Fair Access to Science and Technology Research (FASTR) Act Reintroduced in U.S. Congress

Note: From KTVZ:

A bipartisan coalition of Senate and House members, including Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., on Wednesday introduced the Fair Access to Science and Technology Research (FASTR) Act, a bill to improve public access to federally funded research.
American taxpayers fund billions in research that unlocks breakthroughs in technology, science, medicine and dozens of other disciplines,” Wyden said. “By taking that research out from behind paywalls and making it accessible to all Americans, the FASTR Act will promote new innovations and give America a better return on its investment.”
“Improving public access to federally-funded research is good government and is the right thing to do,” Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, said. “There is no reason why taxpayers should not have prompt, easy access to the research they themselves have helped fund.”

More From SPARC:

“The introduction of the FASTR Act shows that open access continues to be a strong bipartisan issue in both the House and Senate—a rare feat these days,” said Heather Joseph, Executive Director of the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition (SPARC).  “The Administration took a giant step forward in issuing an Executive Directive on public access in 2013. Although the agencies have started to release their plans, it is crucial that we make open access to taxpayer-funded research the law of the land.”
FASTR was introduced today in the House and Senate with five original bipartisan cosponsors, including Senators John Cornyn (R-TX), Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Representatives Mike Doyle (D-PA-14), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA-19), and Kevin Yoder (R-KS-3).
The Fair Access to Science and Technology Research (FASTR) Act of 2015:

• Represents the next step forward in the competitiveness agenda, spurring both innovation and job creation in broad sectors of the economy, from agriculture and energy to publishing.
• Improves transparency and accountability in government spending.
• Expands access to taxpayer-funded information while protecting classified research, royalty generating works, and preliminary data.

Read the Complete SPARC Blog Post
Includes background about the FASTR Act was first introduced in Congress two years ago.
See Also: SPARC’s FASTR FAQ
Track the Legislation (via GovTrack)
U.S. Senate: S. 779

U.S. House of Reps: H.R. 1477

Filed under: Academic Libraries, Data Files, Open Access, Publishing, Resources