Issue 03 (February 10)

Following a brief partial government shutdown, the House of Representatives passed the latest fiscal year (FY) 2026 funding package containing the final budgets for dozens of federal agencies and departments. The package, which comes on the heels of enactment of an earlier omnibus in January (see COSSA’s coverage), includes the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education (LHHS) appropriations bill, funding the National Institutes of Health, Department of Education, and other agencies, and four other appropriations bills: the Department of Defense appropriations bill, Financial Services appropriations bill, National Security and Department of State appropriations bill, and the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development appropriations bill.

As has been widely reported, the delay in final passage of this package was the result of Congressional Democrats’ concern over recent events unfolding in Minneapolis and calls for reforms to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS); the DHS appropriations bill was included in the original version of the spending package, which held up consideration. Congressional leaders and President Trump agreed to remove the DHS bill from the omnibus to pass the other appropriations bills. The DHS bill is now the only FY 2026 appropriations bill left to be completed.

With the passage of the latest funding package, the FY 2026 appropriations process is nearly complete (aside from DHS funding). Federal science agencies now have their budgets for the fiscal year that began on October 1, 2025.

Like we saw with the passage of the earlier omnibus bill that funded the National Science Foundation (NSF), Census Bureau, Department of Justice, and other agencies, the final outcome for federal science agencies under the LHHS bill is a largely positive story. While some agencies will see their budget decrease this year, when compared to the levels proposed by the Trump Administration last year the final numbers represent a significant win. For example, the National Institutes of Health receives a small, 0.9 percent increase in the final FY 2026 bill even though the President originally proposed a 40 percent cut to the agency.

The report accompanying the final bill explains that any directives to federal agencies included in the earlier House (H. Rept. 119-271) and Senate (S. Rept. 119-55) reports apply to the final agreement unless noted otherwise. You can see these past directives in COSSA’s analyses of the earlier House and Senate LHHS bills.

Now that the FY 2026 appropriations process is in the books, attention will soon turn to the FY 2027 budget. The Trump Administration is expected to release its budget request sometime this spring and Congress will start holding hearings to discuss funding for next year.

Read on for details of the FY 2026 final appropriations for the National Institutes of Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Institute of Education Sciences, International Education and Foreign Language Studies programs, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The bill text and accompanying reports are available on the Senate Appropriations Committee website.

Stay tuned to COSSA’s coverage for the latest developments.

COSSA’s annual Social Science Advocacy Day is BACK and will take place March 23-24, 2026 in Washington, DC! This annual event brings together social and behavioral science researchers, faculty, students, association professionals, and other advocates from across the country. Together, we’ll meet with elected officials in Congress to discuss the value of our sciences and the importance of federal funding.

Register now to take advantage of early bird pricing and don’t forget to check out our sponsorship opportunities (some including free regsitrations). Early Bird Prices expire this Friday, February 13.

The most recent Why Social Science? post comes from Dr. Kimberly Kahn from the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues (SPSSI) about how psychology can help us build safer, fairer communities by finding solutions rooted in evidence, empathy, and mutual responsibility.

Read on for more.

We love when our advocates show their support for social science research by wearing one of COSSA’s coveted buttons.

We’re looking for our next great button slogan! Got any ideas? Submit your suggestions and let us know what you’d like to see on our beloved buttons.

As previously reported, Congress has neared completion of its appropriations process of fiscal year (FY) 2026, aside from the unfinished Homeland Security appropriations bill which remains under a temporary continuing resolution (CR), following the final passage of the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education (LHHS) and Commerce, Justice, and Science (CJS) appropriations bills. The final bills for FY 2026 largely rejected the President’s proposal for cuts to several key scientific agencies, including the National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Science Foundation (NSF), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Department of Education, and more.

On January 7, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) formally invited President Trump to give his State of the Union address on February 24, where the President will have the chance to discuss the previous year’s actions and set the stage for his priorities for his second year. Historically, the Administration has released its budget request for the next year following the State of the Union. The President’s Budget Request (PBR) outlines the President’s funding and program “wish list” for the upcoming fiscal year. With respect to the FY 2027 budget, which traditionally have been delivered to Congress in February, there are rumors that its release may be delayed, as we saw last year. Notably, in a recent Congressional hearing on NIH modernization efforts, several Members of Congress stated their opposition to another year a proposed budget cuts from the Trump Administration. Senator Susan Collins (R-ME), the Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, stated, “We don’t need any more of these huge budget cuts submitted as part of the President’s budget” (see related article).

