Subcommittee Chair and Member Assignments Approved

On January 28, Committee Members approved Rep. David Wu (D-OR) to be Chair of the Technology and Innovation Subcommittee. Along with Chair Wu, twelve other Committee Members serve on the Subcommittee. The Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation handles issues related to technology, standards, innovation, and U.S. competitiveness.  During the 110^th Congress, the Subcommittee worked on issues including health care information technology, standards for electronic waste (e-waste), energy-efficient transportation infrastructure, and wind and earthquake hazards reduction research.

“I am looking forward to expanding on this Subcommittee’s achievements from last Congress. Technical standards are extremely important to successfully applying scientific discoveries.  As all scientists know, if you can’t measure it, it’s not real,” stated Subcommittee Chair David Wu. “I will continue to be dedicated this Congress to backing programs, such as SBIR, that transfer technology from the lab to the marketplace. Innovation will play a key role in creating jobs during this time of economic uncertainty.”

Read more about Subcommittee assignments >

Subcommittee Jurisdiction

Committee Rule 11(a)(2)

Legislative jurisdiction and general oversight and investigative authority on all matters relating to competitiveness, technology, standards, and innovation, including:

1. standardization of weights and measures including technical standards, standardization, and conformity assessment;
2. measurement, including the metric system of measurement;
3. the Technology Administration of the Department of Commerce;
4. the National Institute of Standards and Technology;
5. the National Technical Information Service;
6. competitiveness, including small business competitiveness;
7. tax, antitrust, regulatory and other legal and governmental policies as they relate to technological development and commercialization;
8. technology transfer including civilian use of defense technologies;
9. patent and intellectual property policy;
10. international technology trade;
11. research, development, and demonstration activities of the Department of Transportation;
12. surface and water transportation research, development, and demonstration programs;
13. earthquake programs (except for NSF) and fire research programs including those related to wildfire proliferation research and prevention;
14. biotechnology policy;
15. research, development, demonstration, and standards related activities of the Department of Homeland Security;
16. Small Business Innovation Research and Technology Transfer; and
17. voting technologies and standards.