Interim Management Measures for the Acceptance of National Key Science and Technology Major Projects (Subjects)

　　National Science and Technology Development Special Document No. [2011] 314

　　Chapter 1 General Provisions

　　Article 1: In order to strengthen the management of acceptance for national major science and technology projects (hereinafter referred to as "major projects"), ensure the scientific rigor, fairness, and standardization of the acceptance process, and in accordance with the "Interim Provisions on the Management of National Major Science and Technology Projects," the "Interim Measures for the Management of Funds for Major Science and Technology Projects Open to Civilian Sectors," the "Interim Provisions on the Management of Intellectual Property Rights for National Major Science and Technology Projects," as well as relevant national regulations on science and technology management and related financial and accounting systems, these Measures are hereby formulated.

　　Article 2: The acceptance of major special projects (topics) is an important component of the organizational and management framework for these major special programs. It aims to objectively evaluate the implementation and outcomes of the objectives and tasks of major special projects (topics), as well as the overall use of funds, promote the application and industrialization of innovative achievements, enhance the efficiency of fund utilization, and better facilitate the smooth implementation of these major special programs.

　　Article 3: The acceptance of major special projects (subjects) shall be based primarily on the project (subject) task contract, the project (subject) budget approved by the Ministry of Finance, the relevant management regulations for major special projects, and the applicable national financial and accounting systems.

　　Article 4: The acceptance of major special projects (topics) includes both task acceptance and financial acceptance. Task acceptance and financial acceptance shall be uniformly planned and carried out concurrently. Separate management measures for financial acceptance will be formulated separately.

　　Article 5: The acceptance work for major special projects shall adhere to the principles of seeking truth from facts, objectivity and fairness, emphasis on quality, and pursuit of practical results, thereby ensuring the seriousness and scientific nature of the acceptance process.

　　Article 6: These Measures apply to the acceptance procedures for major special projects (research topics) under the civilian sector as identified in the "National Medium- and Long-Term Science and Technology Development Plan Outline (2006-2020)."

　　Chapter 2: Organization of Acceptance

　　Article 7: The Ministry of Science and Technology, together with the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Finance (collectively referred to as the “Three Departments”), shall be responsible for providing guidance and conducting supervision and inspection on the acceptance of major special projects (subjects).

　　Article 8: Under the leadership of the Leading Group for Major Special Projects, the leading organization responsible for each Major Special Project shall be in charge of the acceptance of projects (research topics). The Implementation and Management Office for Major Special Projects shall specifically oversee the organization and implementation of the acceptance process. The acceptance of projects (research topics) may be carried out either by forming an expert acceptance panel or by entrusting a professional institution with the appropriate qualifications to perform the task.

　　Article 9: The expert panel for the acceptance of project (subject) tasks shall be composed jointly of technical experts, management experts, and intellectual property experts, with a minimum of 9 members in principle, and one chairperson shall be designated. The expert panel for financial acceptance shall be composed of financial experts, technical experts, and others, with a minimum of 7 members in principle, and one chairperson shall be designated.

　　For projects (topics) with industrialization goals, user representatives must participate.

　　Article 10: A recusal system shall be implemented. Personnel from the entity undertaking the project (research topic) being evaluated, as well as from participating entities and their collaborating partners, may not serve as evaluation experts in the acceptance process.

　　Chapter 3: Methods and Content for Task Acceptance

　　Article 11: The acceptance of project (subject) tasks shall primarily be conducted through on-site inspections, field tests, functional demonstrations, conference reviews, and document reviews. As needed, one or more of these methods may be employed.

　　For projects (topics) that have testing requirements or requirements for promotion and demonstration, acceptance shall be conducted through on-site testing, field inspections, and other similar methods. The expert panel responsible for project (topic) acceptance may entrust a third-party organization to carry out the testing.

　　For projects (research topics) whose results have already been applied, acceptance opinions shall be formulated based on user reports or after thoroughly soliciting user feedback.

　　Article 12: For projects (topics) of the same type that have upstream-downstream relationships or strong correlations, acceptance shall be organized synchronously in the form of “project clusters” or “topic clusters.”

　　Article 13: For projects (research topics) with both application-oriented and industrialization-oriented objectives, evaluation shall be conducted according to an outcomes-based assessment approach that includes: “the downstream entity assesses the upstream entity, the system assesses the components, the application assesses the technology, and the market assesses the product.”

　　Article 14: The main contents of the acceptance of project (subject) tasks include: the completion status of the tasks stipulated in the project (subject) contract; the achievement of the objectives and evaluation indicators specified in the contract (including the completion, protection, and application of intellectual property-related objectives); the extent to which the project (subject) has contributed to the overall objectives of the major special program; the level of achievements and their application status; the direct economic and social benefits generated; the status of talent development and team building; as well as the status of organizational management and mechanism innovation.

