourcing ,the term crowdsourcing means a method to obtain needed services1 ideas1 or content by soliciting voluntary contributions from a group of individuals or organizations1 especially from an online community4 7#c7 ,director ,the term ,director means the ,director of the ,office of ,science and ,technology ,policy4 7#d7 ,federal agency ,the term ,federal agency-- 7,a7 except as provided in subparagraph 7,b71 means-- 7i7 any ,executive agency 7as defined in section #aje of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code72 and 7ii7 any military department 7as set forth in section #ajb of such title72 and 7,b7 does not include any legislative branch agency4 7#e7 ,participant ,the term participant means any individual or other entity that has consented as a volunteer in a crowdsourcing or citizen science project under this section4 7#f7 ,related entity ,the term related entity means-- 7,a7 a ,federal ,government contractor or subcontractor1 at any tier2 and 7,b7 a supplier1 user1 customer1 cooperating party1 grantee1 investigator1 fellow1 or detailee of a ,federal agency4 7b7 ,crowdsourcing and citizen science authorized 7#a7 ,in general ,the head of each ,federal agency1 or the heads of multiple ,federal agencies working cooperatively1 may utilize crowdsourcing and citizen science approaches to conduct activities designed to advance the mission of the respective ,federal agency or the joint mission of ,federal agencies1 as applicable4 7#b7 ,voluntary services ,notwithstanding section #acdb of title #ca1 ,united ,states ,code1 the head of a ,federal agency may accept1 subject to regulations issued by the ,office of ,personnel ,management1 voluntary services from participants under this section if such services-- 7,a7 are performed as a part of a crowdsourcing or citizen science project authorized under paragraph 7#a72 7,b7 are not financially compensated for their time2 and 7,c7 will not be used to displace any employee of the ,federal ,government4 7c7 ,participation 7#a7 ,advertising ,the head of each ,federal agency engaged in a crowdsourcing or citizen science project under this section shall make public and promote such project to encourage broad participation of consenting participants4 7#b7 ,consent1 registration1 and terms of use 7,a7 ,in general ,each ,federal agency is authorized to determine the appropriate level of consent1 registration1 or acknowledgment of the terms of use that is required from participants in crowdsourcing or citizen science projects on a per-project basis4 7,b7 ,disclosures ,in seeking consent1 conducting registration1 or developing terms of use for a project under this subsection1 a ,federal agency shall disclose the privacy1 intellectual property1 data ownership1 compensation1 service1 program1 and other terms of use to the participant in a clear and reasonable manner4 7,c7 ,mode of consent ,a ,federal agency or ,federal agencies1 as applicable1 may obtain consent electronically or in written form from participants to the volunteer service terms of a crowdsourcing or citizen science project authorized under this section4 7#c7 ,human subjects ,any crowdsourcing or citizen science project that involves research involving human subjects shall be subject to part #df of title #bh1 ,code of ,federal ,regulations 7or any successor regulation74 7#d7 ,data ,notwithstanding security and privacy protections1 ,federal agencies shall endeavor to make data collected through a crowdsourcing or citizen science project authorized under this section open and available1 in machine readable formats1 to the public4 ,as part of the consent process1 the ,federal agency shall notify all participants-- 7,a7 of the expected uses of the data compiled through the project2 7,b7 if the ,federal agency will retain ownership of such data2 7,c7 if and how the data and results from the project would be made available for public or third party use2 and 7,d7 if participants are authorized to publish such data4 7#e7 ,technologies and applications ,notwithstanding the intellectual property rights of the ,federal ,government1 ,federal agencies shall endeavor to make technologies1 applications1 code1 and derivations of such intellectual property developed through a crowdsourcing or citizen science project under this section open and available to the public4 7#f7 ,liability ,each participant in a crowdsourcing or citizen science project under this section shall agree-- 7,a7 to assume any and all risks associated with such participation2 and 7,b7 to waive all claims against the ,federal ,government and its related entities1 except for claims based on willful misconduct1 for any injury1 death1 damage1 or loss of property1 revenue1 or profits 7whether direct1 indirect1 or consequential7 arising from participation in the project4 7#g7 ,scientific integrity ,federal agencies coordinating citizen science projects shall make all practicable efforts that participants adhere to all relevant