Congressional News
Congress Inches Towards Budget Reconciliation; FY 2025 Appropriations Remains Uncertain
As the Republican-controlled Congress seeks to push forward the Trump Administration’s policy goals, the House and Senate have proposed budget reconciliation packages relating to increasing funding for the border and defense as well as limiting spending and renewing tax cuts. On February 13, House Republicans struck a deal within their conference to push forward the proposed 2025 budget reconciliation package. The package would direct committees to find $1.5 trillion worth of budget cuts while simultaneously providing $4.5 trillion to the Ways and Means Committee for tax cuts. The reconciliation bill would increase the deficit by up to $4 trillion over a decade….
119th Congress: Profile of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee
Representative Brian Babin (R-TX) has been appointed Chair of the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee, replacing Rep. Frank Lucas (R-OK), who departed due to Republican term limits for committee leadership (see previous COSSA coverage). Previously, Babin served as Chairman of the Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee. Babin will serve alongside Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), the ranking Democrat on the committee. In the announcement of his appointment, Babin stated, “Between our nation’s booming science, space, and tech sectors and the growing threat posed by adversaries like Communist China, there has never been a more important time for this committee. Falling behind in any…
House SST Committee Holds Hearing on The State of U.S. Science and Technology
On February 5, the House Science, Space, and Technology (SST) Committee invited a panel of four experts across the science, research, and higher education communities for a hearing on the state of U.S. Science and Technology. The hearing explored the roles of public and private research and development (R&D) entities, strengthening national security, and addressing the recent freeze in federal funding enacted by the Trump Administration (see previous COSSA coverage). Witnesses included Heather Wilson, President of the University of Texas at El Paso and member of the National Science Board (NSB), Walter Copan, Vice President for Research and Technology Transfer at…
FY 2025 Appropriations Uncertain as Congress Approaches CR Deadline
Fiscal year (FY) 2025 funding is set to expire on March 14 unless Congress acts. As previously reported, Congress passed a continuing resolution (CR) in December to keep the government funded until March, which is nearly six months into the fiscal year. The first step is for Congressional leaders to agree on topline numbers (see previous COSSA coverage). Following the House Republicans policy retreat in Florida, it was reported that lawmakers are seeking to pass the final appropriations bills before President Trump’s State of the Union Address, which has been scheduled for March 4. However, with the recent federal funding freeze memorandum…
119th Congress Committee Profile: House and Senate Appropriations Committee
As previously reported by COSSA, the House and Senate committee assignments have been announced over the last month. On the House Appropriations Committee, Chairman Tom Cole (R-OK) will remain in his role, as will Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), while the Senate Appropriations Committee will see a shift from Democratic majority to Republican majority with Chairwoman Susan Collins (R-ME) and Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA). The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies (CJS) is an important committee to the research community in that it is responsible for securing appropriations for federal agencies important to the research community, such as the National…
119th Congressional Committee Assignments and Presidential Nomination Hearings Begin
As previously reported by COSSA, the 119th Congress was sworn in early January and has since begun announcing committee assignments, including key committees for the social and behavioral science research community. This includes the House Science and Technology Committee, which has appointed Representative Brian Babin (R-TX) as Chairman, replacing Frank Lucas (R-OK) (see previous COSSA coverage). Ranking Member Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) will remain in her role as expected. On the House Appropriations Committee, Chairman Tom Cole (R-OK) will remain in his role, as will Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-CT). On January 15, Chairman Cole released the Republican roster while Ranking Member DeLauro released the Democratic roster…
118th Congress Enacts Funding Patch in Late December; 119th Congress Sworn In
