Chapter X Supervision and Management

Article 98 The state strengthens law-based science and technology administration, and improves research integrity and conduct. The state improves the systems for research integrity, science and technology supervision, and  governance of scientific ethics, to create a favorable innovation environment.

Article 99 The state improves the rules and procedures for science and technology-related decision-making, and establishes a sound consultation mechanism for decision-making, to ensure that decisions are made in a sound, democratic and law-based way.

The state reforms and improves the consultation system for major decision-making on science and technology. Consultations shall be held when formulating plans and major policies on scientific and technological development and when identifying major scientific and technological projects or major projects closely related to science and technology, involving scientific and technological personnel and think tanks, with wider public participation, to ensure that decisions are made based on sound evaluation.

Article 100 The state strengthens the performance management of fiscal funds for science and technology to improve efficient allocation and use. The management and use of such fiscal funds shall be subject to supervision and inspection by audit and finance authorities.

Administrative departments of science and technology and other relevant administrative departments shall tighten the supervision of the implementation of scientific and technological programs established with fiscal funds, and strengthen the coordination, evaluation and supervision of funding for research projects.

No organization or individual shall obtain, by means of false or fraudulent pretenses or representation, fiscal funds for science and technology, or embezzle, misappropriate or withhold such funds.

Article 101 The state establishes a classified management mechanism for projects under scientific and technological programs, and strengthens the assessment and evaluation of project performance. Decisions on funding projects under scientific and technological programs established with fiscal funds shall be made in accordance with the problem-, goal- and demand-oriented criteria, and project undertaking parties shall be selected based on merit and in accordance with relevant regulations of the state.

The state establishes an information system for science and technology management. The state establishes a database of evaluators, improves the evaluation system for projects under scientific and technological programs, and the selection, avoidance, confidentiality and accountability systems for evaluators.

Article 102 The administrative department of science and technology under the State Council, together with other relevant administrative departments, shall establish an information system and a resource bank for scientific and technological assets such as research facilities, instruments and equipment, and for scientific and technological resources such as scientific literature, scientific data, natural resources for scientific research, and science popularization resources, and shall publicize information about their distribution and usage in a timely manner.

The management institutions of scientific and technological resources shall publicize the rules for open access to managed resources and information about their usage, and shall arrange usage according to the rules. Where laws and administrative regulations require confidentiality, such laws and administrative regulations shall prevail.

The management institutions of scientific and technological resources shall not infringe upon the intellectual property rights of users of these resources, and shall set the charging standards in accordance with relevant regulations of the state. Other rights and obligations between the management institutions and the users shall be set by agreement.

Article 103 The state establishes a scientific ethics committee. The state improves the rules and regulations on scientific ethics, strengthens education and research on scientific ethics, and improves relevant review, evaluation and oversight systems.

R&D institutions, institutions of higher education, enterprises, and public institutions shall fulfill the responsibility as the principal management entities for scientific ethics. They shall establish a scientific ethics review mechanism in accordance with relevant regulations of the state, and carry out ethics review of scientific and technological activities.

Article 104 The state strengthens research integrity. The state establishes credit records on scientific and technological projects and an information system for research integrity, and improves the mechanism for preventing, investigating and handling research dishonesty, which places equal emphasis on prevention and punishment, and self-discipline and supervision.

Local governments at or above the county level and relevant administrative departments shall take measures to strengthen research integrity. Enterprises, public institutions, and social organizations shall fulfill the responsibility as the principal management entities for research integrity.

No organization or individual shall fabricate or falsify research results, publish or disseminate false research results, or engage in the trading, ghostwriting or third-party submission of academic papers, experimental research data, proposals, reports, or other documents of projects under scientific and technological programs.

Article 105 The state improves the science and technology statistics system and the national innovation survey system to provide an overview of national scientific and technological activities and to monitor and evaluate the national innovation capacity.

The state improves the science and technology report system. Undertaking parties of fiscally funded projects under scientific and technological programs shall submit relevant reports in a timely manner according to relevant regulations.

Article 106 The state implements a science and technology confidentiality system, and builds the capacity to maintain confidentiality to protect science and technology secrets involving national security and interests.

The state implements according to law export control on scientific and technological resources such as important biological germplasm, genetic resources and data resources, and on core technologies in key fields.

Article 107 R&D and commercialization activities that endanger national security, public interests or human health, or compromise research integrity or scientific ethics are prohibited.

Scientific and technological activities shall comply with their management rules. Organizations and individuals that seriously violate the management rules shall be recorded in the database for serious research dishonesty by the administrative departments of science and technology and other relevant administrative departments.

