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What’s Ahead
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| NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan (Image credit – Bill Ingalls / NASA) |
Budget Hearings Continue as House Floats Strict Spending Caps
The heads of the National Science Foundation and NASA are respectively defending their fiscal year 2024 budget requests before the House Science Committee on Wednesday and Thursday, following appearances before House and Senate appropriators last week. While Committee Chair Frank Lucas (R-OK) is an advocate for NASA and backed the ambitious budget growth targets the CHIPS and Science Act set for NSF, House Republican leaders unveiled legislation last week that would roll back federal discretionary spending to fiscal year 2022 levels and limit it to an annual 1% growth rate for 10 years. According to an analysis by Matt Hourihan of the Federation of American Scientists, applying such a cap to just non-defense spending could result over its duration in a roughly $450-billion cumulative reduction in R&D spending. The Republicans’ legislation would also roll back various energy technology tax credits the Inflation Reduction Act created. The House is scheduled to vote on the legislation this week, but it will not advance in the Democrat-controlled Senate, which has cited the impact on CHIPS and Science Act initiatives as one reason to reject the proposal. Other budget hearings scheduled for this week will cover the Commerce Department, the National Nuclear Security Administration, and the U.S. Geological Survey.
DOE Advisory Panels to Meet
The Department of Energy’s Basic Energy Sciences Advisory Committee is meeting on Tuesday. Following an update from Office of Science Director Asmeret Asefaw Berhe and Basic Energy Sciences program leaders, the committee will hold a memorial session for George Crabtree, a materials scientist who was highly involved with the committee during his lengthy tenure at Argonne National Lab, where he directed the Joint Center for Energy Storage Research up until his death this January at 78. The agenda also includes panel discussions on DOE’s Nanoscale Science Research Centers and its plans for expanding microelectronics research and facilities. The office has requested to more than double its funding for microelectronics to nearly $110 million for fiscal year 2024, in part to establish a set of Microelectronics Science Research Centers authorized in the CHIPS and Science Act. Also on Tuesday, the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board is meeting to discuss “national laboratory innovation” and the planned Regional Clean Energy Innovation Partnerships program that was likewise authorized in the CHIPS and Science Act. In addition, on Wednesday Berhe and program leaders from across the Office of Science will participate in a meeting of the National Academies’ Board on Physics and Astronomy. The board will also hear presentations on the DOE-NASA Lunar Surface Electromagnetics Experiment-Night instrument and the National Ignition Facility at Lawrence Livermore National Lab.
NOAA Science Advisory Board Convenes
The Science Advisory Board of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is meeting on Wednesday and Thursday to hear updates from NOAA leaders and consider several reports by board subcommittees. Among them is a report examining the state of NOAA’s efforts to diversify its workforce and promote inclusion that concludes the pace of change “remains slow” despite recent initiatives. Other reports up for approval recommend improvements to NOAA climate information products in support of hazard mitigation planning, advocate for quickly designing a solar observatory network to replace the Global Oscillation Network Group, and propose new ways of fostering public-private partnerships, including a mechanism modeled on the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
Study on Global Scientist Recruitment Programs Launching
The National Academies is holding a kickoff meeting on Friday for a study committee that will review the effectiveness of U.S. mechanisms for recruiting and retaining international and domestic scientists in comparison to ones operated by competing nations, particularly China and Russia. The committee is also tasked with examining “rationales for international mobility and its role in the scientific research ecosystem” and suggesting “model practices for U.S. programs that address human capital needs, advance scientific collaborations, and minimize national security concerns.” The study responds to a provision in the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 and is sponsored by the Department of Defense’s Office of S&T Program Protection. The director of the office is speaking at the kickoff meeting followed by a presentation on the “Vying for Talent” podcast series produced by the Brookings Institution and the Center for Strategic and International Studies. The committee is chaired by Texas A&M University Vice President for Research Mark Barteau and among its members are former Department of Energy Office of Science Director Chris Fall and former State Department Director of Policy Planning Kiron Skinner, who both served during the Trump administration.
