On Tuesday, Senator Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., introduced three bills all focused on increasing federal participation in quantum information sciences and technology, from greater investment from the Department of Defense to establishing a near-term sandbox for the most commercially-viable quantum systems.
The three bills are all bipartisan, with support from a different Democratic lawmaker on each bill. They come as the landmark National Quantum Initiative Reauthorization Act, which would set federal funding for research and development in the quantum technology field, has yet to be reintroduced.
“These bills would provide a strategic roadmap for quantum development, promote continued innovation, and supercharge the Defense Department’s approach to quantum technology to advance our national security,” Blackburn said in a press release. “I look forward to working with the Commerce Committee to pass these bills and reauthorize the National Quantum Initiative.”
Of the three bills, the Defense Quantum Acceleration Act would have DOD increase its involvement in new research in the quantum field through the development of a mandatory strategic plan focused on the “development, assessment, procurement, and implementation” of quantum information technologies within the agency.
The legislation also requires the creation of a new principal quantum advisor position at the agency to coordinate the transition of new quantum systems from the lab to agency missions. It is cosponsored by Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H.
The Quantum Sandbox for Near-Term Applications Act, cosponsored by Sen. Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M., similarly prioritizes applying near-term quantum information systems to relevant use cases. Its fundamental provision established a public-private partnership for near term quantum information technologies, which would be housed within the Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology and engage with the Quantum Economic Development Consortium advocacy group and national laboratory network.
The final bill, which Blackburn introduced with Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., is the Advancing Quantum Manufacturing Act. It calls on the Department of Energy to coordinate with the National Science Foundation on federal quantum research activity in areas like gate-based quantum computing, annealing-based quantum computing, different qubit systems and broader quantum-enabling systems.
These bills build upon some of Blackburn’s previous efforts to strengthen the federal government’s involvement in quantum research and adoption.
