A staple since COSSAâs earliest days, the biweekly COSSA Washington Update newsletter provides members and the public with comprehensive coverage of policy developments impacting social and behavioral science research.Â
Fate of 2022 Spending Unknown as End of Fiscal Year Looms
On Monday, the Senate blocked the House-passed continuing resolution (CR) that would have kept the government funded through December 3. Senate Republicans opposed the bill because it includes a suspension of the debt limit through mid-December. The Senate will try to pass a âcleanâ CR later this week to avoid a government shutdown come October 1, the start of fiscal year (FY) 2022. In the meantime, the fate of the FY 2022 appropriations bills remains in limbo. As previously reported, the House has passed nine of its 13 annual spending bills over the summer, while the remaining bills have passed…
House Science Subcommittee Holds Hearing on Social Media Data Research
On September 28, the Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight within the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology (SST) held a hearing on social media platforms, data, and research focused on misinformation spread. Witnesses at the hearing included Professor and Interim Dean at Khoury College of Computer Sciences at Northeastern University Dr. Alan Mislove; Ph.D. Candidate and Co-Director of Cybersecurity for Democracy at New York University Laura Edelson; and Professor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Department of Sociology Dr. Kevin Leicht. Subcommittee Chair Bill Foster (D-IL), Ranking Member Jay Obernolte (R-CA), and Full Committee Chair Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX)…
House Committee Holds Hearing on COVID-19 Impacts on Children, Highlights Mental Health Impacts
On September 22, the House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations of the Committee on Energy and Commerce (E&C) held a hearing to address the public health impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on children. Witnesses included President of the American Academy of Pediatrics Dr. Lee Savio Beers, President of Monroe Carell Jr. Childrenâs Hospital at Vanderbilt University Dr. Margaret G. Rush, Chief Executive Officer of the American Psychological Association (a COSSA governing member) Dr. Arthur Evans, founder of VaxTeen Kelly Danielpour, and Epidemiologist Dr. Tracy Beth Hoeg. Subcommittee Chair Diana DeGette (D-CO), Ranking Member Morgan Griffith (R-VA), and full Committee Chair…
Three Social Scientists Named to PCAST
On September 22, President Biden announced the appointment of 30 members to the Presidentâs Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST), the body of external advisors charged with making science, technology, and innovation policy recommendations to the President and the White House. The White House announcement notes that this is the most diverse group of PCAST members in U.S. history; it is led by its first female external co-chairs, Dr. Frances Arnold and Dr. Maria Zuber (in addition to Office of Science and Technology Policy Director Eric Lander) and is composed of over 50 percent women and one-third people…
AI Advisory Committee Seeks Nominations
Nominations are open for the inaugural National Artificial Intelligence (AI) Advisory Committee, which is being established in accordance with the National Artificial Intelligence Initiative Act of 2020 passed as part of the fiscal year (FY) 2021 defense authorization bill last year. That bill created the National Artificial Intelligence Initiative to coordinate AI research and policy across the federal government and a national network of AI research institutes and provided for the establishment of an advisory committee to inform this effort. According to the bill, committee members should represent âbroad and interdisciplinary expertise and perspectivesââincluding in the social and behavioral sciencesâwith…
Research!America Requesting Proposals for Civic Engagement Microgrants
Research!America has announced that it is accepting proposals for its Civic Engagement Microgrant Program, which awards grants of up to $4,000 to graduate student and postdoc-led groups in STEM (including social science) to design projects that create dialogue with public officials, local community leaders, and the public around issues of common concern. The funds provide opportunities for grantees to develop skills in communication and program planning, along with an understanding of policy and government in order to have an impact in their local areas. Applications are due October 12, 2021. More details are available on Research!Americaâs website.
University of Maryland to Host Workshop on University-Industry Partnerships in the Social Sciences
The University of Maryland and UIDP, with support from COSSA, the National Science Foundation, MITRE, and Optimal Solutions Group, will be hosting a two-part Workshop on University-Industry Partnerships in the Social Sciences. This workshop, which will convene a virtual session on October 14, 2021, and an in-person main event on April 20-21, 2022, aims to bring together a wide variety of experts from within academia, government, non-profits, and the private sector to consider the potential of cross-sector partnerships to advance social and behavioral science and to benefit society. Three topics of focus have been identified for the sessions: Using Mission-Oriented…
ASA Task Force Releases Report on Quality of 2020 Census State Totals
The Task Force on 2020 Census Quality Indicators convened by the American Statistical Association (ASA), a COSSA governing member, released its final report on September 14. That task force, chaired by former U.S. Chief Statistician Nancy Potok, was formed in September 2020 to assess the quality of data from the 2020 Census, given the challenges of conducting the census during the pandemic and concerns about political interference from the Trump Administration. The task force evaluated a set of 10 state-level âprocess statisticsâ relevant for evaluating the quality of census state-level totals used for apportionment and concluded that it found âno…
AERA to Host Annual Brown Lecture on Intersectionality and Education Equity
The American Educational Research Association (AERA), a COSSA governing member, will host its annual Brown Lecture in Education Research virtually on October 21 at 6:00 pm ET. The 2021 lecture is entitled âStill Climbing the Hill: Intersectional Reflections on Brown and Beyondâ and will be delivered by Lori Patton Davis, professor of higher education and student affairs at Ohio State University, and an influential scholar on critical race theory and African Americans in higher education. The Annual Brown Lecture in Education Research commemorates the anniversary of the Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education and is designed to…
White House Outlines R&D Budget Priorities for FY 2023
The White House has published a memorandum on Research & Development Priorities for the fiscal year (FY) 2023 Budget, a document that lays out the Administrationâs priorities for federal research agencies to consider when drafting their budget requests. This memo, which is traditionally released annually by the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), is the first such memo released by the Biden Administration. It outlines five cross-cutting themes for agencies to consider for their budgets: pandemic readiness and prevention; tackling climate change; research and innovation in emerging technologies; innovation in…
COSSA Launches New Website
We’re pleased to share COSSA’s new website, which we’ve redesigned from the ground-up to put the information and resources you need right at your fingertips. In addition to a refreshed, cleaner look, the new site has tons of new features and functionality to make engaging with COSSA easier than ever, including: Better browsing for Washington Update articles, All our policy information in one place, Easy-to-use action center, Visual advocacy resource library, New hub for past COSSA trainings & briefings, and Homepage for Advocacy Day. You can explore the new features for yourself at www.cossa.org.
