June 22, 2015

The Department of Energy's Implementation of the Pilot Program for Agreements for Commercializing Technology

To maximize the impact of Federal research and development investments in its laboratories, the Department of Energy (Department) is tasked with promoting innovations to advance U.S. economic competitiveness. In February 2012, the Department announced that eight laboratories would participate in a 3-year initiative, the Agreements for Commercializing Technology (ACT) pilot, to enable the private sector to utilize the laboratories' research capabilities by removing barriers that hindered access to the laboratories and the commercialization of technology. From the inception of the ACT pilot to May 2014, 4 of the 8 participating laboratories had a total of 73 ACT proposals approved by the Department with a total value of over $60 million. 

We found that the ACT pilot, as envisioned, provided private industry with increased access to the Department's laboratories and a new mechanism to facilitate the transfer of laboratory knowledge and capabilities. However, our review identified opportunities to improve the effectiveness of the Department's management of the ACT pilot. While we detected no specific harm to the Department, we did note that many of the ACT agreements were for unique laboratory services that had low potential for the development and commercialization of technology. We also identified issues with the review and reporting process in areas such as identifying foreign ownership or control and the use of Federal funds.

Topic: Management & Administration