In other news, the President and Congress are reportedly eyeing a second reconciliation package. As previously reported, the Trump Administration signed into law the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1) on July 4, 2025, which reallocated resources in order to pay for permanent tax cuts and increase funding for border security activities. Rumors of a new reconciliation plan have taken hold on Capitol Hill, largely focused on increasing the U.S. defense budget to the Trump Administration’s verbal request of $1.5 trillion in 2027. House Armed Services Chairman Mike Rogers, (R-AL) and Senate Armed Services Chair Roger Wicker (R-MS) have reportedly supported the idea of including upwards of $450 billion for national security in a reconciliation package, however, other Members have shown less enthusiasm, with Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), who Chairs the Senate Appropriations Defense Subcommittee, arguing in favor of securing any and all funding through the regular appropriations process.

Stay tuned to COSSA’s continued coverage on the 119^th Congress.

On February 3, National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Jayanta Bhattacharya appeared before the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee to discuss Modernizing the National Institutes of Health: Faster Discoveries, More Cures . During the hearing, Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Chairman of the Committee, expressed a bipartisan concern over the unprecedented NIH grant award cancellations in the last year, a lack of public trust in the NIH and science institutions, as well as national and personal health security risks. This hearing comes nearly two years since Cassidy’s release of a white paper on recommendations to improve the NIH in 2024 (see previous COSSA coverage). Efforts to modernize the agency have also included a framework released by Sen. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), who previously served as the House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair before retiring during the last election cycle, which outlined potential reforms that would implement structural changes in the organization with new term limits on leadership and grant reforms that limit gain of function and foreign research (see previous COSSA coverage). Alternatively, in his opening remarks, Ranking Member of the HELP Committee, Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), raised concerns about the financial burden imposed by prescription drugs on American families and looked towards the NIH as a potential leader in reducing those costs.

Throughout the hearing, Dr. Bhattacharya assured the committee that, under his leadership, using “taxpayer dollars more responsibly” is a key priority, and that he hopes to create more opportunities for scientific breakthroughs to improve public health and restore public trust in the NIH.

During the hearing, several members questioned Dr. Bhattacharya on the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) handling of vaccination recommendations, including Ranking Member Sanders who cited a statement from the American Medical Association saying there is no evidence of a link between vaccines and autism. After continued questioning from the Ranking Member, Dr. Bhattacharya stated that he was not aware of any study that had found a relationship between vaccines and autism. Further, he attributed aversion to vaccination to the public’s mistrust of scientific research but fell short of providing a plan to improve vaccination rates in the U.S., claiming that “more children will be vaccinated” under the recent change of vaccine guidance for children (see previous COSSA coverage). Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE) requested Dr. Bhattacharya provide evidence to support his answer, to which he claimed that the move would simply improve public trust in the NIH. Chairman Cassidy continued the conversation, raising concerns that Dr. Bhattacharya and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s statements about vaccinations could instead exacerbate public distrust and result in fewer vaccinations.

Multiple Congressional members also voiced concerns about the Trump Administration’s unprecedented grant terminations, including Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) who asked what the agency was doing to mitigate the detrimental effects of grant termination. She raised concerns that the result will not only temper scientific breakthroughs today but also have long-lasting effects on the pipeline of U.S. scientists. Further, Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) pressed Dr. Bhattacharya on the NIH’s unified funding strategy and questioned the effect it would have on early-career scientists, and Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) detailed several in-state examples of how grant terminations and budget cuts have harmed scientific universities and organizations through project cancellations and layoffs. To this end, Dr. Bhattacharya assured Congress that NIH was committed to providing scientists, with a focus on early-career scientists, with opportunities to pursue their research and emphasized that the entire NIH budget was spent in fiscal year (FY) 2025 despite the Administration’s grant cancellations. Senator Collins further underscored the importance of fully funding the NIH, stating, “We don’t need any more of these huge budget cuts submitted as part of the President’s budget.” Later, Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) also raised concerns over Dr. Bhattacharya and the NIH’s unprecedented terminations of career scientists in favor of political appointees, as well as the continued vacuums of leadership in several institutes and centers.