FROM THE ARCHIVES: Things Have Changed (September 24, 2001)
In celebration of COSSA’s 40th anniversary, we are diving into the decades of Washington Update archives to share articles from years past that resonate with today’s news. It is the morning after President Bush’s speech to the joint session of Congress, ten days after the terrorist attacks. Once again Washington, and indeed the world, is a changed place. The disputed presidential election and lingering doubts about the legitimacy of this presidencyâgone. The switch of Jim Jeffords to give Democrats control of the U.S. Senateâancient history. Concern about using the social security surplus to pay for government spendingâevaporated. Partisan bickering over…
House Science Committee Approves NSF Spending in Reconciliation Package
On September 9, the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee met to pass a set of spending recommendations that allocate $45.5 billion in fiscal year (FY) 2022 spending as part of the House Democratsâ wide-reaching âBuild Back Betterâ plan. The $3.5 trillion in total proposed spending (over 5-10 years) would be passed as part of the budget reconciliation process (which removes several procedural hurdles to passing such legislation) and would be in addition to regular FY 2022 appropriations (see COSSAâs analysis of the Houseâs FY 2022 appropriations bills here). The Science Committeeâs recommendations would provide the National Science Foundation (NSF)…
White House Releases Pandemic Preparedness Plan
On September 3, the Biden Administration released a Pandemic Preparedness Plan that identifies five key areas of opportunity to protect the U.S. against future biological threats: (1) âTransforming our Medical Defenses, (2) Ensuring Situational Awareness, (3) Strengthening Public Health Systems, (4) Building Core Capabilities, and (5) Managing the Mission.â The plan includes a total of $65.3 billion in increased funding over 7-10 years, some of which has already been requested as part of the budget reconciliation package currently under consideration in Congress. The full plan is available here.
NSF Awards âAmericaâs Data Hubâ Contract
The National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES) within the National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded a contract to establish the Americaâs Data Hub Consortium, a network intended to âstrengthen, support, and advance the NCSES mission by engaging in ground-breaking activities related to data access and sharing, infrastructure, and analysis across the broad landscape of the science and engineering enterprise.â The contract was awarded to Advanced Technology International, a nonprofit R&D collaboration firm. The Consortiumâs primary objectives are to âDevelop new ways of acquiring and linking data to yield valuable insights into critical issues Support cutting-edge data infrastructure Build…
DBASSE Launches Search for Next Executive Director
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) has launched a search for the next Executive Director of the Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education (DBASSE). The next Executive Director will succeed Mary Ellen OâConnell upon her retirement. The DBASSE Executive Director is responsible for executing a modern vision that maximizes DBASSEâs impact in society by expanding the base of sponsors, growing funding and support for programs, enabling the divisionâs projects to maximize their potential for impact, and fostering innovation to meet changing sponsor needs.â Full details on the position and how to apply are available here.
OSTP Prepares Upcoming Research Security Guidance
On August 10, Dr. Eric Lander, Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) announced the Biden Administrationâs intent to develop guidance for federal agencies to implement research security provisions over the following 90 days. The guidance would provide clear rules for federal agencies to comply with the National Security Presidential Memorandum (NSPM-33), issued in the final days of the Trump Administration. Among other provisions, NSPM-33 recommends standard research security measures across federal research agencies and clarifies disclosure requirements of foreign support for federally-funded scientists (see previous COSSA coverage for more details). In addition, on August…
September Headlines to Feature Deep Dive with IES Director
COSSA members can sign up for the monthly Headlines webchat to catch up on the most important social and behavioral science news from the past month and answer your questions. Stick around for our deep dive discussion on the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), with IES Director Mark Schneider. Individuals employed by or affiliated with a COSSA member organization or university can register for the webchat here.
FROM THE ARCHIVES: House, Senate Agree to Kill Technology Office (July 31, 1995)
In celebration of COSSA’s 40th anniversary, we are diving into the decades of Washington Update archives to share articles from years past that resonate with today’s news. A House-Senate conference committee on the Legislative Branch Appropriations bill has agreed to kill the Office of Technology Assessment (OTA). The House had voted to move OT A’s functions to the Congressional Research Service and provided $15 million of Library of Congress appropriations for that purpose. OT A’s budget in FY 1995 was $22 million. An attempt by Sen. Ernest Hollings (D-SC) to save the Office during Senate consideration of the appropriations bill…
OSTP and NSF Request Input on National Resource for Artificial Intelligence Research
The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and the National Science Foundation (NSF) have issued a request for information (RFI) developing an implementation roadmap for a shared artificial intelligence (AI) research infrastructure. The RFI was issued through the National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource Task Force, which was directed by Congress to establish a âshared research infrastructure that would provide Artificial Intelligence (AI) researchers and students across scientific disciplines with access to computational resources, high-quality data, educational tools, and user support.â More information about the RFI is available in the Federal Register notice. Comments are due by October…