U.S. CODE

U.S. Code

§ 2517. Office for Foreign Defense Critical Technology Monitoring and Assessment

(a) In General.— The Secretary of Defense shall establish within the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering an office known as the “Office for Foreign Defense Critical Technology Monitoring and Assessment” (hereinafter in this section referred to as the “Office”).

(b) Relationship to Department of Commerce.— The head of the Office shall consult closely with appropriate officials of the Department of Commerce in order—

(1) to minimize the duplication of any effort of the Department of Commerce by the Department of Defense regarding the monitoring of foreign activities related to defense critical technologies that have potential commercial uses; and

(2) to ensure that the Office is effectively utilized to disseminate information to users of such information within the Federal Government.

(1) To maintain within the Department of Defense a central library for the compilation and appropriate dissemination of unclassified and classified information and assessments regarding significant foreign activities in research, development, and applications of defense critical technologies.

(2) To establish and maintain—

(A) a widely accessible unclassified data base of information and assessments regarding foreign science and technology activities that involve defense critical technologies, including, especially, activities in Europe and in Pacific Rim countries; and

(B) a classified data base of information and assessments regarding such activities.

(3) To perform liaison activities among the military departments, Defense Agencies, and other appropriate elements of the Department of Defense, with appropriate agencies and offices of the Department of Commerce and the Department of State, and with other departments and agencies of the Federal Government in order to ensure that significant activities in research, development, and applications of defense critical technologies are identified, monitored, and assessed by an appropriate department or agency of the Federal Government.

(4) To ensure the maximum practicable public availability of information and assessments contained in the unclassified data bases established pursuant to paragraph (2)—

(A) by limiting, to the maximum practicable extent, restrictive classification of such information and assessments; and

(B) by disseminating to the National Technical Information Service of the Department of Commerce information and assessments regarding defense critical technologies having potential commercial uses.

(5) To disseminate through the National Technical Information Service of the Department of Commerce unclassified information and assessments regarding defense critical technologies having potential commercial uses so that such information and assessments may be further disseminated within the Federal Government and to the private sector.

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