Introduced in Senate — S. 5310

119th CONGRESS

2d Session

S. 5310

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

August 6, 2026

Mr. Rounds (for himself and Mr. Hickenlooper) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

A BILL

To support the development of the robotics industry in the United States, and for other purposes.

Section 1. Short title

This Act may be cited as the Robotics Supply Chain Improvement Act.

Sec. 2. Definitions of Robotics

(a) In general

Except as provided in subparagraph (B), in this Act the term robotics means any of the following:

(1)

Programmable, multi-functional mechanical devices designed to move material, parts, tools, or specialized devices through variable programmed motions to perform a variety of tasks.

(2)

Programmed actuated mechanisms with a degree of autonomy to perform locomotion, manipulation, or positioning.

(3)

Automatically controlled, reprogrammable, multipurpose manipulators that are programmable in not fewer than 3 axes, which can be either fixed in place or fixed to a mobile platform for use in automation applications in an industrial environment.

(4)

Machines that—

(A)

can sense their environment;

(B)

have the capacity to process the information they sense; and

(C)

are organized to act directly upon their environment.

(5)

Mechanical devices, which may also be referred to as unmanned ground vehicle systems, that—

(A)

are capable of locomotion, navigation, or movement on the ground; and

(B)

are operated at a distance by not fewer than 1 operator or supervisor based on commands or in response to sensor data or a combination thereof.

(b) Exceptions

In this Act, the term robotics does not include—

(1)

unmanned aircraft systems;

(2)

passenger vehicles; or

(3)

toys.

Sec. 3. Support of robotic development by National Institute of Standards and Technology

Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology shall—

(1)

identify barriers and solutions to expanding data collection and improving sharing to support—

(A)

the development of artificial intelligence models; and

(B)

the development of robotics hardware;

(2)

direct the Office of Advanced Manufacturing to promote the use, whenever possible, of robotics by industry;

(3)

coordinate with the robotics industry to identify areas for the promulgation of useful standards, with particular attention given to—

(A)

the area of emerging-robotics use cases, such as humanoid robots and swarming capabilities;

(B)

standards relating to the use of artificial intelligence in robotics systems; and

(C)

training and apprenticeship programs to upskill United States workers;

(4)

coordinate with the robotics industry to support the development of solutions for—

(A)

the mining and critical mineral processing industry;

(B)

food processing;

(C)

the use of robotics in home and elder care; and

(D)

any other issue the Director considers appropriate; and

(5)

coordinate with the Secretary of Education and the Secretary of Labor on the development of curricula related to in-demand skills to enable the robotics industry to support workforce development and job creation.

Sec. 4. Report on adoption of robotics

(a) In general

Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter for each of the subsequent 4 years, the Secretary of Commerce, acting through the Under Secretary for Economic Affairs, shall submit to Congress a report that describes the adoption of robotics and the rate of adoption within firms across various industries in the United States.

(b) Contents

Each report submitted under subsection (a) shall include—

(1)

an assessment of the adoption of robotics based on geographic location;

(2)

an assessment of industry-specific adoption;

(3)

a description of the levels of investment in robotics by industry;

(4)

identification of any barrier to the adoption of robotics by industry;

(5)

a description of the impact of the adoption of robotics on workforce and skill development among workers by industry; and

(6)

recommendations to Congress for legislation action.

Sec. 5. Commercialization of National Aeronautics and Space Administration intellectual property relating to robotics

(a) In general

The Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (referred to in this section as the Administrator) shall prioritize the licensing of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration inventions, patents, and technologies to the private sector, through new or existing mechanisms, for the commercialization of innovations related to robotics developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, including by marketing such innovations to the private sector, for the purpose of supporting the domestic robotics industrial base.

(b) Report

Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives a report on efforts made by the Administrator to prioritize the commercialization of National Aeronautics and Space Administration innovations related to robotics under subsection (a).