THIS WEEK IN CONGRESS

The legislative tracker has been updated--and, check out our new state legislation tracker. More topics to come soon!

Find sequestration resources on our new webpage!

NSF Peer Review Still in Focus. Last week two separate letters—one from former National Science Foundation directors and National Science Board chairs,  and a second from former NSF assistant directors—were sent to the chairman and ranking member of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee, expressing concerns regarding the discussion draft “High Quality Research Act” and the inquiry into a number of NSF social science grants (see May 1 Policy Alert). The letter signed by three former NSF directors and three former National Science Board chairs argued that these initiatives would have “a chilling and detrimental impact on the merit-based review process.” The letter from 18 former assistant directors argued that the draft bill would “undermine NSF’s role of building the foundation of basic research on which applied science must depend.” Both letters urged that the committee rescind the draft bill. In a related ScienceInsider interview with a majority staffer for the committee, the staffer emphasized that the committee’s concerns were focused on a “number of specific NSF grants that were awarded that have raised questions in the minds of policymakers about why these projects are being funded. That’s not the peer-review system itself, and the intent of the legislation is not to change the peer-review system. It is the next step after, which is making awards. It is an additional layer of accountability.”

Science Laureate Bill Introduced. On May 9, a bipartisan group of Senate and House members introduced the Science Laureates Act of 2013 (H.R. 1891). The bill, introduced by House Science, Space, and Technology Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-TX) and Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), and Senators Mazie Hirono (D-HI) and Roger Wicker (R-MI), would establish a Science Laureate to be appointed by the President and to reside at the National Academy of Sciences for a 1- to 2-year term. The Science Laureate would “embody, demonstrate, and articulate the importance and excitement of scientific research and education will help improve the current and future state of science to the benefit of all people in the United States.”  

AAAS Weekly Policy Alert

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HEADLINES
You're invited to a AAAS lunch briefing: Recovering from Stroke, the State of the Science. May 22, 12-1 at B-340 Rayburn House Office Building. Register here: http://bit.ly/10ywUEC  .

The May edition of Science and Technology in Congress is available here.

AAAS sent a letter to Representative Lofgren in support of the Science Laureates of the United States Act of 2013.

AAAS Public Lunch Briefing on April 26: R&D Budget in the FY 2014 Request. Featuring Matt Hourihan, Director of the AAAS R&D Budget and Policy Program. Register here.

AAAS submits public comments on institutional oversight of life sciences dual use research of concern.

February 2013 STC newsletter is available now!

AAAS sends letters to Senators Mikulski and Shelby in support of political science research.

AAAS sends letter to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform to share our thoughts about federal travel and meeting policies.

The legislative tracker has been updated--and, check out our new state legislation tracker. More topics to come soon!

AAAS sent a petition with about 16,000 signatures, urging the White House and Congress to avoid devastating cuts to R&D.

AAAS sent a collection of messages from scientists around the country, telling Congress about the importance of their federally funded research. Check out what they said, and have your say, too! http://membercentral.aaas.org/sequestration/voices/videos.

AAAS affirms the importance of research to better understand and curb gun violence in a letter to Reps. Maloney and Markey. Read the press release and letter here.

AAAS thanks President Obama for supporting research on gun violence. See the letter here.

View the video from our recent panel on the Arctic as an Emerging Market.

An updated legislation tracker is available now!

AAAS and over one hundred other scientific societies send a letter to the White House and Congress, urging them to avoid the sequestration.

November 2012 issue of Science and Technology in Congress now available!

Check out the video from the AAAS briefing on sequestration, or view presentations from Matt Hourihan (AAAS) and Orlando Auciello (Argonne National Laboratory).

Find sequestration resources on our new webpage!

View the video from our recent Food-Energy-Water Nexus panel, featuring Nicole T. Carter, Melissa D. Ho, Cathleen Enright, and hosted by Richard Harris.

View the video from our recent Biosecurity Panel, featuring CDR Chris Bidwell, Randall Murch, Kristin Omberg, and hosted by David Kestenbaum.

Impacts of Sequestration on Science Budgets. Read the new brief from the AAAS R&D Budget and Policy Program here.

Presentations from Early-Onset Alzheimer's Disease: A Public Luncheon Briefing are available here and here.

Translational Science: From Research to Practice, a public breakfast briefing on Tuesday, July 31. View the presentation here.

Mental Health in Early Adulthood: A Public Luncheon Briefing: Check out Dr. Abigail Baird's presentation.

Early Brain Development and Early Education: A Public Luncheon Briefing: Check out presentations by James A. Griffin and Martha J. Farah.

AAAS and Affiliates Send Letter to Congress Regarding GSA Travel Restrictions
On May 18, 2012, AAAS and affiliates sent letters to the House and the Senate to express concern regarding amendments that would place severe restrictions on government employees' abilities to attend meetings and conferences.

AAAS Sends Letter to Congress Regarding Funding of NSF Political Science Research
In response to an amendment seeking to eliminate funding to NSF political science research, AAAS sent letters in support of these important programs to the House and the Senate.

AAAS Launches Election 2012 Site
With the U.S. presidential campaign still in its early stages, the AAAS Office of Government Relations has developed a Web site that describes and tracks the candidates' positions on science, technology, and innovation issues: Science and Technology in the 2012 Presidential Election.

AAAS Participates in Climate Science Day
February 1 marked the second annual Climate Science Day, an opportunity for scientists of many disciplines to visit Capitol Hill and meet with members of Congress to discuss climate science. The event was a joint effort of the intersociety Climate Science Working Group, which comprises a dozen scientific professional societies and research organizations, including AAAS.

AAAS Issues Statement on Research Works Act
On January 18, AAAS reaffirmed its support for the current public access policy of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH), stating that it does not endorse the Research Works Act, which would prevent NIH from requiring its grantees to make biomedical research findings freely available via the National Library of Medicine's Web site.

AAAS Comments on Public Access
On January 12, AAAS responded to a Request for Information by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy on public access to peer-reviewed publications resulting from federally-funded research.