Gain of function research was also raised during the hearing, which has been a point of contention for many Congressional Republicans since the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the research. Senator Roger Marshall (R-KS) raised concerns about the perceived dangers of gain of function research. In response, Dr. Bhattacharya pointed to the Administration’s termination of funding for projects or programs relating to gain of function research (see previous COSSA coverage). Further, he explained that the NIH intends to adopt a risk-based approach to independently evaluate each project to determine if it poses a threat to the American people. Later, Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) attributed public distrust, which Dr. Bhattacharya repeatedly cited as a priority for the agency, to the NIH’s funding of gain of function research as well as concerns about the origins of COVID-19. To this end, Senator Hawley requested a review of all potential NIH funding streams to gain of function research, and Dr. Bhattarchya confirmed he is already working on a long review on the topic.

Senator Jim Banks (R-IN) also expressed concern over the perceived disparity between NIH funded programs across academic institutions, to which Dr. Bhattacharya indicated that the NIH is prioritizing working with smaller state research facilities.

A recording of the hearing can be found here. Stay tuned to COSSA’s continued coverage of the NIH.

This article was contributed by COSSA Intern Malia Gunterman.

Trump Administration Actions (all actions available here):

• Addressing Addiction through the Great American Recovery Initiative (1/29/26)
• Memorandum: Withdrawing the United States from International Organizations, Conventions, and Treaties that are Contrary to the Interests of the United States (1/7/26)
• Increasing Medical Marijuana and Cannabidiol Research (12/18/25)
• Ensuring a National Policy Framework for Artificial Intelligence (12/11/25) (MORE INFORMATION)
• President’s Management Agenda (12/8/25) (MORE INFORMATION)
• Launching the Genesis Mission (11/24/25) (MORE INFORMATION)
• Ensuring Continued Accountability in Federal Hiring (10/15/25)
• Fiscal Year (FY) 2027 Administration Research and Development Budget Priorities and Cross-Cutting Actions (9/23/25) (MORE INFORMATION)
• Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers (9/19/25)
• Memorandum: Use of Appropriated Funds for Illegal Lobbying and Partisan Political Activity by Federal Grantees (8/28/25)
• Improving Oversight of Federal Grantmaking (MORE INFORMATION) (8/7/25)
• Ensuring Transparency in Higher Education Admissions (MORE INFORMATION) (8/7/25)
• Preventing Woke AI in the Federal Government (MORE INFORMATION) (7/23/25)
• Creating Schedule G in the Excepted Service (7/17/25) (MORE INFORMATION)
• Memorandum: Ensuring Accountability and Prioritizing Public Safety in Federal Hiring (7/7/25)
• Establishing the President’s Make America Beautiful Again Commission (7/3/25)
• Enhancing National Security by Addressing Risks at Harvard University (6/4/25)
• Restricting the Entry of Foreign Nationals to Protect the United States from Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats (6/4/25)
• Restoring Gold Standard Science (5/23/25) (MORE INFORMATION)
• Increasing Efficiency at the Office of the Federal Register (5/9/25)
• Improving the Safety and Security of Biological Research (5/5/25)
• Improving the Safety and Security of Biological Research (5/5/25)
• Strengthening Probationary Periods in the Federal Service (4/24/25)
• White House Initiative to Promote Excellence and Innovation at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (4/23/25)
• Reforming Accreditation to Strengthen Higher Education (4/23/25)
• PROPOSED RULE: Improving Performance, Accountability, and the Civil Service (4/23/25)
• Transparency Regarding Foreign Influence at American Universities (4/23/25)
• Extension of Hiring Freeze (4/17/25) 
• Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History (3/27/25) (MORE INFORMATION)
• Improving Education Outcomes by Empowering Parents, States, and Communities (3/20/25) (MORE INFORMATION)
• Continuing the Reduction of the Federal Bureaucracy (3/14/25) (MORE INFORMATION)
• Additional Rescissions of Harmful Executive Orders and Actions (3/14/25)
• Implementing the President’s DOGE Cost Efficiency Initiative (2/26/25) (MORE INFORMATION)
• Ensuring Lawful Governance and Implementing the President’s DOGE Deregulatory Initiative (2/19/25) (MORE INFORMATION)
• Radical Transparency about Wasteful Spending (2/18/25) (MORE INFORMATION)
• Establishing the President’s Make America Healthy Again Commission (2/13/25)
• Implementing the President’s “Department of Government Efficiency” Workforce Optimization Initiative (2/11/25) (MORE INFORMATION)
• Advancing United States Interests When Funding Nongovernmental Organizations (2/6/25) (MORE INFORMATION)
• Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling (1/29/25)
• President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (1/23/25)
• Removing Barriers to American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence (1/23/25)
• Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity (1/21/24) (MORE INFORMATION)
• Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing (1/20/25)
• Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Trust to the Federal Government (1/20/25)
• Establishing and Implementing the President’s “Department of Government Efficiency” (1/20/25)
• Restoring Accountability to Policy-Influencing Positions within the Federal Workforce (1/20/25) – Reinstates Trump Administration’s 2020 EO creating a new Schedule F in the Federal Excepted Service 
• Withdrawing the U.S. from the WHO (1/20/25)
• Putting America First in International Environmental Agreements (1/20/25) – Withdraws the U.S. from the Paris Climate Accord, among other actions.
• Hiring Freeze (1/20/25) (MORE INFORMATION)
• Return to In-Person Work (1/20/25) (MORE INFORMATION)
• Restoring Freedom of Speech and Ending Federal Censorship (1/20/25)
• Initial Rescissions of Harmful Executive Orders and Actions (1/20/25) – Rescinds dozens of Biden Administration Executive Orders