Chapter XI Legal Liability

Article 108 Where an administrative department of science and technology or any of its staff member or any other person performing public duties according to law, in violation of the provisions of this Law, abuses power, neglects duty, or engages in malpractices for personal gains, the directly responsible persons in charge and other persons directly responsible shall be sanctioned in accordance with law.

Article 109 Where any entity or individual, in violation of the provisions of this Law, abuses power to hamper, restrict or suppress R&D activities, or to repress, marginalize or make things difficult for scientific and technological personnel, the directly responsible persons in charge and other persons directly responsible shall be sanctioned in accordance with law.

Article 110 Where any entity or individual, in violation of the provisions of this Law, obtains by means of false or fraudulent pretenses or representation, embezzles, misappropriates or withholds fiscal or donated funds for scientific and technological progress, the competent administrative department shall order the entity or individual to make rectification and refund relevant fiscal or donated funds, and give the entity or individual a warning or public reprimand, and may suspend the allocation of funds, and terminate or cancel relevant scientific and technological activities. If the circumstances are serious, the entity or individual shall be fined according to law, and be prohibited from undertaking or participating in any fiscally funded scientific and technological activity within a certain period of time. The directly responsible persons in charge and other persons directly responsible shall be given administrative penalties and be sanctioned according to law.

Article 111 Any entity, in violation of the provisions of this Law, fails to fulfil the obligation to provide open access to scientific and technological resources, such as large scientific instruments and equipment, which are purchased with fiscal funds and state-owned capital, shall be ordered to make rectification and be given a warning or public reprimand by the competent administrative department, and the directly responsible persons in charge and other persons directly responsible shall be sanctioned in accordance with law.

Article 112 Any entity or individual that, in violation of the provisions of this Law, engages in R&D or commercialization activities endangering national security, public interests or human health, or compromising research integrity or scientific ethics, shall be ordered to make rectification by the competent administrative department. If the entity or individual has obtained fiscal funds for scientific and technological progress or there are illegal proceeds, the competent administrative department shall terminate or cancel relevant scientific and technological activities, recover the fiscal funds, and confiscate the illegal gains. If the circumstances are serious, the competent administrative department shall make public such illegal acts, impose administrative penalties and sanctions according to law, and prohibit the entity or individual from, within a certain period of time, undertaking or participating in any fiscally funded scientific and technological activity  and applying for any administrative permit for relevant scientific and technological activity. The directly responsible persons in charge and other persons directly responsible shall be given administrative penalties and be sanctioned according to law.

Any entity or individual that, in violation of the provisions of this Law, fabricates or falsifies research results, publishes or disseminates false research results, or engages in the trading, ghostwriting or third-party submission of academic papers, and experimental research data, proposals, reports, or any other documents of projects under scientific and technological programs, shall be given a warning or public reprimand, and be fined by the competent administrative department. The illegal gains, if any, shall be confiscated. If the circumstances are serious, the relevant permit shall be revoked.

Article 113 Where any entity or individual that, in violation of the provisions of this Law, engages in scientific and technological activities that breach relevant management rules, the competent administrative department shall order the entity or individual to make rectification within a time limit, and may recover relevant fiscal funds, issue a warning or public reprimand, suspend the allocation of funds, and terminate or cancel relevant fiscally funded scientific and technological activities. If the circumstances are serious, the entity or individual shall be prohibited from undertaking or participating in any fiscally funded scientific and technological activity within a certain period of time, and be disqualified from managing any fiscally funded scientific and technological activity within a certain period of time. The directly responsible persons in charge and other persons directly responsible shall be sanctioned according to law.

Article 114 Where any entity or individual, in violation of the provisions of this Law, obtains national scientific and technological awards by fraudulent means, the competent administrative department shall revoke relevant awards, recover relevant medals, certificates and bonuses, and impose sanctions on the entity or individual according to law.

Where any nominating institution or individual, in violation of the provisions of this Law, provides false data or documents to help others obtain national scientific and technological awards, the competent administrative department shall issue a public reprimand. If the circumstances are serious, the nomination right of the institution or individual shall be suspended or revoked, and the institution or individual be sanctioned according to law.   

Article 115 Where this Law provides no administrative penalty for a violation of the provisions of this Law, while another relevant law or administrative regulations do, the provisions of this other relevant law or the administrative regulations shall apply. Where a violation of the provisions of this Law incurs property loss or other damage, the violator shall bear civil liability according to law. Where a violation of the provisions of this Law constitutes an act against the administration of public security, a penalty for administration of public security shall be imposed according to law. Where a violation of the provisions of this Law constitutes a crime, the offender shall be held criminally liable according to law.

Chapter XII Supplementary Provisions

Article 116 Other matters related to scientific and technological progress involving national defense shall be provided for by the State Council and the Central Military Commission.

Article 117 This Law shall come into force as of January 1, 2022.