View source for Federally funded research and development centers

{{Short description|Type of U.S. R&D center}}
'''Federally funded research and development centers''' ('''FFRDCs''') are [[public-private partnership]]s that conduct [[research and development]] for the [[United States Government]]. Under [[Federal Acquisition Regulation]] [https://www.acquisition.gov/far/35.017 §&nbsp;35.017], FFRDCs are operated by universities and corporations to fulfill certain long-term needs of the government that "...cannot be met as effectively by existing in-house or contractor resources." While similar in many ways to [[University Affiliated Research Center]]s, FFRDCs are prohibited from competing for work.<ref>{{cite report | last = Gallo | first = Marcy E. | title = Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs): Background and Issues for Congress | date = April 3, 2020 | publisher = [[Congressional Research Service]] | url = https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/R/R44629 | format = PDF | access-date = 2021-01-14}}</ref><ref>{{cite report | last = Sullivan | first = Michael J. | title = Actions Needed to Enhance Use of Laboratory Initiated Research Authority | date = December 2018 | publisher = [[Government Accountability Office|United States Government Accountability Office]] | url = https://www.gao.gov/assets/700/696192.pdf | access-date = 2021-01-16}}</ref> There are currently 42 FFRDCs, each sponsored by one or more U.S. government departments or agencies.<ref name="ffrdclist">{{cite web | url = https://www.nsf.gov/statistics/ffrdclist/ | title = Master Government List of Federally Funded R&D Centers | publisher = National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, [[National Science Foundation]] | location = [[Alexandria, Virginia]] | date = June 2020 | access-date = 2021-01-14}}</ref>

==History==
[[File:1953- Funding for research and development - US.svg|thumb|Since the 1960s, private businesses in the U.S. have provided an increasing share of funding for research and development, as direct federal funding waned.<ref name=NSF_R&D_2023>{{cite web |last1=Anderson |first1=G. |last2=Moris |first2=F. |title=Federally Funded R&D Declines as a Share of GDP and Total R&D |url=https://ncses.nsf.gov/pubs/nsf23339 |publisher=National Science Foundation, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231003235103/https://ncses.nsf.gov/pubs/nsf23339 |archive-date=3 October 2023 |date=2023 |quote=NSF 23-339 |url-status=live }}</ref>]]
During [[World War II]] scientists, engineers, mathematicians, and other specialists became part of the massive United States war effort—leading to evolutions in radar, aircraft, computing and, most famously, the development of nuclear weapons through the [[Manhattan Project]].<ref name="primer">{{cite web | url = http://www.mitre.org/publications/all/ffrdcs-a-primer | title = FFRDCs—A Primer | publisher = [[MITRE|The MITRE Corporation]] | location = [[Bedford, Massachusetts]] and [[McLean, Virginia]] | date = April 2015 | access-date = 2021-01-14}}</ref> The end of armed conflict did not end the need for organized research and development in support of the government.

As the [[Cold War]] became the new reality, government officials and their scientific advisors advanced the idea of a systematic approach to research, development, and acquisitions—one independent of the ups and downs of the marketplace and free of the restrictions on civil service. From this idea arose the concept of FFRDCs—private entities that would work almost exclusively on behalf of the government—free of organizational conflicts of interest and with a stable workforce of highly trained technical talent.

The [[U.S. Air Force]] created the first FFRDC, the [[RAND Corporation]], in 1947. Others grew directly out of their wartime roles. For example, [[MIT Lincoln Laboratory]], founded in 1951, originated as the Radiation Laboratory at MIT, and the Navy's Operation Research Group evolved into the Center for Naval Analyses. The first FFRDCs served the [[United States Department of Defense|Department of Defense]]. Since then, other government organizations have sponsored FFRDCs to meet their specific needs. In 1969, the number of FFRDCs peaked at 74.<ref name="primer"/><ref>{{cite report | url = https://www.osti.gov/biblio/763090-GAYi8Q/webviewable/ | last1 = Dale | first1 = Bruce C. | last2 = Moy | first2 = Timothy D. | title = The Rise of Federally Funded Research and Development Centers | publisher = [[Sandia National Laboratories]] | location = [[Albuquerque, New Mexico]] and [[Livermore, California]] | date = September 2000 | doi = 10.2172/763090 | osti = 763090 | doi-access = free }}</ref>

