Congress plays a central role in how the Department of Defense (DOD) creates and acquires leading-edge technologies, including establishing and refining the organizational structure of DOD research and development activities, providing policy direction, and appropriating funds for R&D and innovation-related activities. As illustrated in Figure 2 , in 1960, the United States accounted for 69% of global R&D, with U.S. defense-related R&D alone accounting for more than one-third of the global total. However, from 1960 to 2016, the federal government's share of total U.S. R&D fell from 65% to 24%, while business's share more than doubled from 33% to 67%. Today, U.S. business funds nearly three times as much R&D as the federal government. Decline in Defense Share of Federal R&D

In addition to the decline in the U.S. share of global R&D, and the decline in the federal share of U.S. R&D during this period, federal funding for defense R&D as a share of total federal R&D declined from 81% to 54% between 1960 and 2016. As a result of these global, national, and federal trends, federal defense R&D's share of total global R&D fell from 36% in 1960 to 3.7% in 2016. For more than 70 years, U.S. military technological superiority has provided U.S. and allied troops with superior weapons and systems, offsetting the size and geographical advantages of potential adversaries. The decline in federal defense R&D funding as a share of global R&D has substantial implications for how the Department of Defense obtains advanced technology and maintains the battlefield overmatch that technology has historically provided. Some defense policymakers have recognized DOD's increasing reliance on technologies developed by commercial companies for commercial markets. Among the challenges DOD faces are developing/modifying its current organizations and business models to access this technology; adapting the DOD business culture to seek and embrace technologies developed outside of DOD and its traditional contractor base; and finding ways to adapt and leverage commercial technologies for defense applications. Congress may conduct oversight of DOD implementation of DIB recommendations. For example, in P.L. Additionally, the committee recommends that the laboratories increase their presence in innovation hubs across the United States. Potential Issues for Consideration

Research and development is now a global enterprise, with the private sector driving technology development. Congress and the Administration have adopted a number of reforms to address the perceived concerns, including those described above. Has DOD increased the use of prototypes and other experimentation methods? Has DOD increased its tolerance for failure? 100-418 ), among other things:
sought to facilitate more open, equitable, and reciprocal market access; reduce or eliminate barriers and other trade-distorting policies and practices; enable a more effective system of international trading disciplines and procedures; increase intellectual property protections; and improve enforcement of U.S. antidumping and countervailing duties; authorized trade adjustment assistance to firms and workers; extended federal patent royalty payments to nongovernment employees; declared as U.S. policy that federally supported international science and technology agreements should be negotiated to ensure that intellectual property rights are properly protected and that access to R&D opportunities and facilities, and the flow of scientific and technological information, are, to the maximum extent practicable, equitable and reciprocal; changed the name of the National Bureau of Standards to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), expanded its technology transfer role, and mandated an annual report on emerging technologies; established the NIST Advanced Technology Program (ATP) to assist U.S. businesses in creating and applying generic technology and research results needed to commercialize significant new scientific discoveries and technologies rapidly and to refine manufacturing technologies; established the NIST Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) program to assist in the establishment of regional centers to enhance productivity and technological performance of U.S. small and medium-size manufacturers.
For more than 70 years, the technological superiority of the United States military has offset the size and geographic advantages of potential adversaries. The Department of Defense (DOD), due in large part to the magnitude of its investments in research and development (R&D), has driven the global R&D and technology landscape. However, DOD and the federal government more broadly are no longer overriding funders of R&D, and this shift in support for R&D has substantial implications for how DOD obtains advanced technology and maintains the battlefield overmatch that technology has historically provided.
In 1960, the United States accounted for 69% of global R&D, with U.S. defense-related R&D alone accounting for more than one-third of global R&D (36%). Additionally, the federal government funded approximately twice as much R&D as U.S. business. However, from 1960 to 2016, the U.S. share of global R&D fell to 28%, and the federal government's share of total U.S. R&D fell from 65% to 24%, while business's share more than doubled from 33% to 67%. As a result of these global, national, and federal trends, federal defense R&D's share of total global R&D fell to 3.7% in 2016. This decline resulted primarily from more rapid increases in the R&D of other nations (public and private) and partially from increases in U.S. business R&D and federal nondefense R&D.
Some defense experts and policymakers have recognized the shift in the global R&D landscape and the need for DOD to rely increasingly on technologies developed by commercial companies for commercial markets. Among the challenges DOD faces in acquiring new, innovative technologies and maintaining U.S. military technical superiority are
developing/modifying organizations and business models to access this technology; adapting the DOD business culture to seek and embrace technologies developed outside of DOD, the United States, and its traditional contractor base; and finding ways to adapt and leverage commercial technologies for defense applications.
Congress plays a central role in how DOD creates and acquires leading-edge technologies, including establishing and refining the organizational structure of DOD R&D activities, providing policy direction, establishing acquisition policies and authorities, and appropriating funds for R&D and innovation-related activities. Congress and the Administration have undertaken a number of actions to address the perceived decline in technical superiority, including
establishing the position of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering to coordinate DOD's research enterprise, drive the development of key technologies, and create a more agile and innovative department; increasing DOD collaboration and engagement with industry and academia. For example, DOD has increased its presence in U.S. commercial technology hubs through the Defense Innovation Unit, established partnership intermediary agreements with various organizations, and co-located DOD research and development personnel at partner institutions across the country; and working to alter the culture of DOD to increase the speed technologies are developed, adapted, and acquired, including through the use of other transaction authority.
As DOD implements these reform efforts congressional oversight may include monitoring how effectively DOD is addressing congressional directives and intent to create a more risk tolerant and innovative DOD.