At the end of last year, the House and Senate Appropriations Committees finalized a continuing resolution (CR) to push the deadline for fiscal year (FY) 2025 funding to March 14, kicking responsibility to the new Congress. The CR continues funding at FY 2024 levels and includes supplemental funding for federal disaster programs and a year-long extension to the Farm Bill. While Congress successfully averted a government shutdown, the impact of the new CR will likely be seen in delays to the FY 2026 appropriations process, which traditionally begins in February. On January 3, the 119th Congress was sworn in at the Capitol. As expected,…
House Oversight Hosts Census Bureau Director Rob Santos
On December 5, the House Oversight Committee held a hearing on the Oversight of the U.S. Census Bureau with Director Rob Santos as the witness. During his opening remarks, House Oversight Chair James Comer (R-KY) raised concerns over the 2020 Census and the overcount and undercount of different states, suggesting that undercounting was found in predominately Republican states while overcounting was found in predominately Democratic states. In his response, Santos indicated that the unexpected impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated overcounts and undercounts. Further, he clarified that the Census Bureau and subsequent surveys are non-partisan. Ranking Member Jamie Raskin (R-MD) pointed to…
House LHHS Appropriations Subcommittee Holds NIH Budget Hearing
On November 19, the House Labor, Health, and Human Services, Education (LHHS) Appropriations Subcommittee invited Dr. Monica Bertagnolli, Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to the Hill for a budget hearing. Normally, these hearings are scheduled prior to the appropriations bills being written—typically in the spring—but the House Appropriations Committee released their LHHS bill in July without holding a single hearing (see COSSA’s analysis here). Despite the unusual sequence of events, Chairman Robert Aderholt (R-AL) and Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) were interested in the NIH’s budget and investments, and how to restore trust in science. Chairman Aderholt,…
FY 2025 Hangs in the Balance as Congress Begins Preparations for the 119th Session
As the year nears its end, Congress is looking to pass either the fiscal year (FY) 2025 appropriations bills by December 20 or a continuing resolution (CR) that extends the deadline to March. As previously reported by COSSA, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) has indicated interest in the latter despite contention from Democrats and some Republicans advocating to complete the FY 2025 appropriations process so the new Congress can focus its attention on the FY 2026 appropriations process. The 119th Congress, which will be sworn in on January 3, will look quite a bit different from the outgoing Congress. The House…
President-Elect Trump and a New Majority Congress: 2025 Policy Outlook
With the results of the 2024 Presidential election cycle nearing completion, Former President Donald Trump pulled out an electoral victory with 312 electoral college votes compared to Vice President Kamala Harris’s 226. In addition, Republicans outperformed expectations in the Congressional races, taking control of the Senate and still in contention to hold on to the majority in the House (although not all races have been called), potentially giving President-elect Trump an ideal landscape in which to enact his policy agenda after the transition. Presidential Transition With the presidential race decided, attention now turns to the presidential transition. The President-elect has…
Congress: Competitive Elections for the SBS Community to Watch
As November 5 rapidly approaches, Congress is likely to see some leadership changes in both the House and the Senate. With a current slim majority in both chambers, competitive races have Democrats and Republicans battling for control. The 2024 CPR Senate Race Ratings from the Cook Political Report details the Senate races that are competitive, including Arizona, Nevada, Michigan, Montana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. Significantly more Democrat-held seats are in competitive races than Republican-held seats in the Senate. Similarly, the 2024 CPR House Race Ratings from the Cook Political Report details the House races that are competitive, including races in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado,…
Congress on the Campaign Trail
Congress departed for the campaign trail on October 1 after passing a continuing resolution (CR) to extend the appropriations deadline to December 20 (see previous COSSA coverage). Expected to return on November 12 after the elections, Congress will return ready to draft the final appropriations bills or seek a second CR to allow for the new Congressional session to take the helm. Stay tuned to COSSA’s continued coverage of Congressional news.