　　Chapter 4: Procedures for Task Acceptance

　　Article 15: All projects (research topics) that have been approved for inclusion in the management of major special programs shall undergo acceptance testing upon completion of their planned objectives and tasks. The acceptance testing of such projects (research topics) shall be completed within six months after the expiration of the task contract.

　　For projects (research topics) that cannot complete their target tasks on schedule, an extension application must be submitted, clearly stating the reasons for the extension and the proposed extension period. Such applications shall be reviewed and approved by the leading group through the organizing unit responsible for the major special project, and then filed with the three relevant departments. In principle, the extension period shall not exceed one year.

　　Article 16: The Implementation and Management Office for Major Special Projects shall, based on the status of task completion and the overall work schedule, make comprehensive arrangements for the timing and relevant requirements of project (subject) acceptance, formulate an acceptance work plan, and submit it to the three departments for record.

　　For projects (topics) undergoing synchronous acceptance, the Office for Implementation and Management of Major Special Projects shall properly organize and coordinate the participating units and the acceptance expert panel, as well as arrange the timing, to ensure that the acceptance process proceeds smoothly and in an orderly manner.

　　Article 17: The responsible entity for the project (or sub-project) shall, within 60 days after the completion date specified in the task contract, submit to the Implementation and Management Office for the Major Special Project a Project (or Sub-project) Acceptance Application Form (see Appendix 1 for the format). At the same time, it must also submit the following acceptance documentation and materials.

　　(1) Self-evaluation report for the project (subject) (see Appendix 2 for the format). The report shall primarily cover the following aspects: an overview of the project (subject), implementation status, application of research outcomes and their socio-economic benefits, financial expenditure and management, organizational and managerial arrangements, existing problems, and recommendations. Please complete the “List of Principal Researchers,” the “Financial Income and Expenditure Implementation Table for the Project (Subject),” the “Overview of Major Achievements,” the “Achievement Information Table,” and the “List of Production Lines, Pilot Test Lines, Platform Bases, and Demonstration Sites (Projects)” that have been established. Additionally, provide supporting documentation such as test reports or inspection reports for products (achievements) and user feedback reports.

　　(2) Report on the financial revenue and expenditure performance of the project (subject), and explanation of the balance of funds remaining from the project (subject).

　　(3) Project (subject) contract, budget, and other relevant approval documents.

　　The acceptance documents and materials for the project (subject) must be stamped with the official seal of the responsible unit for the project (subject). The responsible unit for the project (subject) shall be accountable for the authenticity, accuracy, and completeness of the submitted acceptance documents and related data.

　　For projects (research topics) jointly undertaken by multiple institutions, the participating institutions shall, under the unified organization of the responsible institution, cooperate in preparing the relevant acceptance documentation.

　　Article 18: Upon receiving the acceptance application and relevant documents and materials, the Implementation Management Office for Major Special Projects shall promptly conduct a formal review and notify the responsible unit of the project (subject) whether or not it agrees to proceed with the acceptance.

　　Article 19: For acceptance applications that have passed the formal review, the Implementation and Management Office for Major Special Projects, in conjunction with the acceptance work plan, shall consult with the responsible units of the projects (sub-projects) to determine the specific schedule for acceptance, issue a notice organizing the acceptance process, and simultaneously send a copy to the three relevant departments.

　　For acceptance applications that do not pass the formal review, the Implementation and Management Office for Major Special Projects shall promptly notify the responsible units of the projects (topics) to supplement or revise the acceptance materials within a specified time limit.

　　Article 20: Based on reviewing documentation, watching demonstrations, conducting on-site tests (including tests commissioned to third-party institutions), carrying out field inspections, and listening to reports, the task acceptance experts shall carefully examine and ask probing questions, complete the “Evaluation Form for Task Acceptance of Major Special Projects (Subjects)” (see Appendix 3 for the format), and discuss to formulate the task acceptance opinions for the project (subject).

　　Article 21: Based on the acceptance results of project (subject) tasks and financial audits, the Office for Implementation and Management of Major Special Projects shall formulate an acceptance conclusion, complete the “Acceptance Conclusion Report for Major Special Projects (Subjects)” (see Appendix 4 for the format), and submit it to the leading organization and the steering committee of the major special project. The Office for Implementation and Management of Major Special Projects shall be responsible for delivering the “Acceptance Conclusion Report for Major Special Projects (Subjects)” to the responsible units of the projects (subjects).

　　The three departments may conduct supervision and inspection of the procedures, content, quality, and conclusions of project (subject) acceptance through spot checks, rechecks, and other methods.