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In Case You Missed It
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| NASA Administrator Bill Nelson testifies before Senate appropriators on April 18. (Image credit – Bill Ingalls / NASA) |
Nelson Reveals Mars Sample Return Faces Near-Term Funding Crunch
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson told Senate and House appropriators last week that, on a recent trip to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, he was informed the agency’s Mars Sample Return mission needs significantly more near-term funding than previously planned. “They’re saying they want another $250 million in this year — meaning in this year, the existing 2023 — and 2024,” he recounted during his Senate appearance. He only referred to fiscal year 2024 in an exchange at the subsequent House hearing. Asked by FYI whether Nelson meant $250 million across the two years or in each of them, NASA refrained from clarifying, stating that Nelson’s remarks were “illustrative of supply-chain challenges with this and other NASA major projects,” and that the figure is “not an official estimate nor is it reflected in NASA’s fiscal year 2024 request,” which remains unchanged in seeking $950 million for MSR.
MSR is a partnership between NASA and the European Space Agency and NASA has been driving toward launching its portion of the mission in 2028. Quickly ramping up funding to meet that goal, NASA is already spending more than $800 million on the mission in the current fiscal year. The agency has previously reported that its estimates for MSR’s total cost are rising but it has not released specific figures, stating it is waiting until it establishes a firm baseline estimate, which it expects to do early in fiscal year 2024. NASA is also exploring options to reconfigure the mission to reduce costs and is setting up a panel to independently examine its plans for the mission, and it has proposed delaying efforts outside its planetary science portfolio due in part to MSR’s budgetary demands.
New Top NSF Appropriator Airs China Concerns, Support for EPSCoR
Rep. Hal Rogers (R-KY), the new chair of the House appropriations subcommittee with jurisdiction over the National Science Foundation, spoke positively about the agency at a hearing he convened last week and focused his questions on how it is helping the U.S. respond to China’s growing prowess in research. “Almost overnight, we’re in the middle of a critical competition between the United States and China for international scientific leadership. NSF has a vital role, obviously, to play in ensuring the American research enterprise remains the gold standard worldwide,” Rogers remarked. He also asserted that the Chinese government “continues to employ devious tactics to steal American research and intellectual property, even going as far as enlisting U.S. researchers into its talent programs,” adding that development of a “government-wide research security strategy” should be a top priority for fiscal year 2024. He expressed particular interest in drawing more students from rural communities into the STEM workforce to “meet the growing demands of industry and outcompete China,” including by leveraging NSF’s EPSCoR program, which sets aside funds for states and territories that have historically received a small share of the agency’s budget. Rogers represents a rural district in Kentucky, which is an EPSCoR state. NSF’s EPSCoR program also received bipartisan praise at a Senate appropriations hearing last week. NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan said he is confident the agency is on track to exceed a target set in the CHIPS and Science Act to allocate at least 20% of the agency’s research budget to EPSCoR jurisdictions by the end of the decade.
Granholm Grilled on DOE Budget, Infrastructure Initiatives
At a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing last week, senators grilled Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm on the Department of Energy’s budget priorities and its implementation of major energy infrastructure bills enacted during the last Congress. Citing the increasing federal debt, Committee Chair Joe Manchin (D-WV) said, “I’m concerned that DOE is asking for a more than 13% increase from 2023, especially since DOE received nearly $100 billion in additional funding for the next decade in the bipartisan infrastructure bill and the Inflation Reduction Act. At some point we have to say enough is enough.” He also argued that DOE has not been adhering to congressional guidance in implementing the energy technology incentives the Inflation Reduction Act created, stating, “Although the IRA will invest in technologies to decarbonize, it is first and foremost an energy security bill. Unfortunately, this administration seems intent on disregarding that in an effort to implement a climate law that Congress didn’t pass.” Committee Ranking Member John Barrasso (R-WY) similarly argued that the Biden administration has not sufficiently prioritized energy security and pressed Granholm on DOE’s selection of the battery maker Microvast as one of 21 companies to receive battery manufacturing grants from infrastructure law funds, alleging that the company’s ties to China pose a security risk. Granholm noted that the award is still under negotiation and that DOE will not fund “any state-owned enterprise or Chinese-influenced company.” Barrasso made similar points in a recent op-ed, where he also suggested DOE should do more to vet non-resident Chinese scientists working in DOE national labs.