Congress Passes CR; Pushes Deadline to December 20
Last week, Congress passed a continuing resolution (CR) to push the budget deadline of September 30 to December 20, allowing members to depart for the campaign trail in October. The Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act (H.R. 9747) extended current fiscal year (FY) 2024 spending levels for the twelve-week interim. As previously reported by COSSA, the House attempted to attach the CR to a bill seeking to require proof of U.S. citizenship to vote during federal elections that did not receive support. With the deadline pushed to after the elections, it’s unclear whether Congress will return ready to draft the final appropriations…
Congress Seeks to Pass CR to Avoid Government Shutdown; Both Chambers Drafting Legislation
With the looming appropriations deadline only two weeks away, Congress is working to pass a continuing resolution (CR) to prevent a government shutdown. As previously reported by COSSA, while the House and Senate both began drafting their appropriations bills (see COSSA’s analysis of the House and Senate bills) with the House managing to pass five of their bills on the House floor while the Senate only advanced their respective bills through the Senate Appropriations Committee, both chambers have since turned to drafting CR legislation. Last week, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) unveiled a six-month CR with House-passed legislation, the SAVE Act (HR 8281), seeking to…
House Science Committee Unanimously Passes Bill to Update Research Security Language in CHIPS & Science Act
On September 9, the House or Representatives passed a bill to clarify language regarding research security in the CHIPS & Science Act enacted in 2022 (see previous COSSA coverage). H.R. 7686, led by Representative Mike Garcia (R-CA) and co-led by Representative Haley Stevens (D-MI), seeks to protect university funding from foreign adversaries through clarifying the definition of “malign foreign talent recruitment programs.” Chairman Frank Lucas (R-OK) supported the bill, citing that “research theft is one of the single greatest threats to our competitiveness as a nation” with Ranking Member Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) agreeing that the bill “reflects our committee’s good faith deliberations around…
State of Play: FY 2025 Appropriations for Social Science Research
As Congress returns to Capitol Hill following August recess, appropriators are looking to finalize the budget for fiscal year (FY) 2025 prior to the September 30 deadline. As previously reported by COSSA, the Senate Appropriations Committee advanced 11 of its 12 bills, including the Commerce, Justice Science (CJS) and Labor, Health and Human Services, Education (LHHS) bills (COSSA’s analysis is available here) but did not manage to pass any of the bills on the Senate floor. On the other side of the Capitol, the House Appropriations Committee considered all 12 bills (COSSA’s analysis is available here) and managed to pass 5 of its…
Senate Advances CJS and LHHS Bills Before August Recess; COSSA Releases Analysis
Over the last few weeks, the House and Senate Appropriations Committees released and began consideration of their fiscal year (FY) 2025 appropriations bills. The Senate Appropriations Committee considered the Commerce, Justice Science (CJS) and Labor, Health and Human Services, Education (LHHS) bills; read on for details of the bills as approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee. Currently, the Senate Appropriations Committee has advanced 11 of its 12 bills, however, it is unlikely that the Senate will bring any of its bills to the Senate floor when Congress returns in September. Instead, it’s anticipated that the House and Senate will begin negotiations on…
Rep. Ross Reintroduces Reauthorization of Title VI International Education Programs
On July 25, Representatives Deborah Ross (D-NC), Valerie Foushee (D-NC), and Jimmy Panetta (D-CA) introduced the Advancing International and Foreign Language Education Act to reauthorize the Title VI International Education programs at the Department of Education. The bill aims to support the existing international education programs at the Department, with Congresswoman Foushee stating, “This legislation will help prepare elementary and secondary school students by providing critical investments in language education to achieve success in global marketplaces, and navigate multi-lingual environments.” Previously, this bill was originally introduced in 2019 by former Congressman David Price (D-NC) (see previous COSSA coverage). More information can be…
COSSA Releases Full Analysis of FY 2025 House Appropriations Bills for Federal Science Agencies
Over the last several weeks, appropriators in the House of Representatives have been considering funding legislation for fiscal year (FY) 2025, which beings October 1. This is the first appropriations cycle under the leadership of Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole (R-OK). As previously reported, the year began with an understanding that the FY 2025 appropriations process was going to be an especially difficult one. Thanks to strict budget caps set last year for FY 2024 and FY 2025, discretionary spending is once again on the chopping block. The caps as currently set have the potential to further decimate agency budgets, especially…