Build research capacity in eligible states through DEPSCoR
Competitively fund university research, instrumentation and graduate assistance, and facilitate laboratory collaboration in eligible states and territories.
Other statutory tools
ACQ-25 / Workforce and expertise
Direct-hire laboratory scientists, engineers, students and qualified veterans
STRL directors can appoint eligible specialists outside ordinary competitive hiring procedures, convert qualifying students and manage lab workforce within budget.
At a glance
Mission goalDevelop a technology
Possible toolACQ-25 · People & expertise
Legal basis10 U.S.C. §4091
Responsible rolesPlanning · funds · approval · execution
Authority holder: Directors of designated STRLs; specified research/test directors for covered positions
People & expertise
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.
Requirements and limits
Eligibility & prerequisites
- Position and candidate must fit scientific/engineering, veteran STEM or student categories.
- Annual caps by category based on prior-year filled positions; senior technical positions have separate limits.
Limits & exclusions
- Budget control remains; exclusion from personnel limits does not cover SES or scientific/professional §3104 positions.
- Other preserved civil-service requirements remain.
Funding conditions
- Existing laboratory personnel funds; no automatic additional funded billets.
Who contributes what
Need & planning
- STRL director and technical managers
Resources
- Laboratory personnel budget
Approval
- Director under statutory eligibility/numerical rules
Execution
- Laboratory HR and appointing official
Partners & review
- Service civilian-personnel offices; candidates
Office links are editorial matches to the original role text, not verified delegations. Composite labels and unmatched actors are preserved.
Coordination pathway
Technical manager → laboratory HR verifies degree/veteran/student eligibility and remaining allocation → director appointment.
Actor and execution-role sources
Legal basis
- 10 U.S.C. §4091Primary statutory text; primary GovInfo baseline and amendment audit identified in research narrative.
- 10 U.S.C. §4121Primary statutory text; primary GovInfo baseline and amendment audit identified in research narrative.
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 recordedThe record states funding rules and conditions; no program amount is attributed to this action.
Assigned rolesRoles recordedPublic sources describe institutional authority. The instrument identifies approval and execution roles; a specific signature remains transaction-dependent.
EngagementProgram-specificRecorded executing role: Laboratory HR and appointing official. Use the responsible program’s process.
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.