Appropriations
COSSA Releases Analysis of the Trump Administration’s FY 2018 Budget Request
The Trump Administration released its fiscal year (FY) 2018 budget request on May 23. The budget seeks dramatic reductions totaling $3.6 trillion across nearly every department of the federal government, including most science and research agencies. COSSA has prepared an in-depth analysis of the FY 2018 budget request, which includes details on the President’s proposals for the dozens of departments, agencies, and programs of interest to social and behavioral science researchers. The release of the President’s budget request marks the official start of the FY 2018 appropriations process, though some Congressional committees have already begun holding their oversight hearings even…
Letters Urge Congressional Leaders to Support Research Agencies
COSSA joined dozens of scientific societies and research universities on a letter to Congressional leaders, sent on May 24, urging them to reject the Trump Administration’s proposed cuts to science agencies including the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, Department of Energy, Department of Agriculture, and more. Similarly, in a Dear Colleague letter sent to the Chair and Ranking Member of the Appropriations Subcommittee responsible for the Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriations bill, 29 Senators expressed their support for the National Science Foundation. The letter calls for the National Science Foundation to receive at least $8 billion in fiscal year…
COSSA Joins Community in Urging Increased Allocation for Labor, Health and Human Services Appropriations Bill
COSSA joined nearly 800 organizational stakeholders of the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS) appropriations bill in a letter to the Appropriations leadership urging it to increase the fiscal year (FY) 2018 302(b) allocation, which is the committee’s funding cap on spending for each of the appropriation bills. While the letter acknowledges the Subcommittee’s “broad range of constituencies and needs,” it also recognizes that the programs funded under the Labor-HHS bill “are continually short-changed in the annual appropriations process.” Accordingly, the scientific community emphasizes that “without an increase in the Labor-HHS 302(b) allocation,…
President’s Complete Budget Request Expected May 23
Last week, the Trump Administration notified Congress that it will transmit its complete Fiscal Year (FY) 2018 budget request on May 23. Federal agencies have started to schedule events to review their FY 2018 budget requests but details remain unclear as to the fate of agencies that support the social and behavioral sciences. The Trump Administration released preliminary details of the FY 2018 request on March 16, which included proposals for Cabinet-level departments and some other large agencies. Following the release of the complete budget request, COSSA will prepare an in-depth analysis of the budget as it impacts the social…
Congress Reaches Agreement on FY 2017 Funding
On May 1, Congress announced that a bipartisan deal had been brokered to fund the federal government through the remainder of fiscal year (FY) 2017. The omnibus appropriations bill includes 11 individual appropriations bills and keeps the government operating through September 30, 2017. Should the bill pass this week, the final, much-delayed result for FY 2017 will be mostly positive for social and behavioral science research. Compared to where we have been in recent years and with all of the unknowns surrounding the Trump Administration’s position on science funding, this outcome is about the best we could have hoped for….
COSSA Testimony Calls for Increased Funding for NSF, NIJ, Census, and Other Agencies
On April 21, COSSA submitted testimony to the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies for fiscal year (FY) 2018. The testimony calls for increased funding for the National Science Foundation (NSF), National Institute of Justice (NIJ), Bureau of Justice Statistics, and the Census Bureau. You can read this and other statements on the COSSA website. Back to this issue’s table of contents.
286 Societies Sign Letter in Support of R&D Enterprise
On April 6, COSSA joined 285 other U.S. societies and associations in business, science, engineering, health, and higher education on a letter urging Congressional leaders to complete the fiscal year (FY) 2017 appropriations bills with “robust investments in scientific research.” The letter states the benefits of continued investment in the U.S. research and development enterprise, describes possible impacts of decreased funding, and urges policy makers to reject the cuts to science agencies proposed by the Trump Administration. Back to this issue’s table of contents.
HHS Secretary Appears Before House Appropriations Subcommittee, Suggests NIH Budget Cuts to Come From “Efficiencies” in Indirect Costs
On March 29, newly appointed Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) former Rep. Tom Price (R-GA) made his first appearance before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies. Welcoming the Secretary, Subcommittee Chairman Tom Cole (R-OK) began the hearing by pointing out that the proposed cuts in the Budget Blueprint (aka “skinny budget”) released by the Administration on March 16 “are extensive and span the reach of [the] agency.” Cole asked Price how the Department intends to solve “some of the challenges” the budget poses to HHS, including…
Trump Administration Releases Preliminary Details on FY 2018 Budget
On March 16, the Trump Administration released preliminary, high-level details of its fiscal year (FY) 2018 budget request, referred to as a “skinny budget.” Full budget details are expected sometime in May. There are few surprises in the President’s “safety and security” budget blueprint. Major reductions are proposed for nondefense discretionary programs (including research accounts) in order to finance $54 billion in increases for the Department of Defense. Of course, to achieve such a reallocation, Congress would need to act to adjust the budget caps that are currently governing defense and nondefense discretionary spending; the President cannot unilaterally shift funds…
COSSA Testimony Calls for Funding for NIH, AHRQ, CDC, Education Programs
On March 8, COSSA submitted testimony to the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies for fiscal year (FY) 2018. The testimony calls for increased funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), Institute for Education Sciences (IES), and International Education and Foreign Language Programs (Title VI and Fulbright-Hays). Back to this issue’s table of contents.
