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What’s Ahead
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| Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm speaks at a White House press briefing on April 8. (Image credit – Cameron Smith / The White House) |
DOE Spending Proposals in the Congressional Spotlight
Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm is appearing before House appropriators on Thursday to discuss the Department of Energy’s budget for fiscal year 2022. Details of President Biden’s budget request are still forthcoming, but he has indicated he is seeking a 27% increase for clean technology innovation at DOE as a step toward quadrupling government-wide spending on clean energy research over four years. He is also proposing to create a new interagency Advanced Research Projects Agency for Climate. The hearing will provide appropriators an opportunity to air their views on those proposals as well as on the spending goals that Congress set out for DOE in the Energy Act of 2020. Another question is whether Democratic appropriators plan to revive elements of last year’s proposal to provide DOE with $23.5 billion in one-time “emergency” funding to support clean energy projects and scientific facility construction, among other activities. Although the emergency mechanism is no longer in play due to the expiration of statutory spending caps, clean energy R&D and scientific infrastructure are among the items under consideration for inclusion in a special infrastructure spending package that Congress is expected to assemble in the months ahead.
Appropriators Also Examining Commerce Department Budget
On Thursday, House appropriators will also hear from Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo. The discussion will likely be wide-ranging but could focus in part on major technology proposals involving the Commerce Department and agencies it oversees, including the National Institute of Standards and Technology. These include the $14 billion that President Biden’s American Jobs Plan proposes be provided to NIST to expand its manufacturing programs, as well as the more than $9 billion the Endless Frontier Act would recommend for a new program to create “regional technology hubs.” In addition, appropriators could discuss their views on funding the semiconductor manufacturing and R&D initiatives that Congress authorized in the CHIPS for America Act, and for which the American Jobs Plan proposes $50 billion.
Deep Dive Into NSF Expansion Ideas Continues in House
On Thursday, the House Science Committee’s Research and Technology Subcommittee is holding its second hearing on the committee’s National Science Foundation for the Future Act. Four of the witnesses hold senior university leadership roles and the fifth is an executive at Intel in charge of university collaborations. Last week, at its first hearing on the subject, committee members elaborated on their concerns, and concerns from the research community, surrounding legislative proposals to expand NSF. Committee leaders from both parties argued the NSF for the Future Act is specifically structured to guard the agency’s basic research mission while building up its efforts to translate research into practical applications. Subcommittee Chair Haley Stevens (D-MI) remarked in her opening statement that the bill “charges NSF with engaging broadly with both traditional and nontraditional partners in academia, industry, civic organizations, and local communities and governments to identify a myriad of societal challenges that are ripe for research-driven solutions and partnerships to pursue that research,” adding, “Scientists, take note, we want to hear from you.” In an article published last week, Committee Chair Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX) argued in detail against attaching a lavishly funded technology directorate to NSF, as well as against imposing the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s program management model on NSF, including on any new directorate. At the hearing, Subcommittee Ranking Member Mike Waltz (R-FL) also stressed the importance of preserving NSF’s core mission, while also arguing for stronger measures to tighten research security, including by providing NSF with the “tools and authority to reject grant applications from known participants in malign foreign-talent recruitment programs.” Rep. Bill Foster (D-IL), a former Fermilab physicist, described himself as a “lightning rod for the enthusiasms and concerns of the scientific community,” and advocated for increasing existing science programs’ funding before undertaking any major structural changes to the federal research enterprise.
Science Committee Turns Attention to DOE
On Tuesday, the House Science Committee’s Energy Subcommittee will discuss research supported by the Department of Energy with five scientists from universities and DOE’s national labs. The committee is currently working to develop bipartisan policy legislation for the DOE’s Office of Science that would complement the NSF for the Future Act as well as the Energy Act of 2020, which focused on DOE’s applied R&D programs. The Office of Science’s portfolio covers subjects ranging from high energy physics to high-performance computing, but this week’s hearing will concentrate specifically on research related to climate and energy systems. At the hearing, Subcommittee Ranking Member Randy Weber (R-TX) is also likely to highlight a bill he introduced last week that would back a decade-long continuation of DOE’s program in computational materials science, which was established in 2015 as part of the interagency Materials Genome Initiative.
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In Case You Missed It
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| Last week, President Biden nominated Heidi Shyu, left, to be under secretary of defense for research and engineering, and Geraldine Richmond, right, to be the Department of Energy’s under secretary for science. (Image credits – US Army; Todd Cooper / jasontoddcooper.com) |
Former Army Official Heidi Shyu Tapped as DOD Technology Chief
President Biden announced on April 27 that he is nominating Heidi Shyu to be under secretary of defense for research and engineering, a position also referred to as the Department of Defense’s chief technology officer. Shyu was the Department of the Army’s assistant secretary for acquisition, technology, and logistics from 2012 to 2016, overseeing all R&D and technology procurement activities, and since then she has worked as a consultant in the defense industry and served on several corporate boards. Born in Taiwan, Shyu emigrated as a child and earned degrees in mathematics from the University of New Brunswick in 1976 and University of Toronto in 1977 as well as engineering degrees from UCLA in the early 1980s. She spent most of her career working within the defense industry, including in a series of senior positions at Raytheon. She was a member of the Air Force Scientific Advisory Board from 2000 to 2010 and was its chair from 2005 to 2008. Pending her Senate confirmation, Shyu will be the second person to hold the under secretary position since Congress elevated it out from within DOD’s acquisition bureaucracy in 2016. The job is currently held in an acting capacity by Barbara McQuiston, an Obama administration DOD official who recently joined the under secretary’s office as director for early-stage R&D activities.
Chemist Geri Richmond Picked as DOE Science Under Secretary
President Biden announced on April 28 that he is nominating University of Oregon chemist Geri Richmond to be the Department of Energy’s under secretary for science. Richmond has long been engaged with DOE and its national labs, including as chair of the Basic Energy Sciences Advisory Committee from 1998 to 2003. During that time, she was involved in a variety of high-profile matters, such as the department’s response to the closure of Brookhaven National Lab’s High Flux Beam Reactor as well as a pathbreaking effort to prioritize user facility construction projects. She has been a member of the National Science Board, which oversees the National Science Foundation, since 2012. Among other research community leadership positions, Richmond served in the American Association for the Advancement of Science’s presidential line from 2014 to 2016 and is co-founder of COACh, an organization dedicated to advancing women scientists and engineers. In 2016, she was presented the National Medal of Science by President Obama for her research on the molecular characteristics of water surfaces. Although the position Richmond is nominated for is referred to in statute as the under secretary for science, the Biden administration has indicated it is adding the words “and energy” to the title, reflecting that it oversees DOE’s applied energy R&D programs as well as the DOE Office of Science.
Senators Grill OSTP Director Nominee Eric Lander
White House Office of Science and Technology Policy director nominee Eric Lander faced sharp questions from both Democrats and Republicans at his nomination hearing last week. Sitting in as Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee Chair, Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) said she was “troubled” by controversies in Lander’s past, including his interactions with Jeffrey Epstein, the late financier who was convicted of sex crimes and indicted for sex trafficking. Calling Epstein an “abhorrent individual,” Lander maintained that he met Epstein only briefly at two meetings in 2012 and that the Broad Institute, a human genetics research center Lander founded in 2003, never solicited or received funds from him or his foundation. Duckworth also highlighted a 2016 essay in which Lander downplayed the work of competitors Jennifer Doudna and Emmanuelle Charpentier in developing the CRISPR gene-editing technique. “I made a mistake,” Lander responded, adding, “I have enormous respect for doctors Doudna and Charpentier and the important work they’ve done throughout their careers.” Committee Ranking Member Roger Wicker (R-MS) echoed Duckworth’s concerns about Epstein and pressed Lander to provide the committee with further information about the meetings and additional financial records from the Broad Institute. Wicker also inquired about Lander’s plans to return to the institute and the potential conflicts of interest that might present. Lander replied, “I particularly care about the fact that we concentrate far too much funding in a few places in this country. … I can assure you I will not favor in any way institutions I’ve been associated with and, to the contrary, I really think it’s important that we broaden that scope.” In addition, Lander said, if confirmed, he would “make full inclusion and equitable outcomes a high priority” for OSTP, including by focusing on its staff diversity and developing a plan to increase the numbers of women and underrepresented people in STEM careers by 50%. Despite their probing questions, no senators expressed opposition to Lander’s nomination, and many discussed more general issues of science policy with him, such as pandemic response and recovery, scientific integrity, international competitiveness, and proposals to restructure the National Science Foundation and establish an Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health.
Senate Swiftly Confirms Bill Nelson as NASA Administrator
Vice President Kamala Harris swore in Bill Nelson as NASA administrator on May 3 after the Senate confirmed him by unanimous consent on April 29. The confirmation came just one day after the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee advanced his nomination to the floor on a voice vote and one week after Nelson’s nomination hearing, where he received a friendly welcome from Democrats and Republicans alike. The committee has not yet scheduled a nomination hearing for President Biden’s nominee for deputy administrator, former astronaut Pam Melroy.
Biden Highlights Science and Technology in Address to Congress
President Biden devoted a section of his first address to Congress last week to the hundreds of billions of dollars he has proposed channeling into research, education, and clean technology infrastructure in order to address the climate crisis and maintain U.S. economic competitiveness. Speculating that “we’ll see more technological change in the next 10 years than we saw in the last 50,” Biden called for greater investment in “technologies of the future,” specifically mentioning advanced batteries, biotechnology, computer chips, and clean energy. He stressed that he believes efforts to address climate change will be a boon to the U.S. economy, saying, “When I think ‘climate change,’ I think ‘jobs.’” Biden also advocated for creating an Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health to spur breakthroughs in the prevention, detection, and treatment of diseases such as Alzheimer’s, diabetes, and cancer. In addition, he spotlighted the American Families Plan his administration rolled out last week, which proposes $1.8 trillion in spending on education, child care, and paid family leave. He noted it would guarantee two years of post-secondary public education for every person in America, expand Pell Grants, and make targeted investments in Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribal Colleges, and Minority Serving Institutions.
Endless Frontier Action Delayed Amid Amendment Avalanche
Although the bipartisan Endless Frontier Act was initially among a large set of bills scheduled for consideration at a Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee meeting last week, it was later removed from the list. The legislation makes a variety of proposals to bolster U.S. R&D, including creating a new technology-oriented directorate at the National Science Foundation with a recommended five-year, $100 billion funding profile. Committee Ranking Member Roger Wicker (R-MS) remarked to reporters that more than 200 amendments had been proposed for the bill, though Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), the bill’s main sponsor, said he still anticipates it will receive a floor vote sometime in May. The proposed amendments are not public, but the version of the bill released last month has met with various criticisms, such as that it threatens to unbalance NSF’s current work and that it amounts to a heavy-handed economic policy. In addition, some lawmakers have complained its goals could be better served by leveraging capabilities at the Department of Energy and that its proposal to create a White House-administered fund to channel money to its initiatives is unsound.
NOAA Awards Weather Model Development Platform to Raytheon
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced last week that it has selected Raytheon Intelligence and Space to design and develop the Earth Prediction Innovation Center, a “virtual center” that will leverage cloud computing and house a code development sandbox to facilitate external researchers in contributing to NOAA models. In making the announcement, NOAA stated, “Raytheon brings proven expertise in scientific leadership, software engineering, software infrastructure, and delivery of support services to government, academia, and industry who will collaborate within the EPIC framework.” Raytheon Intelligence and Space is currently also working with the agency on two separate initiatives, including its move to cloud computing and the design of future weather satellites.
NOAA Advisory Panel Sends Back Draft Weather Data Statement
At its meeting last week, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Science Advisory Board voted to send a draft of its Environmental Information Services Working Group’s “Statement Concerning the Ongoing National Weather Service Data Dissemination Challenges” back for further refinement. The draft statement asserts that a proposal from the agency to apply data rate access limits to certain weather data could “negatively, and possibly catastrophically, impact individuals and businesses that rely on these data to make critical, lifesaving decisions when seconds count and lives are on the line,” echoing verbatim a statement from an AccuWeather executive quoted in the Washington Post. Several board members objected to how the draft statement handles the proposal and its amplification of the reporting in the Post, which some NOAA officials viewed as inaccurate. The board suggested that the statement instead focus more directly on recommending meaningful solutions, including its calls for NOAA to continue to engage with the broader weather enterprise for feedback on policies and to move “with haste to migrate their last mile of data dissemination services to secure commercial cloud networks.”
Additional Research Policy Bills Introduced in Congress
Lawmakers introduced a number of science-related bills last week, including ones focused on the STEM workforce, bioengineering, climate change, materials science, and standards-setting:
- A group of 13 Senate Democrats introduced companion legislation to the Combating Sexual Harassment in Science Act, which leaders of the House Science Committee introduced on April 20. The bill would expand research on sexual harassment and direct federal science agencies to develop uniform anti-harassment policies. In addition, four of the Senate bill’s sponsors sent a letter to President Biden urging his administration to address sexual harassment within federal science agencies.
- The Rural STEM Education Act, reintroduced by Sens. Roger Wicker (R-MS), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), John Cornyn (R-TX), and Maggie Hassan (D-NH), would direct the National Science Foundation to support research on ways to improve STEM instruction in rural schools. Companion legislation was introduced in the House in January.
- The Bioeconomy Research and Development Act, reintroduced by Sens. Ed Markey (D-MA), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), would establish an interagency initiative to advance R&D in engineering biology.
- The Consortia-Led Energy and Advanced Manufacturing Networks Act, introduced by Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) and Rep. Matt Cartwright (D-PA), would create a program in the Department of Commerce to support at least six new public-private consortia dedicated to commercializing clean energy technologies. It recommends each consortia receive up to $100 million over five years.
- The Safeguarding America’s Future and Environment (SAFE) Act, introduced by Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Rep. Matt Cartwright (D-PA), would establish a National Climate Change and Wildlife Science Center to study the impacts of climate variability on natural resources and wildlife.
- The Computing Advancements for Materials Science (CAMS) Act, introduced by Reps. Randy Weber (R-TX) and Frank Lucas (R-OK), would back the continuation of the Department of Energy’s computational materials science program, with a recommended budget of $10 million a year through 2031 to support up to four research centers.
- Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) and Rob Portman (R-OH) introduced a bill that would require the Office of Science and Technology Policy to create a task force on standards-setting for emerging technologies.
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Events This Week Monday, May 3
Tuesday, May 4
Wednesday, May 5
(continues Thursday)
Thursday, May 6
Friday, May 7
Monday, May 10
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Opportunities AAAS Hiring Government Relations Analyst
The American Association for the Advancement of Science is seeking a writer/analyst to join its government relations team. The incumbent will monitor the annual appropriations cycle international and R&D funding trends, manage AAAS’ budget data sets and dashboards, and publish analyses. Applications are due May 27.
AAU Hiring Counsel for Policy and Federal Relations
The Association of American Universities is seeking an associate vice president and counsel for policy and federal relations to lead its portfolio of work in intellectual property and technology transfer issues. Applicants must have a law degree and at least ten years of relevant experience. Applications are due May 31.
AAAS Science and Human Rights Essay Contest Open
The American Association for the Advancement of Science is accepting submissions for its essay competition on connections between human rights and the professions of science, engineering, and health. Submissions must be from undergraduate or graduate students. The submission period closes June 4.
Know of an upcoming science policy event either inside or outside the Beltway? Email us at fyi@aip.org.
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