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
EPA Advisory Board Accepting Nominations
The Environmental Protection Agencyâs (EPA) Board of Scientific Counselors (BOSC) is accepting nominations for new members. The BOSC advises the EPAâs Office of Research and Development on technical and management issues related to its research programs: Air, Climate, and Energy; Chemical Safety for Sustainability; Human Health Risk Assessment; Homeland Security; Safe and Sustainable Water Resources; and Sustainable and Healthy Communities. EPA is seeking nominees with expertise in the following fields (among others): climate/global change, public health, exposure science, risk assessment, sustainability, science policy, program evaluation, social science, behavioral science, and decision science. Nominations are due by June 30, 2017. More…
Library of Congress Releases Digital Records to Public and Researchers
The U.S. Library of Congress recently announced that it is making the largest release of records (25 million) in the libraryâs history accessible online through free bulk downloads and on data.gov. The Library is the main research body for the U.S. Congress and home of the U.S. Copyright Office. The new dataset comprises more than 45 years (1968-2014) of information, including books, serials, computer files, manuscripts, maps, music, and visual materials. The records, until now, have only been available through a paid subscription or on an individual basis. Announcing the dataâs availability, the Library notes that âthe rich data included in…
Events Calendar
American Evaluation Association Summer Institute: Finding Your Pathway in Evaluation, June 4-7, 2017, Atlanta, GA Graduate Training in the Social and Behavioral Sciences: A Public Workshop, June 8-9, 2017, Washington, DC Law and Society Association Annual Meeting, June 20-23, 2017, Mexico City, Mexico Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues Annual Meeting, June 23-25, 2017, Albuquerque, NM Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting, July 27-30, 2017, Columbus, OH Joint Statistical Meetings, July 28-August 3, 2017, Baltimore, MD A list of COSSA members’ annual meetings and other events can be found on the COSSA events page. COSSA members who have an…
House Appropriations Subcommittee Holds Oversight Hearing on Advances in Biomedical Research
On May 17, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies (LHHS) held an oversight hearing to discuss the advances in biomedical research by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). NIH Director Francis Collins was accompanied by Institute directors Anthony Fauci (Allergy and Infectious Diseases), Gary Gibbons (Heart, Lung, and Blood), Joshua Gordon (Mental Health), Doug Lowy (Cancer), and Nora Volkow (Drug Abuse). Welcoming the agency before the Subcommittee, Chairman Tom Cole (R-OK) noted that âinvestment in NIH has been the key driver in making the United States the world leader of biomedical research…
Funding Opportunity Announcements
AHRQ: National Research Service Award (NRSA) Institutional Research Training Grant (T32) (RFA-HS-17-011)\ NIH Opportunities: NIA: Claude D. Pepper Older Americans Independence Centers (P30) (RFA-AG-18-007) NIA: NIA Academic Leadership Career Award (K07) (PAR-17-287) NIA: NIA MSTEM: Advancing Diversity in Aging Research through Undergraduate Education (R25) (PAR-17-290) NIH: Addressing Suicide Research Gaps: Understanding Mortality Outcomes (R01) (RFA-MH-18-410) [NIMH, NCCIH, NIDA, NIMHD] NCI: U.S. Tobacco Control Policies to Reduce Health Disparities (R01) (PAR-17-217), (R21) (PAR-17-218) NCI: Leveraging Population-based Cancer Registry Data to Study Health Disparities (R21) (PA-17-288), (R01) (PA-17-289) NIAAA: Specialized Alcohol Research Centers (P50) (RFA-AA-18-001) NCCIH: Behavioral Interventions for Prevention of Opioid…
COSSA Washington Update, Volume 36 Issue 10
Featured News Census Bureau Director Resigns, Complicating Outlook for 2020 Decennial COSSA in Action Why Social Science? Highlights Paul Milgromâs Auction Research COSSA Joins Community in Urging Increased Allocation for Labor, Health and Human Services Appropriations Bill Federal Agency & Administration News NIH Announces Major Policy Shift: Agency to Impose Cap on R01s Held by Grantees Presidentâs Complete Budget Request Expected May 23 Gopal Khanna Named AHRQ Director HHS Seeks Nominations for Advisory Council on Alzheimerâs Research, Care, and Services Publications & Community Events National Security Decadal Survey Issues Second Call for White Papers National Academies Publishes K-12 Behavioral and…
Census Bureau Director Resigns, Complicating Outlook for 2020 Decennial
On May 9, John Thompson announced his plans to step down as Director of the Census Bureau effective June 30. Thompsonâs resignation comes at a critical time for the Bureau as it ramps up its activities ahead of the 2020 Census and continues to face periodic threats to the American Community Survey. So far, no details have emerged about a potential replacement. The Deputy Director position at the Bureau has been vacant since Nancy Potok left to become Chief Statistician of the United States in January. No reason was given for Thompsonâs departure in the middle of a year-long extension…
