Sponsors (6)
The bill substantially accelerates U.S. quantum R&D, workforce development, and commercialization through multi-year funding and infrastructure—but at the cost of higher federal spending, a tilt toward applied/commercial work that may crowd out basic science, greater administrative complexity, and risks of concentrating benefits with larger firms and selected institutions.
Researchers, tech workers, and industry will receive substantially expanded DOE funding, testbeds, demonstration authority, and HPC/quantum integration that accelerate quantum technology maturation and commercialization.
Students and current workers will gain expanded training, traineeships, and workforce pathways tied to DOE quantum investments, growing and diversifying the domestic quantum workforce.
Small and medium businesses and startups will get improved access to specialized equipment, foundry infrastructure, and DOE testbeds, lowering barriers to commercialization and supporting domestic supply-chain development.
Taxpayers will face materially higher federal spending (multiple specified authorizations and caps across FY2026–FY2030 and beyond), increasing budgetary pressure and the risk of crowding out other priorities.
Universities, researchers, and students risk reduced support for basic, discovery-driven research because the bill shifts DOE priorities toward applied R&D, demonstrations, and commercialization.
Small labs, smaller institutions, and many small businesses may be disadvantaged as larger center grants, commercial-priority selection, and partnerships with established cloud/hardware vendors concentrate funding and advantage incumbents.
Based on analysis of 6 sections of legislative text.
Expands DOE quantum activities from basic research to R&D, demonstration, commercialization, instrumentation/foundries, workforce development, and raises authorized funding caps through 2030.
Introduced February 13, 2025 by Richard Joseph Durbin · Last progress February 13, 2025
Expands and retools multiple Department of Energy quantum programs to move beyond basic research toward research, development, demonstration, commercialization, and workforce development; creates a DOE Quantum Instrumentation and Foundry Program and raises funding caps for national centers and cloud/software efforts through 2030. It requires stronger industry outreach, interagency coordination, a 10-year high-performance computing plan to Congress, and explicit support for domestic quantum supply chains and foundries. The bill changes program scope across DOE quantum activities to include engineering, technology, and commercialization; authorizes up to $50 million per year for a new instrumentation and foundry program (FY2026–FY2030); increases per-center funding caps and permits a one-time renewal for National Quantum Information Science Research Centers; and raises authorized funding levels for the DOE cloud/software program for FY2028–FY2030.