Ad Hoc Group Issues Statement Responding to the President’s FY 2018 Budget for NIH
COSSA, as a member of the steering committee of the Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research, joined a statement responding to the President’s FY 2018 budget request proposing a 18 percent cut to the NIH’s budget (see related article). The statement calls on “Congress to reject the inexplicable and impractical proposed cuts to NIH and to continue its tradition of investment in medical science.” The Group also stated that it looks “forward to working with lawmakers to finalize an FY 2017 spending package with $34.1 billion for NIH – as approved nearly unanimously by the Senate Appropriations Committee in June…
IES Coalition Sends Letter to Appropriations Subcommittee Leadership in Support of Agency
On March 10, COSSA joined the Friends of the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), a coalition of organizations committed to supporting the essential role of IES, on a letter to the Labor, Health, and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee (Labor-HHS) in support of IES. The letter urges the Subcommittee to provide $670 million in funding for IES in fiscal year (FY) 2018. The letter also states that the request, consistent with other scientific coalitions, “builds on the FY 2016 final appropriations, accounting for inflation over the past two years as well as four-percent growth.” Back to this…
Friends of NIH Behavioral and Social Sciences Research Submit Statement in Support of OBSSR
On March 9, COSSA, as co-chair of the Friends of NIH Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (Friends of NIH BSSR) with the American Psychological Association (a COSSA founding member), submitted a statement for the record in support of the National Institutes of Health and its Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR). The statement emphasizes that the behavioral and social sciences are integral to the NIH mission and highlights the fact NIH supports behavioral and social science research throughout its 27 institutes and centers. The Friends of NIH BSSR is a coalition of professional organizations, scientific societies, and research…
COSSA Calls for Congress to Complete FY 2017 Appropriations Process
In a letter to House and Senate appropriators on the Commerce, Justice, Science (CJS) Subcommittees, COSSA called for speedy completion of the FY 2017 appropriations process. The letter also urges strong appropriations for the National Science Foundation, National Institute of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, and Census Bureau. The letter is available on the COSSA website. Back to this issue’s table of contents.
Bracing for a Tough Budget Cycle
The fiscal year (FY) 2017 appropriations process has yet to conclude, but interest is already turning to FY 2018. The Trump Administration has begun releasing limited details on what the President’s FY 2018 budget request could contain when released later this spring. A so-called “skinny budget,” or top-line, department-level outline, is expected to be released next week with full details provided in May. The President has stated his intent to propose an additional $54 billion in defense spending. Such an increase coupled with promises of middle class tax cuts, corporate tax cuts, a $1 trillion infrastructure plan, and keeping Medicare…
COSSA Joins Scientific Community in Urging Approval of NIH FY 2017 Budget
On February 7, COSSA joined 260 patient, medical, scientific, academic, and research organizations of the Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research in sending a joint letter and fact sheet to the President and the House and Senate leadership. The letter urges the enactment of a final FY 2017 spending package that includes $34.1 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Federal agencies and programs are currently operating under a continuing resolution that expires on April 28. Back to this issue’s table of contents.
Congress Passes Stopgap Funding Bill, Adjourns
Congress passed another continuing resolution (CR) late in the evening on December 9, just a few hours before government funding would have run out. This stop-gap funding measure will keep the government funded until April 28, 2017. The bill, passed with the support of the incoming Trump Administration, will leave the fiscal year (FY) 2017 appropriations process unfinished and delay major spending decisions to the next Congress and next Administration. The text of the Continuing Resolution is available here. For full details of the FY 2017 spending debate as it pertains to social science research, check out COSSA’s coverage. Back…
Congress Returns for Lame Duck Session, Begins Organizing
Congress returns to Washington this week for the first time since last week’s historic elections. Lawmakers are returning to a new reality that many did not see coming, with the election of Donald Trump as the next President and the Republicans maintaining a stronghold in both chambers of Congress. Following the elections, Republicans maintain a narrowed majority in the House and Senate. The Senate margins sit at 51 Republicans to 48 Democrats, with a run-off race in Louisiana scheduled for December. In addition, and as expected, Republicans held onto control of the House, with 239 Republicans to 193 Democrats, though…
COSSA Letter to Conferees Advocates Funding for NSF, NIJ, BJS, and Census
As Congress returns to complete the business of funding the government for the remainder of fiscal year (FY) 2017, COSSA is advocating for strong funding for the National Science Foundation (NSF), National Institute of Justice (NIJ), Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), and Census Bureau. In a letter to the House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees on Commerce, Justice and Science (CJS), COSSA highlights the important work of these agencies and asks that conferees support the “highest possible funding levels.” The full letter is available on the COSSA website. COSSA has weighed-in in support of other federal agency budgets through our many…
Lawmakers and Advocates Urge Congress to Complete its Work on Behalf of NIH
On November 2, the Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research, including COSSA, a member of its Steering Committee, sent a letter to House and Senate leadership thanking lawmakers for their “efforts to ensure that a robust, sustained investment in medical research through the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is a high priority.” A coalition of more than 200 patient and voluntary health groups, medical and scientific societies, academic and research organizations, and industry committed to enhancing the federal investment in biomedical, behavioral, social, and population-based research supported by NIH, the coalition urged Congress to provide at least $34.1 billion for…