Science Committee Makes Case for NOAA Independence
Three former heads of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration made the case for separating NOAA from the Commerce Department at a hearing held last week by the House Science Committee. Committee Chair Frank Lucas (R-OK), who has released draft legislation to make NOAA an independent agency, argued in his opening statement that NOAA is a vital agency undermined by its placement within the department and its lack of clear legislative authorization. “NOAA exists through a patchwork of roughly 200 statutes that have resulted in an agency with complex organizational challenges and, at times, an ill-defined mission,” he stated. The former NOAA heads, who all served during Republican administrations, sharply criticized the Commerce Department’s management of NOAA, offering numerous examples of cases where department officials interfered with or slowed agency decisions. Neil Jacobs, who was acting NOAA head during the Trump administration, also argued that an independent NOAA would be less vulnerable to political interference when asked about his own experience of being pressured to criticize agency forecasters who contradicted President Trump’s remarks about the path of Hurricane Dorian. Democrats did not take a stance on making NOAA an independent agency, with Ranking Member Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) stating she has asked Lucas to hold additional hearings to collect a broader range of perspectives, including from witnesses who oppose the idea of making the agency independent. However, Democrats and Republicans alike expressed support for passing a so-called “organic act,” which would consolidate the many statutes governing NOAA.
Moon-to-Mars Review Released as Starship Launch Falls Short
Last week, NASA released the results from a concept review of its mission architecture for exploring the Moon and ultimately sending astronauts to Mars. The review identified 63 objectives as well as nine “recurring tenets” underlying NASA’s efforts that together will inform the development of vehicles and capabilities within four “architecture segments”: human lunar return, foundational exploration, sustained lunar evolution, and humans to Mars. Although the concept review is more detailed than documents NASA has released previously, it did not present updates on the agency’s specific plans, which are currently built around an ambitious series of prospective milestone dates. Notably, a critical element of NASA’s human exploration architecture, SpaceX’s Starship vehicle and Super Heavy booster, underwent their first combined test launch on April 20. Starship did not execute a planned separation from Super Heavy and SpaceX destroyed the rocket system several minutes into the flight. The launch also caused extensive damage to the launch pad and surrounding area. Although SpaceX and NASA hailed the test as an important step forward, it is unclear how the result could affect NASA’s schedule for using Starship as a crewed lunar lander on its Artemis III mission, which is currently targeted for late 2025.
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Events This Week
All times are Eastern Standard Time, unless otherwise noted. Listings do not imply endorsement.
Monday, April 24
Tuesday, April 25
Wednesday, April 26
Thursday, April 27
Friday, April 28
Monday, May 1
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Opportunities NTIA Seeks Input on ‘AI Accountability’ Methods
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration is seeking input on methods for ensuring that systems using artificial intelligence are “legal, effective, ethical, safe, and otherwise trustworthy.” The input will inform a forthcoming report on AI accountability policy, building on the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy’s Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights and the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s AI Risk Management Framework. Comments are due June 12.
NASA Seeks Input on Racial Equity in Grantmaking
NASA is soliciting public comments on “barriers and challenges that prevent members of underserved communities … from participating in NASA’s procurements, grants, and cooperative agreements,” following up on a similar request for information issued in 2021. The agency aims to assess whether conditions have changed since the last RFI and to ensure new recipients have an opportunity to provide input. Comments are due June 10.
Study of NASA STEM Education Activities Seeking Members
The National Academies is seeking committee members for a study to review the NASA Science Mission Directorate’s Science Activation program, which aims to promote STEM education and improve U.S. scientific literacy. The committee will include 12 to 15 members with expertise in areas such as Earth, space, and planetary science; informal science education; diversity, equity, and inclusion; collaborative models and partnerships; collective impact measures; and education policy. Suggestions are due May 10.
Know of an upcoming science policy event either inside or outside the Beltway? Email us at fyi@aip.org.
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