Social Sciences Protect Our Nation Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 7106 To require the Department of Defense to maintain a basic social sciences research program. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JUNE 4, 2020 Mr. LIPINSKI (for himself, Mr. MCKINLEY, and Mr. LANGEVIN) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services A BILL To require the Department of Defense to maintain a basic social sciences research program. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Social Sciences Protect 4 Our Nation Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress finds the following: 7 (1) The 2017 National Academies of Sciences, 8 Engineering and Medicine report on The Value of 9 Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences to Na- 10 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:09 Jun 24, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7106.IH H7106 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 7106 IH tional Priorities asserts ‘‘Having a fundamental un- 1 derstanding of how people and societies behave, why 2 they respond the way they do, what they find impor- 3 tant, what they believe or value, and what and how 4 they think about others is critical for the country’s 5 well-being in today’s global environment.’’. 6 (2) There is a national need for investing in di- 7 verse basic research social science, and facilitating 8 transition of those findings to inform national de- 9 fense priorities and actions. 10 (3) In 2008, while giving a speech entitled ‘‘Na- 11 tional Security: What New Expertise is Needed?’’, 12 Secretary of Defense Robert Gates stated ‘‘Too 13 many mistakes have been made over the years be- 14 cause our government and military did not under- 15 stand—or even seek to understand—the countries or 16 cultures we were dealing with.’’. 17 (4) In response, the Department of Defense ini- 18 tiated a basic social science research program to im- 19 prove basic understanding of the social, cultural, be- 20 havioral, and political forces that shape regions of 21 the world of strategic importance to the United 22 States. 23 (5) The National Academy of Sciences found in 24 their 2019 evaluation of the Department of Defense 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:09 Jun 24, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7106.IH H7106 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 7106 IH defense-wide basic social sciences program that ‘‘de- 1 spite facing challenges with establishing a stable, 2 well-functioning organizational structure as well as 3 resource limitations, the program has made impor- 4 tant contributions’’ and that the program has suc- 5 cessfully strengthened ties between the Department 6 and the social science community. 7 (6) Maintaining a basic social sciences research 8 program provides the Department of Defense critical 9 access to expertise to inform cultural understanding, 10 support technological edge, counter adversarial social 11 interventions, and understand drivers to strengthen 12 alliances and attract new partners. 13 (7) Continued investment in basic social science 14 research is particularly crucial at a time when peer 15 and near-peer adversaries are increasingly employing 16 elements of malign influence, disinformation, and 17 predatory economics in concert with technological 18 capabilities. 19 SEC. 3. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE SOCIAL SCIENCES. 20 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Defense shall 21 maintain a defense-wide basic research program with an 22 emphasis on diverse social sciences. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:09 Jun 24, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7106.IH H7106 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 7106 IH (b) The Secretary of Defense shall include in the an- 1 nual budget submission of the President under section 2 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code— 3 (1) a dedicated budget line item for defense- 4 wide basic social science research; and 5 (2) basic research funds from each of the serv- 6 ices dedicated to social science research. 7 (c) REPORT.—Within 90 days after the date of enact- 8 ment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall report 9 to the House Armed Services Committee and the Senate 10 Armed Services Committee on the organizational structure 11 of the defense-wide basic social science research program. 12 The report shall include— 13 (1) the responsibilities of the Under Secretary 14 of Defense for Research and Engineering in collabo- 15 ration with the Under Secretary of Defense for Pol- 16 icy in joint oversight of the program; 17 (2) the role of each of the services in coordi- 18 nating with the program; and 19 (3) efforts to align the program with the De- 20 partment’s Science and Technology roadmaps and 21 the National Defense Strategy. 22 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:09 Jun 24, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H7106.IH H7106 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS