CONTENTS
BUDGET, APPROPRIATIONS, TAX ISSUES
- Ad Hoc Group Asks Budget Conferees to Include Amendment on Biomedical Research
- House Appropriations Committee Passes FY16 Energy & Water Bill
- House Appropriations Committee Approves FY16 302(b) Allocations
- AAU Asks Appropriators to Make Research and Higher Education a Priority in 302(b) Process
- Groups Urge Strong Funding for FY16 Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations
OTHER CONGRESSIONAL ISSUES
- House Science Committee Approves America COMPETES Act Reauthorization
- AAU Issues Statement Opposing H.R. 1806 in its Current Form
- Task Force on American Innovation Comments on H.R. 1806
- House Energy & Commerce Subcommittee Marks Up TROL Act
- AAU Submits Comments on Senator Alexander’s Concept Paper on Accreditation
EXECUTIVE BRANCH
- AAU, APLU Submit Comments to FAA and NTIA on Use of Unmanned Aircraft Systems
OTHER
- MIT to Release Report on Innovation Deficit at April 27 Conference
- AAU Will Host Workshop on Undergraduate STEM Education with Campus Department Chairs
BUDGET, APPROPRIATIONS, TAX ISSUES
AD HOC GROUP ASKS BUDGET CONFEREES TO INCLUDE AMENDMENT ON BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH
The Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research, on April 17, sent a letter to House and Senate budget conferees asking them to include Senator Jerry Moran’s (R-KS) amendment on biomedical research in the final FY16 budget resolution. AAU supported the Ad Hoc Group letter.
The amendment, which was endorsed by 33 Senators and was included in the Senate-passed version of the budget resolution, would establish a deficit-neutral fund to support biomedical research at the National Institutes of Health.
House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy expects the final FY16 budget agreement to be considered on the House floor next week, reports CQ.com.
HOUSE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE PASSES FY16 ENERGY & WATER BILL
The House Appropriations Committee on April 22 approved its FY16 Energy & Water spending bill by voice vote. The measure is expected on the House floor next week.
The committee-passed bill includes $5.1 billion for the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science. This is a small increase of $29 million, or 0.6 percent, above the FY15 enacted level.
Within of the Office of Science are the following programs:
- Advanced Scientific Computing Research: the committee approved $537.5 million, an increase of $3.4 million, or 0.6 percent, above FY15;
- Basic Energy Sciences: the committee approved $1.7 billion, an increase of $37 million, or 2.1 percent, above FY15;
- Biological and Environmental Research: the committee approved $538 million, a significant cut of $54 million, or 9.1 percent, below FY15;
- Fusion Energy Sciences: the committee approved $467 million, a slight increase of $100,000 over FY15. The measure would freeze funding for the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) at the FY15 level of $150 million, and raise funding for the domestic fusion science program by $100,000 to $317 million.
- High Energy Physics: the committee approved $776 million, an increase of $10 million, or 1.3 percent, above FY15;
- Nuclear Physics: the committee approved $616 million, which is $20.6 million, or 3.5 percent, above FY15; and
- ARPA-E: the committee froze funding at the FY15 level of $280 million.
HOUSE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE APPROVES FY16 302(B) ALLOCATIONS
The House Appropriations Committee on April 22 approved by voice vote the chairman’s so-called 302(b) allocation of discretionary spending among the 12 subcommittees.
AAU Asks Appropriators to Make Research and Higher Education a Priority in 302(b) Process
In advance of the committee’s action, AAU sent a letter to members of the House and Senate appropriations committees asking them to make research and higher education programs a top priority in their 302(b) allocation of FY16 discretionary funding among their 12 respective subcommittees.
The association wrote that investments in higher education and research are proven drivers of economic growth. While austere budgets and spending cuts enacted under sequestration may have helped reduce the budget deficit in the short term, said the letter, such reductions have widened the innovation deficit, undermining economic growth and worsening long-term federal budget deficits and the national debt.
Groups Urge Strong Funding for FY16 Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations
A group of more than 670 organizations, including AAU, wrote to House and Senate appropriators on April 20 urging them to provide a strong funding allocation to the Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill in FY16.
OTHER CONGRESSIONAL ISSUES
HOUSE SCIENCE COMMITTEE APPROVES AMERICA COMPETES ACT REAUTHORIZATION
The House Science, Space, and Technology (SST) Committee on April 22 approved legislation (H.R. 1806) introduced by Chairman Lamar Smith (R-TX) to reauthorize the America COMPETES Act. Following the morning session, Chairman Smith and Senator John Thune (R-SD), Chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, issued a joint statement expressing their intention to work together in reauthorizing COMPETES this year.
Committee Democrats introduced an alternative bill (H.R. 1898), which was considered as an amendment in the nature of a substitute, and defeated.
H.R. 1806 would reauthorize for FY16 and FY17 programs in the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Department of Energy Office of Science, ARPA-E, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, as well as STEM education programs.
The two-year reauthorization bill would boost funding for some areas of scientific research at NSF but cut authorized funding for the social and behavioral sciences and geoscience directorates, as well as for ARPA-E and the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy in the Department of Energy.