==List==
The following list includes all current FFRDCs:
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Facility !!Administrator !!Location !!Sponsor
|-
| [[The Aerospace Corporation|Aerospace FFRDC]]
| [[The Aerospace Corporation]]
| [[El Segundo, California]];<br/>[[Chantilly, Virginia]];<br/>[[Colorado Springs, Colorado]]
| [[United States Department of Defense|Department of Defense]], [[Department of the Air Force]]
|-
| [[Ames National Laboratory]]
| [[Iowa State University of Science and Technology]]
| [[Ames, Iowa]]
| [[United States Department of Energy|Department of Energy]]
|-
| [[Argonne National Laboratory]]
| [[University of Chicago|UChicago Argonne, LLC]]
| [[Lemont, Illinois]]
| [[United States Department of Energy|Department of Energy]]
|-
| [[Arroyo Center]]
| [[RAND Corporation]]
| [[Santa Monica, California]]
| [[United States Department of Defense|Department of Defense]], [[Department of the Army]]
|-
| [[Brookhaven National Laboratory]]
| Brookhaven Science Associates, LLC
| [[Upton, New York]]
| [[United States Department of Energy|Department of Energy]]
|-
| [[Center for Advanced Aviation System Development]]
| [[MITRE]]
| [[McLean, Virginia]]
| [[United States Department of Transportation|Department of Transportation]], [[Federal Aviation Administration]]
|-
| [[Institute for Defense Analyses#Center for Communications and Computing|Center for Communications and Computing]]
| [[Institute for Defense Analyses]]
| [[Alexandria, Virginia]]
| [[United States Department of Defense|Department of Defense]], [[National Security Agency]]
|-
| [[Center for Enterprise Modernization]]
| [[MITRE]]
| [[McLean, Virginia]]
| [[United States Department of the Treasury|Department of the Treasury]], [[Internal Revenue Service]];<br/>[[United States Department of Veterans Affairs|Department of Veterans Affairs]];<br/>[[Social Security Administration]]
|-
| [[Center for Naval Analyses]]
| The [[CNA Corporation]]
| Arlington County, Virginia
| [[United States Department of Defense|Department of Defense]], [[United States Department of the Navy|Department of the Navy]]
|-
| [[Center for Nuclear Waste Regulatory Analyses]]
| [[Southwest Research Institute]]
| [[San Antonio]], Texas
| [[Nuclear Regulatory Commission]]
|-
| [[CMS Alliance to Modernize Healthcare]]
| [[MITRE]]
| [[McLean, Virginia]]
| [[United States Department of Health and Human Services|Department of Health and Human Services]], [[Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services]]
|-
| [[Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory]]
| Fermi Research Alliance, LLC
| [[Batavia, Illinois]]
| [[United States Department of Energy|Department of Energy]]
|-
| [[Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research]]
| [[Leidos Biomedical Research]]
| [[Frederick, Maryland]]
| [[Department of Health and Human Services]], [[National Institutes of Health]]
|-
| [[Homeland Security Operational Analysis Center]]
| [[RAND Corporation]]
| [[Crystal City, Virginia]]
| [[Department of Homeland Security]], [[DHS Directorate for Science and Technology|Under Secretary for Science and Technology]]
|-
| [[Homeland Security Systems Engineering and Development Institute]]
| [[MITRE]]
| [[McLean, Virginia]]
| [[Department of Homeland Security]], [[DHS Directorate for Science and Technology|Under Secretary for Science and Technology]]
|-
| [[Idaho National Laboratory]]
| [[Battelle Memorial Institute|Battelle Energy Alliance, LLC]]
| [[Idaho Falls, Idaho]]
| [[United States Department of Energy|Department of Energy]]
|-
| [[Jet Propulsion Laboratory]]
| [[California Institute of Technology]]
| [[Pasadena, California]]
| [[National Aeronautics and Space Administration]]
|-
| [[Judiciary Engineering and Modernization Center]]
| [[MITRE]]
| [[McLean, Virginia]]
| [[List_of_courts_of_the_United_States|United States Courts]]
|-
| [[Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory]]
| [[University of California]]
| [[Berkeley, California]]
| [[United States Department of Energy|Department of Energy]]
|-
| [[Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory]]
| Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC
| [[Livermore, California]]
| [[United States Department of Energy|Department of Energy]]
|-
| [[Lincoln Laboratory]]
| [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]]
| [[Lexington, Massachusetts]]
| [[United States Department of Defense|Department of Defense]], [[Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering]]
|-
| [[Los Alamos National Laboratory]]
| Triad National Security, LLC
| [[Los Alamos, New Mexico]]
| [[United States Department of Energy|Department of Energy]]
|-
| [[National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures Center]]
| [[Battelle Memorial Institute|Battelle National Biodefense Institute]]
| [[Frederick, Maryland]]