Find COSSA’s full list of Trump’s Executive Actions and more information here or on the Social Science Space Tracker.

According to the White House Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) Interagency Council on Statistical Policy, Stuart Levenbach has been appointed to serve as Chair of the Council, a position that is, by law, held by the U.S. Chief Statistician. OMB quietly updated its website to reflect his new role, replacing Mark Calabria, who assumed the role of Chief Statistician after the departure of Karin Orvis at the start of the Trump Administration’s second term in 2025. Notably, the position does not require Senate confirmation.

Previously, Levenbach had been nominated by the Trump Administration to serve as the head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), but the nomination lapsed at the beginning of the new Congressional session. Under the first Trump Administration, he served as chief of staff at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) before joining the White House Council on Environmental Quality as a senior adviser. He also worked at OMB for over 10 years in several roles, including his most recent appointment as Associate Director of Natural Resources, Energy, Science, and Water. Levenbach holds a Ph.D. in Marine Ecology from the University of California, Santa Barbara and a Bachelor of Science in Biology and Political Science from the University of Michigan.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced that Basic Experimental Studies Involving Humans (BESH) will no longer be classified as clinical trials under the NIH Clinical Trial Definition. The change applies to applications submitted on or after May 25, 2026.

NIH originally expanded its clinical trial definition in 2014 to include BESH as part of an effort to improve transparency and results reporting. The revised definition meant that social and behavioral science research funded by NIH that involved human subjects would need to abide by the same reporting rules as studies more traditionally viewed as clinical trials. The move was controversial at the time (see COSSA’s reporting including a detailed Hot Topic).

Now, citing changes in dissemination policies and a desire to reduce administrative burden, NIH has concluded that BESH research—designed to generate fundamental biological or behavioral knowledge without an intent to directly advance health—does not meet the current clinical trial definition.

As a result, future BESH studies will no longer be subject to clinical trial requirements, including registration and results reporting in ClinicalTrials.gov. All other human subjects protections and NIH data-sharing requirements will continue to apply. NIH will issue additional guidance and plans to retire BESH-specific funding announcements for due dates after May 25, 2026.

The White House Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has finalized a sweeping rule that expands the use of the excepted service by creating “Schedule Policy/Career,” a new category covering career employees in policy-influencing roles (see previous coverage). While OPM frames the change as a way to improve accountability and responsiveness, critics warn it weakens long-standing civil service protections.

Under the rule, career employees (e.g., nonpolitical appointees) whose roles are of a “confidential, policy-determining, policy-making, or policy-advocating character” may be reclassified into Schedule Policy/Career. They will retain competitive status but lose key procedural protections, including appeal rights for adverse actions and performance-based removals. OPM also rolled back safeguards adopted in April 2024, giving agencies broader authority to remove employees in policy-related positions. In short, the rule significantly increases management discretion over career staff whose roles involve policy work. OPM provided additional guidance alongside the final rule.

Observers argue the changes risk politicizing the career workforce and undermining merit system principles, even as OPM maintains the rule is necessary to address performance and misconduct issues.

The rule takes effect March 9, 2026. Federal agencies are developing lists of positions that they plan to reclassify, which will be reviewed by OPM. Federal worker unions are planning legal action in response.