AAU Issues Statement Opposing H.R. 1806 in its Current Form
AAU said in a statement issued on April 21 that the association appreciated the House SST Committee’s intention to reauthorize the America COMPETES Act, but that it opposes H.R. 1806 in its current form.
The AAU statement said that the legislation falls short of the “unifying vision for increasing America’s competitiveness through science and innovation” embodied in the first two COMPETES Acts, which were enacted in 2007 and 2010. It expressed disappointment in the proposed cuts in authorized funding in key NSF and DOE programs, as well as various policy requirements in the measure. AAU expressed the intention of working with the Committee and others to improve the bill so that it carries forward the original vision of the COMPETES Act.
Task Force on American Innovation Comments on H.R. 1806
The Task Force on American Innovation (TFAI), an alliance of leading companies, research universities and societies, in which AAU participates, issued a statement about H.R. 1806.
The statement expressed appreciation for “the overall funding increases authorized in this legislation for the NSF, the DOE Office of Science, and research areas of critical importance to American innovation,” but expressed serious concerns about the consequences of major cuts to other programs in the two agencies.
HOUSE ENERGY & COMMERCE SUBCOMMITTEE MARKS UP TROL ACT
The House Energy & Commerce Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing & Trade on April 22 approved the Targeting Rogue and Opaque Letters (TROL) Act on a party-line vote. During the markup, the subcommittee unanimously approved an amendment by Subcommittee Chairman Michael Burgess (R-TX) on affirmative defense, but it defeated on party-line votes amendments offered by Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) and by Rep. Joseph Kennedy III (D-MA) to give the Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general more enforcement authority.
AAU and the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) on April 16 issued a statement on the TROL Act.
AAU SUBMITS COMMENTS ON SENATOR ALEXANDER’S CONCEPT PAPER ON ACCREDITATION
AAU today submitted comments to Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TN) in response to his request for comments on the committee staff concept paper, “Higher Education Accreditation Concepts and Proposals.”
The concept paper is one of three prepared for the Committee to inform its reauthorization of the Higher Education Act. The other two concept papers deal with institutional risk sharing and consumer information.
The AAU comment letter thanks the Chairman and his staff for identifying many of the key issues facing accreditation. It expresses support for several of the potential solutions described in the concept paper, including differentiated review.
EXECUTIVE BRANCH
AAU, APLU SUBMIT COMMENTS TO FAA AND NTIA ON USE OF UNMANNED AIRCRAFT SYSTEMS
AAU and the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) this week submitted comments to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in response to an FAA notice of proposed rulemaking and a Department of Commerce National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) request for comment regarding use of small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS).
The AAU-APLU comments submitted to the NTIA on April 20 outline the benefits of UAS to colleges and universities, including their use in research and development, student instruction, and inspection of campus infrastructure. The letter specifically addresses the use of sUAS and privacy, noting that universities are differently situated from commercial entities and should be treated differently. The letter adds that as the NTIA begins the process of engaging with multiple stakeholders to develop best practices, representatives on the NTIA Working Groups should include academic researchers and faculty, including those who are subject matter experts in the First Amendment, privacy, and aviation.
The AAU-APLU comments sent today to the FAA focus primarily on issues that a survey of AAU and APLU institutions in March found to be of greatest concern. These include allowing university researchers to safely fly sUAS beyond line of sight, and encouraging the creation of a new micro-UAS classification. The two associations also recommend that the agency create a student operator certificate to accommodate faculty who wish to have students fly sUAS as part of their classes. The current certification process is too expensive and burdensome for many students, they wrote.
OTHER
MIT TO RELEASE REPORT ON INNOVATION DEFICIT AT APRIL 27 CONFERENCE
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Monday will release a new report that examines why the declining federal investment in basic research threatens to create an innovation deficit for America. The report will be released at an event on Monday, April 27, 9-11:00 a.m., in the AAAS Auditorium at 1200 New York Avenue, NW, in Washington, DC. The event is free, but those interested in attending are asked to register here.
The report, “The Future Postponed: Why Declining Investment in Basic Research Threatens a U.S. Innovation Deficit,” was written by the MIT Committee to Evaluate the Innovation Deficit, a group of university faculty. AAU is a cosponsor of the event, which will feature AAAS CEO Rush Holt, MIT Committee Chair Marc Kastner, and other industry leaders and MIT faculty members.
AAU WILL HOST WORKSHOP ON UNDERGRADUATE STEM EDUCATION WITH CAMPUS DEPARTMENT CHAIRS
As part of the AAU Undergraduate STEM Education Initiative, the association will host a two-day workshop in Washington, DC for STEM department chairs from AAU universities. The workshop, “Improving Undergraduate STEM Teaching & Learning: The Role of the Department Chair,” will take place April 27-28, 2015.
The workshop will engage department chairs in discussions about successful strategies for improving undergraduate STEM teaching and learning. Participants will discuss such issues as developing meaningful ways to assess curricular innovations, examining metrics and indicators for evaluating and rewarding teaching and learning, working with other departments, and facilitating institution-wide reform.
The AAU Undergraduate STEM Education Initiative is a five-year collaboration of AAU and its member institutions. The goal is to influence the culture of STEM departments at AAU universities so that faculty members are encouraged to use student-centered, evidence-based, active-learning pedagogy in their classes, particularly at the first-year and sophomore levels.