EconDefense
ACQ-15 / Research, innovation and experimentation

Reinvest laboratory and test-organization funds in innovation, transition, people and minor infrastructure

Directors may use statutory 2–4% mechanisms for research, transition, workforce development and qualifying infrastructure; fixed customer surcharge up to 4% may support these purposes.

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Authority / instrument · ACQ-15

Laboratory investment

Research, innovation and experimentation

Statute & instrument
Authority holder

Secretary of Defense establishes mechanisms; directors exercise discretion in consultation with Service S&T executive

What this does not authorize / hard limit

A flexible internal investment mechanism, not unlimited new MILCON authority or off-budget money.

Recorded executor

Laboratory/test organization and supporting fiscal/contracting staff

Continue to actor →

Recorded executing role; this record-specific route is not an additional institutional office.

Legal basisSources linkedLegal sources and instrument limits are recorded.
RequirementsGates recordedRead the requirements for this instrument; applicability depends on the proposed action.
Public fundingRules recordedFunds already available to lab/test organization; fees limited to 4% of performance costs. Office budget figures are separate institutional context, not an allocation to this instrument.
Assigned rolesRoles recordedPublic sources describe institutional authority. The instrument identifies approval and execution roles; a specific signature remains transaction-dependent.
EngagementProcess sourcedNISE has an explicit internal laboratory funding process under section 4123 and a documented 2026 project; local restrictions are not universal statutory rules. Program check: 2026-10-04; see each route for intake status.

Public evidence describes the institution and instrument; it is not approval of an individual transaction.

At a glance

Possible toolACQ-15 · Other statutory tools
Legal basis10 U.S.C. §4123

Authority holder: Secretary of Defense establishes mechanisms; directors exercise discretion in consultation with Service S&T executive

Other statutory tools

Mechanism tags describe the source text; they do not expand the authority.

Availability and verification

Express statutory pathway; award-specific appropriations, available balances, delegations, implementation and approvals not independently verified.

Program process and intake

Checked 2026-10-04 · program documented. Program evidence is separate from legal authority, available funds and transaction approval.

NISE has an explicit internal laboratory funding process under section 4123 and a documented 2026 project; local restrictions are not universal statutory rules.

Naval Innovative Science and Engineering investment

Who this route serves
Internal laboratory principal investigators
Administering office / routing lead
Laboratory technical leadership and NISE team; NSWC Corona process example
Direct implementation

The guide expressly identifies 10 U.S.C. 4123 and investment of 2–4% of reimbursable laboratory funds.

What this evidence label means
Process and 2026 use documented

NSWC Panama City reports NISE-supported MEASUR development and transition outputs in July 2026.

Status reference date: 2026-10-04 · research checked 2026-10-04

NSWC Panama City MEASUR project · NISE support and transition accountofficial laboratory news · published 2026-07-08 · Evidence record

Program eligibility

Steps and preparation

Funding, limits and authority relationship

Funding and financial terms

  • internal reimbursable-fund reinvestment · local annual allocations

    Internal lab reinvestment, not an unrestricted external research grant; project amount not published in the examined case.

    NSWC Corona NISE principal-investigator resources · NISE overview; How to engage; Requirements/restrictionsofficial laboratory process guide · Evidence record

Exclusions and limits

Authority relationship source

NSWC Corona NISE principal-investigator resources · NISE overview; How to engage; Requirements/restrictionsofficial laboratory process guide · Evidence record

NISE investigator guide →

published guidance: Internal researcher planning; not company or public grant intake.

Research scope and sources checked

Read the laboratory guide with express statutory link and searched current official news for an implementation example. Avoided inferring a grant mechanism or publishing operational project details.

What remains unverified

  • Test-organization-specific implementation of theFY2026 expansion and current lab balances were not verified.

A dated source check is not continuing monitoring. Recheck the linked official notice before preparing a submission. Browse program research →

Requirements and limits

Eligibility & prerequisites

  • 2–4% of available funds under established mechanisms.
  • Infrastructure must meet §2805(d)/ §2811 applicable cost rules and pre-use congressional notification.

Limits & exclusions

  • A flexible internal investment mechanism, not unlimited new MILCON authority or off-budget money.

Funding conditions

  • Funds already available to lab/test organization; fees limited to 4% of performance costs.

Read the funding and execution guide

Who contributes what

Need & planning

  • Laboratory/test director and Service S&T executive

Resources

  • Laboratory/test-organization available funds and authorized customer fees

Approval

  • Director with Service S&T consultation; Secretary of Defense infrastructure notification
    Office profile

Execution

  • Laboratory/test organization and supporting fiscal/contracting staff

Partners & review

  • Customer activities; other laboratories; congressional committees for infrastructure notice

Office links are editorial matches to the original role text, not verified delegations. Composite labels and unmatched actors are preserved.

Coordination pathway

Director sets portfolio → consults Service S&T executive → fiscal calculation and facilities review → required notice → execution.

Actor and execution-role sources

Legal basis

What this research establishes

Legal basisSources linkedLegal sources and instrument limits are recorded.
RequirementsGates recordedRead the requirements for this instrument; applicability depends on the proposed action.
Public fundingRules recordedFunds already available to lab/test organization; fees limited to 4% of performance costs. Office budget figures are separate institutional context, not an allocation to this instrument.
Assigned rolesRoles recordedPublic sources describe institutional authority. The instrument identifies approval and execution roles; a specific signature remains transaction-dependent.
EngagementProcess sourcedNISE has an explicit internal laboratory funding process under section 4123 and a documented 2026 project; local restrictions are not universal statutory rules. Program check: 2026-10-04; see each route for intake status.

Confidence: High on express authority and cited conditions; execution assignment is illustrative unless statute expressly names it.

Currentness: GovInfo 2024 Code (includes FY2025 NDAA, P.L. 118-159) read in full for cited provision; targeted FY2026 NDAA P.L. 119-60 amendment/repeal sweep. No claim of complete legislative currency through 2026-10-02; remaining 2026 delta needs counsel validation.

Review scope: Original research target October 2, 2026; no record-specific last-review date supplied. Publication is not legal-currentness certification.

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