scientific integrity or other applicable ethics policies4 7d7 ,multi-,sector partnerships ,the head of each ,federal agency engaged in crowdsourcing or citizen science under this section1 or the heads of multiple ,federal agencies working cooperatively1 may enter into a contract or other agreement to share administrative duties for such activities with-- 7#a7 a for-profit or nonprofit private sector entity1 including a private institution of higher education2 or 7#b7 a ,state1 tribal1 local1 or foreign government agency1 including a public institution of higher education4 7e7 ,funding ,in carrying out crowdsourcing and citizen science activities under this section1 the head of a ,federal agency1 or the heads of multiple ,federal agencies working cooperatively-- 7#a7 may use funds appropriated by ,congress2 7#b7 may request and accept funds or in kind support for such activities from-- 7,a7 other ,federal agencies2 7,b7 for-profit or nonprofit private sector entities1 including private institutions of higher education2 or 7,c7 ,state1 tribal1 local1 or foreign government agencies1 including public institutions of higher education2 and 7#c7 may not give any special consideration to any entity described in paragraph 7#b7 in return for such funds or in kind support4 7f7 ,facilitation 7#a7 ,general services administration assistance ,not later than #ahj days after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 the ,administrator of the ,general ,services ,administration1 in coordination with the ,director1 shall identify and develop relevant products and services to facilitate the use of crowdsourcing and citizen science activities under this section1 including by specifying the appropriate contract vehicles and technology and organizational platforms to enhance the ability of ,federal agencies to carry out the activities under this section to further the policy objectives of the ,federal ,government4 7#b7 ,,ostp guidance ,the heads of each ,federal agency engaged in crowdsourcing or citizen science under this section is encouraged to consult any guidance provided by the ,director4 7g7 ,report 7#a7 ,in general ,not later than #b years after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 and every #d years thereafter1 as a component of the report required under section #bd7p7 of the ,stevenson-,wydler ,technology ,innovation ,act of #aihj 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #cgai7p771 the ,director shall report on the activities carried out under this subsection4 7#b7 ,information included ,each report required under paragraph 7#a7 shall include-- 7,a7 a summary of each crowdsourcing and citizen science project conducted by any ,federal agency during the most recently completed #b fiscal years 7for the first report7 or since the last report was submitted 7for subsequent reports71 including a description of the proposed goals of each crowdsourcing and citizen science project2 7,b7 the participation rates1 submission levels1 number of consents1 or any other statistic that might be considered relevant in each crowdsourcing and citizen science project2 7,c7 a description of-- 7i7 the resources 7including personnel and funding7 that were used in the execution of each crowdsourcing and citizen science project2 7ii7 the activities for which such resources were used2 and 7iii7 how the obligations and expenditures relating to the project's execution was allocated among the accounts of the ,federal agency2 7,d7 a description of-- 7i7 the ways in which each crowdsourcing and citizen science project advanced the mission of the ,federal agency2 7ii7 the project's results1 including the publications1 results1 tools1 products1 or services that the project created2 7iii7 the general methods used to ensure data quality and make the data publicly available2 and 7iv7 any savings realized or costs incurred by the ,federal ,government1 whether financial or human resources1 as a result of using crowdsourcing or citizen science projects instead of ,federal agency resources1 as possible2 7,e7 a summary of the main challenges and barriers that constrained the ability of ,federal agencies to conduct crowdsourcing and citizen science projects1 including-- 7i7 any steps that were taken to address such challenges2 and 7ii7 recommendations for future administrative or legislative action2 7,f7 a summary of the use of crowdsourcing and citizen science methods by all ,federal agencies since the submission of the last report1 including interagency and multi-sector partnerships2 and 7,g7 any other information that the ,director considers relevant4 7h7 ,savings provisions ,nothing in this section may be construed-- 7#a7 to affect the authority to conduct crowdsourcing and citizen science authorized by any other provision of law2 or 7#b7 to displace ,federal ,government resources allocated to the ,federal agencies that use crowdsourcing or citizen science authorized under this section to carry out a project4