| [[Department of Homeland Security]], [[DHS Directorate for Science and Technology|Under Secretary for Science and Technology]]
|-
| [[National Center for Atmospheric Research]]
| [[University Corporation for Atmospheric Research]]
| [[Boulder, Colorado]]
| [[National Science Foundation]]
|-
| [[National Cybersecurity FFRDC]]
| [[MITRE]]
| [[Rockville, Maryland]]
| [[Department of Commerce]], [[National Institute of Standards and Technology]]
|-
| [[National Defense Research Institute]]
| [[RAND Corporation]]
| [[Santa Monica, California]]
| [[United States Department of Defense|Department of Defense]], [[Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment]]
|-
| [[NOIRLab|National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory]]
| [[Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy|Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc.]]
| [[Tucson, Arizona]]
| [[National Science Foundation]]
|-
| [[National Radio Astronomy Observatory]]
| [[Associated Universities, Inc.]]
| [[Socorro, New Mexico]];<br/>[[Charlottesville, Virginia]]
| [[National Science Foundation]]
|-
| [[National Renewable Energy Laboratory]]
| Alliance for Sustainable Energy, LLC
| [[Golden, Colorado]]
| [[United States Department of Energy|Department of Energy]]
|-
| [[National Security Engineering Center]]
| [[MITRE]]
| [[Bedford, Massachusetts]];<br/>[[McLean, Virginia]]
| [[United States Department of Defense|Department of Defense]], [[Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering]]
|-
| [[National Solar Observatory]]
| [[Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy|Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc.]]
| [[Boulder, Colorado]]
| [[National Science Foundation]]
|-
| [[Oak Ridge National Laboratory]]
| [[UT–Battelle|UT-Battelle, LLC]]
| [[Oak Ridge, Tennessee]]
| [[United States Department of Energy|Department of Energy]]
|-
| [[Pacific Northwest National Laboratory]]
| [[Battelle Memorial Institute]]
| [[Richland, Washington]]
| [[United States Department of Energy|Department of Energy]]
|-
| [[Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory]]
| [[Princeton University]]
| [[Princeton, New Jersey]]
| [[United States Department of Energy|Department of Energy]]
|-
| [[Project Air Force]]
| [[RAND Corporation]]
| [[Santa Monica, California]]
| [[United States Department of Defense|Department of Defense]], [[Department of the Air Force]]
|-
| [[Sandia National Laboratories]]
| National Technology and Engineering Solutions of Sandia, LLC
| [[Albuquerque, New Mexico]];<br/>[[Livermore, CA]]
| [[United States Department of Energy|Department of Energy]]
|-
| [[Savannah River National Laboratory]]
| Battelle Savannah River Alliance, LLC
| [[Aiken, South Carolina]]
| [[United States Department of Energy|Department of Energy]]
|-
| [[Science and Technology Policy Institute]]
| [[Institute for Defense Analyses]]
| [[Washington, D.C.]]
| [[National Science Foundation]]
|-
| [[SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory]]
| [[Stanford University]]
| [[Stanford, California]]
| [[United States Department of Energy|Department of Energy]]
|-
| [[Software Engineering Institute]]
| [[Carnegie Mellon University]]
| [[Pittsburgh]], Pennsylvania
| [[United States Department of Defense|Department of Defense]], [[Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering]]
|-
| [[Institute for Defense Analyses#Systems and Analyses Center|Systems and Analyses Center]]
| [[Institute for Defense Analyses]]
| [[Alexandria, Virginia]]
| [[United States Department of Defense|Department of Defense]], [[Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment]]
|-
| [[Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility]]
| Jefferson Science Associates, LLC
| [[Newport News, Virginia]]
| [[United States Department of Energy|Department of Energy]]
|}

== References ==
<references/>

== Further reading ==
* {{cite magazine | last1 = Hruby | first1 = Jill M. | last2 = Manley | first2 = Dawn K. | last3 = Stoltz | first3 = Ronald E. | last4 = Webb | first4 = Erik K. | last5 = Woodard | first5 = Joan B. | title = The Evolution of Federally Funded Research & Development Centers | magazine = Public Interest Report | volume = 64 | number = 1 | pages = 24–31 | year = 2011 | publisher = [[Federation of American Scientists]] | url = https://fas.org/pubs/pir/2011spring/FFRDCs.pdf}}
* {{cite report | last = Kosar | first = Kevin R. | title = The Quasi Government: Hybrid Organizations with Both Government and Private Sector Legal Characteristics | date = June 22, 2011 | publisher = [[Congressional Research Service]] | url = https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL30533.pdf}}




[[Category:1947 establishments in the United States]]
[[Category:Federally Funded Research and Development Centers| ]]
[[Category:United States science-related lists]]