PILOT PROGRAM ON ENHANCED INTERACTION BETWEEN THE DEFENSE ADVANCED RESEARCH PROJECTS AGENCY AND THE SERVICE ACADEMIES.

SEC. 236. [10 U.S.C. 2358 note] PILOT PROGRAM ON ENHANCED INTERACTION BETWEEN THE DEFENSE ADVANCED RESEARCH PROJECTS AGENCY AND THE SERVICE ACADEMIES. (a) In General.—The Secretary of Defense, acting through the Director of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, shall carry out a pilot program to enhance interaction between the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and the service academies to promote technology transition, education, and training in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields that are relevant to the Department of Defense. (b) Awards of Funds.—(1) In carrying out the pilot program, the Secretary, acting through the Director, shall provide funds to contractors and grantees of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency in order to encourage such contractors and grantees to develop research partnerships with the service academies to support more efficient and effective technology transition of research programs and products. (2) It shall be the responsibility of the Director to ensure that such funds are used effectively and that sufficient efforts are made to build appropriate partnerships. (c) Service Academy Technology Transition Networks.—In carrying out the pilot program, the Director shall prioritize the leveraging of— (1) the technology transition networks that service academies maintain among their academic departments and resident research centers; and (2) partnerships with Department of Defense laboratories, other Federal degree granting institutions, academia, and industry. (d) Termination.—The authority to carry out the pilot program shall terminate on September 30, 2020. (e) Service Academies Defined.—In this section, the term “service academies” means the following: (1) The United States Military Academy. (2) The United States Naval Academy. (3) Th United States Air Force Academy. (4) The United States Coast Guard Academy. (5) The United States Merchant Marine Academy.