Notice of the General Office of the State Council on Issuing the Administrative Measures for Scientific Data

General Office Document No. [2018] No. 17

 

 

People's Governments of all provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the central government; all ministries and commissions of the State Council and their directly affiliated institutions:

The “Administrative Measures for Scientific Data” have been approved by the State Council and are now being circulated to you. Please ensure thorough implementation.

 

General Office of the State Council

2018 Year 3 17th of the month

Scientific Data Management Measures

 

Chapter 1 General Provisions

 

Article 1 　To further strengthen and standardize the management of scientific data, ensure its security, enhance the level of open sharing, and better support national scientific and technological innovation, economic and social development, and national security, these Measures are formulated in accordance with the provisions of the "Law of the People's Republic of China on Progress in Science and Technology," the "Law of the People's Republic of China on Promoting the Transformation of Scientific and Technological Achievements," and the "Interim Measures for the Management of Sharing Government Information Resources," among other relevant regulations.

Article 2 　The scientific data referred to in these Measures primarily include data generated through basic research, applied research, experimental development, and other activities in fields such as natural sciences and engineering technology sciences, as well as primary data and derived data obtained via observation and monitoring, field surveys, inspections, and testing, and used for scientific research activities.

Article 3 　This regulation applies to activities such as the collection, production, processing, organization, open sharing, and management and use of scientific data supported by government budgetary funds.

Any organization or individual engaging in scientific data-related activities within the territory of the People’s Republic of China, and meeting the conditions stipulated in these Measures, shall comply with these Measures.

Article 4 　Scientific data management adheres to the principles of hierarchical management, security and controllability, and full utilization. It clearly defines responsible parties, strengthens capacity building, and promotes open sharing.

Article 5 　Any organization or individual engaged in the collection, production, use, or management of scientific data shall comply with relevant national laws, regulations, and departmental rules, and shall not use scientific data to engage in activities that endanger national security, public interests, or the legitimate rights and interests of others.

 

Chapter Two: Duties and Responsibilities

 

Article 6 　Scientific data management operates under a system of national overall coordination, with each department and region taking responsibility according to their respective divisions of labor.

Article 7 　The science and technology administrative department of the State Council takes the lead in assuming overall management and comprehensive coordination of national scientific data. Its main responsibilities are:

(1) Organize the development of national scientific data management policies and standard specifications;

(2) Coordinate and promote the standardized management, open sharing, and evaluation and assessment of scientific data;

(3) Coordinate and promote the construction and development of the National Scientific Data Center;

(4) Responsible for the construction of the national scientific data network management platform and data maintenance.

Article 8 　The primary responsibilities of the relevant departments under the State Council and the relevant departments of provincial-level people's governments (hereinafter collectively referred to as the competent authorities) in the management of scientific data are:

(1) Be responsible for establishing and improving scientific data management policies and regulations within this department (this region), and for promoting, implementing, and enforcing the national scientific data management policies.

(2) Guide affiliated legal entities to strengthen and standardize the management of scientific data;

(3) Carry out or authorize relevant organizations to carry out the classification of scientific data in accordance with applicable national regulations.

(4) Coordinate the planning and construction of scientific data centers within this department (this region), and promote the open sharing of scientific data.

(5) Establish and improve an effective incentive mechanism, and organize evaluation and assessment of the scientific data work conducted by legal entities under this department (this region).

Article 9 　Legal entities such as research institutes, higher education institutions, and enterprises (hereinafter collectively referred to as “legal entities”) are the primary entities responsible for scientific data management. Their main responsibilities are:

(1) Implement and carry out the national and departmental (local) policies for scientific data management, and establish and improve the scientific data-related management systems within this unit.

(2) Scientifically collect, produce, process, organize, and preserve data over the long term in accordance with relevant standards and specifications to ensure data quality.

(3) Carry out the confidentiality and security management of scientific data in accordance with relevant regulations.

(4) Establish a scientific data management system, publish an open catalog of scientific data and update it promptly, and actively provide scientific data sharing services.

(5) Responsible for providing the necessary conditions—such as software and hardware facilities, funding, and personnel—to support the management and operation of scientific data.

Article 10 　The Science Data Center is an important platform for promoting the open sharing of scientific data. It is established by qualified legal entities entrusted by the competent authorities, and its primary responsibilities are:

(1) Undertake the integration and submission of scientific data in relevant fields;

(2) Responsible for the hierarchical classification, processing, organization, and analytical mining of scientific data;

(3) Ensure the security of scientific data and promote the open sharing of scientific data in accordance with laws and regulations;

(4) Strengthen exchanges and cooperation on scientific data both domestically and internationally.

 

Chapter 3: Collection, Submission, and Preservation

 

Article 11 　Legal entities and scientific data producers shall organize the collection, production, and processing of scientific data in accordance with relevant standards and specifications, thereby creating databases or datasets that are easy to use.

Legal entities should establish a scientific data quality control system to ensure the accuracy and availability of data.

Article 12 　The competent authorities should establish a scientific data submission system and carry out scientific data submission work within their respective departments (regions) based on the national unified government affairs network and data sharing and exchange platform.

Article 13 　Scientific data generated by science and technology programs (special projects, funds, etc.) at all levels funded by government budgetary allocations shall be submitted by the leading implementing units to the relevant scientific data centers. The scientific data center receiving the data shall issue a submission receipt.

The management departments of science and technology programs (special projects, funds, etc.) at all levels should establish a mechanism that requires the submission of scientific data prior to the acceptance of science and technology program (special project, fund, etc.) projects; project/ Scientific data generated after the project’s acceptance should also be submitted.

Article 14 　The competent authorities and legal entities shall establish and improve management systems for the submission of domestic and international academic paper data.

