NIH & NSF Budgets, Students with Disabilities, NSF Advisory Committees
CONGRESS EXAMINES NIH, NSF BUDGETS
The House Appropriations Committee invited officials from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Science Foundation (NSF) to testify about the Biden Administration’s proposed budget for each agency on Wednesday. Lawmakers expressed concerns that the President had requested a $4 billion increase for the new Advanced Research Projects Agency – Health (ARPA-H), while only requesting a minimal increase for the NIH. Members of the committee asked NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan about the agency’s research security protocols, its programs to expand participation in federal research, and how the NSF partners with industry. The annual hearings are a key part of how Congress determines agency budgets and priorities for the following fiscal year, which begins on October 1st.
BUZZ BITS…
- The U.S. Senate confirmed Dr. Asmeret Berhe as director of the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science. Dr. Berhe is a soil biogeochemist and a professor at the University of California, Merced.
- On Tuesday, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced an update to its sexual harassment policy. NIH grantees will now be required to report when grant personnel have been disciplined as the result of a sexual harassment investigation. The new policy, which goes into effect on July 8th, was mandated by Congress and puts the agency in line with similar policies from the National Science Foundation and NASA.
- The U.S. Department of Education announced last week it will solicit public comments and hold listening sessions on strengthening and protecting federal rights for students with disabilities. The Department plans to update the regulations that accompany Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the landmark disability legislation that has not been significantly updated since 1977.
NSF SEEKS ADVISORY COMMITTEE NOMINATIONS
The National Science Foundation (NSF) recently issued a request for people to serve on its scientific advisory committees, which provide advice on the research agenda and policies of each of its directorates. Serving on federal scientific advisory committees gives investigators the opportunity to help shape future research, innovation, and education agendas for the nation. College of Engineering Dean Kenneth Lutchen and Associate Provost of the Faculty of Computing & Data Sciences Azer Bestavros are among the BU faculty who have served on NSF advisory committees. BU Federal Relations can assist faculty who want to put together a nomination package.