　　Article 22: The acceptance of classified projects (research topics) shall be carried out strictly in accordance with relevant regulations, including the "Law of the People's Republic of China on the Protection of State Secrets," the "Regulations on the Confidentiality of Science and Technology," and the "Regulations on Confidentiality for Implementing Major Science and Technology Special Projects."

　　Chapter 5: Acceptance Conclusion and Follow-up Work

　　Article 23: The acceptance opinions for project (subject) tasks fall into two categories: passed acceptance and failed acceptance. If any of the following circumstances exist, the task shall be deemed as having failed acceptance.

　　(1) The key technical and economic indicators stipulated in the contract have not been met;

　　(2) The acceptance documents, materials, and data provided are not authentic;

　　(3) Unauthorized modification of the assessment objectives, content, technical approach, and other elements of the project (subject) task contract.

　　Article 24: The comprehensive acceptance conclusion for a project (or research topic) shall be categorized into two types: "Passes Acceptance" and "Fails Acceptance." If both the task acceptance and the financial acceptance conclude as "Passes Acceptance," then the comprehensive acceptance conclusion for the project (or research topic) shall be "Passes Acceptance." If either one of these two assessments concludes as "Fails Acceptance," then the comprehensive acceptance conclusion for the project (or research topic) shall be "Fails Acceptance."

　　Article 25: Within one month after a project (or research topic) has passed acceptance, the responsible entity for each project (or research topic) shall complete the financial closing procedures. Any remaining funds from the project (or research topic) shall be handled in accordance with relevant financial and fiscal regulations.

　　Article 26: Projects (research topics) that have not passed the acceptance inspection shall complete the rectification work within six months after receiving the acceptance conclusion notice and then submit a new acceptance application.

　　Article 27: The Implementation and Management Office for Major Special Projects shall promptly organize and archive the documentation and materials related to project (subject) acceptance, and shall submit a consolidated set of both paper and electronic materials to the Ministry of Science and Technology for inclusion in the management information system for Major Special Projects.

　　Article 28: After the completion of acceptance testing for major special projects (topics), the Office for Implementation and Management of Major Special Projects shall promptly prepare a “Summary Report on the Acceptance Testing of Major Special Projects (Topics).” Once approved by the leading organization and the steering committee of the major special project, this report, together with the acceptance conclusion documents for each individual project (topic), shall be submitted to the three relevant departments.

　　Chapter Six: Related Responsibilities

　　Article 29: For projects (topics) that fail to apply for acceptance upon expiration without justifiable reason, or that fail the re-acceptance inspection, the Office for Implementation and Management of Major Special Projects will no longer accept applications for major special projects (topics) submitted by the project leaders of such projects (topics), nor will it accept applications for projects (topics) under this major special project submitted by the responsible entities for a period of five years.

　　Article 30: Any instances of falsification, dereliction of duty, misappropriation, diversion, or encroachment upon major special funds discovered during the acceptance process of projects (research topics) will, once verified, result in the immediate suspension or revocation of the eligibility of the project (research topic) leader and the responsible entity to continue undertaking major special projects (research topics). In addition, the relevant persons and entities will be held accountable according to applicable regulations. If such acts are suspected of constituting a crime, the case will be referred to the judicial authorities for criminal prosecution in accordance with the law.

　　Article 31: During the acceptance process of major special projects, if members of the acceptance expert panel or relevant institutions engage in acts such as falsification, favoritism and corruption, or dereliction of duty, their eligibility to participate in any tasks and work related to these major special projects will be revoked. In cases involving violations of national laws and regulations, the offenders will be dealt with according to applicable laws and regulations.

　　Article 32: Any personnel involved in the acceptance of major special projects (subjects) who, without authorization, disclose, use, or provide to others the results of the accepted projects (subjects) shall, once verified, have their eligibility to participate in various tasks and activities related to these major special projects terminated or revoked. If such actions cause losses to the state, relevant organizations, or individuals, they shall be held accountable according to applicable regulations and laws. In cases involving state secrets, handling shall be governed by relevant laws and regulations.

　　Chapter VII Supplementary Provisions

　　Article 33: Each major special project shall, in accordance with these Measures and taking into account the specific characteristics of its own project, formulate detailed implementation rules for project (subject) acceptance management and submit them for filing with the three departments.

　　Article 34: The funds required for the acceptance of major special projects (topics) shall be strictly in accordance with the "Provisional Measures for the Management of Major Special Funds for Science and Technology in Civilian Sectors" and the "Provisional Measures for the Management of Administrative Expenses for Major Special Projects in Science and Technology in Civilian Sectors."

　　Article 35: These Measures shall be interpreted by the three departments and shall take effect from the date of their promulgation.