When writing and publishing papers in overseas academic journals using scientific data generated with government budget funds, and when it is necessary to submit the corresponding scientific data externally, the authors of such papers shall, prior to publication, submit the scientific data to their respective institutions for centralized management.

Article 15 　Scientific data generated with funding from social sources and involving state secrets, national security, or public interests must be submitted in accordance with relevant regulations.

Encourage the submission of other scientific data generated through funding from social sources to the relevant scientific data centers.

Article 16 　Legal entities shall establish a scientific data preservation system and equip themselves with the necessary facilities for data storage, management, service, and security, thereby ensuring the integrity and security of scientific data.

Article 17 　Legal entities should strengthen the development of their scientific data talent pool and establish incentive mechanisms in areas such as job design, performance-based compensation, and professional title evaluation.

Article 18 　The science and technology administrative department of the State Council should strengthen overall coordination and, based on scientifically data centers that are well-equipped and have obvious resource advantages, optimize and integrate them to form a National Science Data Center.

 

Chapter 4: Sharing and Utilization

 

Article 19 　Scientific data generated with funding from government budgetary resources shall, in accordance with the principle of openness as the norm and non-openness as the exception, be organized by the competent authorities to compile a catalog of scientific data resources. Such catalogs and data should be promptly integrated into the National Data Sharing and Exchange Platform, made openly accessible to the public and relevant departments, and ensure smooth channels for the shared use of scientific data between military and civilian sectors—unless otherwise specified by national laws and regulations.

Article 20 　Legal entities shall classify and categorize scientific data, clearly defining the confidentiality level and retention period of such data, as well as the conditions for data release, the intended recipients of the data, and the review procedures. They shall also publish the catalog of publicly available scientific data as required and make this data available to the public through online downloads, offline sharing, or customized services.

Article 21 　Legal entities should, based on demand, analyze and mine scientific data to create valuable scientific data products and provide value-added services. Social organizations and enterprises are encouraged to offer market-oriented value-added services.

Article 22 　Relevant authorities and legal entities should actively promote the publication and dissemination of scientific data, and support researchers in organizing and publishing scientific data that is clearly owned, accurate and complete, and highly valuable for sharing.

Article 23 　Users of scientific data shall comply with relevant intellectual property regulations and clearly indicate the scientific data they have used and cited in their publications, patent applications, monographs, and other works.

Article 24 　For areas such as government decision-making, public safety, national defense development, environmental protection, disaster prevention and mitigation, and public-interest scientific research—where the use of scientific data is required—legal entities shall provide such data free of charge. If fees are indeed necessary, reasonable fee standards shall be established in accordance with prescribed procedures and guided by non-profit principles, publicly announced to the public, and subject to public oversight.

For those who need to use scientific data for commercial activities, both parties shall sign a paid-service contract clearly defining their respective rights and obligations.

Where national laws and regulations have special provisions, those provisions shall prevail.

 

Chapter 5: Confidentiality and Security

 

Article 25 　Scientific data involving state secrets, national security, public interests, commercial secrets, and personal privacy shall not be made available for external sharing. If it is indeed necessary to make such data available externally, the purpose of use, user qualifications, confidentiality requirements, and other relevant factors must be carefully reviewed, and the scope of those who have access must be strictly limited.

Article 26 　The collection, production, processing, organization, management, and use of scientific data involving state secrets shall be conducted in accordance with the relevant national confidentiality regulations. The competent authorities and legal entities shall establish and improve systems for the management and use of scientific data involving state secrets, and implement strict controls over all stages—including creation, review, registration, copying, transmission, and destruction.

In diplomatic exchanges and cooperation involving the provision of scientific data that contains state secrets, legal entities shall clearly specify the categories, scope, and intended uses of the data to be utilized, and submit their request for approval to the competent authority in accordance with the prescribed procedures for confidentiality management. After obtaining approval from the competent authority, the legal entity shall handle the relevant formalities as required and sign a confidentiality agreement with the user.

Article 27 　The competent authorities and legal entities should strengthen the security management of scientific data throughout its entire lifecycle and develop measures to safeguard the security of scientific data. They should also enhance protective measures such as authentication and authorization for data downloads to prevent malicious use of the data.

For scientific data directories that are to be made publicly available or for scientific data that is to be provided externally, the competent authorities and legal entities shall establish corresponding security and confidentiality review systems.

Article 28 　Legal entities and scientific data centers shall, in accordance with national cybersecurity management regulations, establish a cybersecurity protection system, adopt secure and reliable products and services, and refine management measures such as data governance, attribute management, identity authentication, behavior tracing, and blacklisting. They should also strengthen their security protection systems to prevent tampering, data leakage, cyberattacks, and malware infections.

Article 29 　The scientific data center should establish emergency management and disaster recovery backup mechanisms, set up an emergency management system as required, and perform offsite backups of critical scientific data.

 

Chapter VI Supplementary Provisions

 

Article 30 　The competent authorities and legal entities should establish and improve an evaluation and assessment system for the management and open sharing of scientific data.

Article 31 　For acts such as falsifying data, infringing on intellectual property rights, or failing to submit data in accordance with regulations, the competent authorities may, depending on the severity of the circumstances, impose measures including ordering rectification, issuing public criticism, administering disciplinary actions, or imposing administrative penalties in accordance with the law on the relevant entities and individuals responsible.

Units and individuals that violate relevant national laws and regulations shall be held legally accountable accordingly.

Article 32 　The competent authorities may, by reference to these Measures, formulate specific implementation rules. The management system for scientific data involving the defense sector shall be separately stipulated by the relevant authorities.

Article 33 　This measure shall take effect from the date of its issuance.

 

(Source: China Government Network)