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 committeeâs funding cap on spending for each of the appropriation bills. While the letter acknowledges the Subcommitteeâs âbroad range of constituencies and needs,â it also recognizes that the programs funded under the Labor-HHS bill âare continually short-changed in the annual appropriations process.â Accordingly, the scientific community emphasizes that âwithout an increase in the Labor-HHS 302(b) allocation,…
Presidentâs 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…
Gopal Khanna Named AHRQ Director
Gopal Khanna has been appointed to lead the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Khanna was most recently the Director of Illinoisâ Data Analytics Healthcare and Human Services Innovation Incubator and served as Minnesotaâs first Chief Information Officer. He also served in senior policy positions during the George W. Bush administration. Khanna succeeds Sharon Arnold, AHRQâs Deputy Director, who served as Acting Director for the agency after the departure of Andrew Bindman during the Presidential transition. Back to this issueâs table of contents.
HHS Seeks Nominations for Advisory Council on Alzheimerâs Research, Care, and Services
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is currently seeking nominations for seven new non-Federal members to its Advisory Council on Alzheimerâs Research, Care, and Services. The Council advises the HHS Secretary on preventing or reducing the burden of Alzheimerâs disease and related dementias on those suffering from the disease and their caregivers. The selected members will replace the seven members whose terms expire on September 30, 2017. Nominations are due June 16, 2017. For more information and/or to suggest a nominee, see the announcement. Back to this issueâs table of contents.
National Security Decadal Survey Issues Second Call for White Papers
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine has announced its second call for white papers to inform its decadal survey on applications of social and behavioral sciences for national security, which is sponsored by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. The Academies is seeking white papers that âidentify research concepts, methods, tools, techniques, and new ideas that could advance knowledgeâ across a range national security-relevant areas. More information and submission instructions are available on the Academies website. Responses are requested by June 12, 2017. Submissions from the first call for white papers, which focused on the needs…
National Academies Publishes K-12 Behavioral and Social Sciences Education Workshop Proceedings
The Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine has published the proceedings of their recent workshop entitled âThe Social and Behavioral Science in K-12 Education: Past, Present, and Future.â The brief includes a summary of the seminar held in November 2016, perspectives from different social and behavioral science disciplines, and recommended next steps. The brief can be read here. Back to this issueâs table of contents.
Friends of NIMHD Ask for Increased Funding for Institute
COSSA, a founding member of the Friends of the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD), joined in sending letters to the House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services and Education and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS) leadership in support of $302 million ($21 million increase) in funding for fiscal year (FY) 2018 for the NIMHD. While acknowledging the âdifficult budget environment,â the letter also highlights the instituteâs success in basic research; community-based, participatory research; transdisciplinary and translational research; and training the research workforce. Back to this issueâs table of contents.
Funding Opportunity Announcements
NHLBI: ImPlementation REsearCh to DEvelop Interventions for People Living with HIV (PRECluDE) (U01) (RFA-HL-18-007) NIA: Uncovering the Causes, Contexts, and Consequences of Elder Mistreatment (R01) (RFA-AG-18-010) NIAAA: Understanding Processes of Recovery in the Treatment of Alcohol Use Disorder (R21) (PA-17-284) (R01) (PA-17-285) NIBIB, NIDDK, NINDS: Administrative Supplements for Participation in the Concept to Clinic: Commercializing Innovation (C3i) Program (Admin Supp) (PA-17-286) NIDA: Wearable to Track Recovery and Relapse Factors for People w/ Addiction(R43/R44) (RFA-DA-18-010) NIH/FDA: Tobacco Regulatory Science (R01) (RFA-OD-17-007) [NCI, NHLBI, NIAAA, NIDA, NIEHS, ODP] NIH: Tobacco Regulatory Science (R03) (RFA-OD-17-008), (R21) (RFA-OD-17-009) [NCI, NHLBI, NIAAA, NIDA, NIEHS, ODP]…
Alan Krueger to Deliver 2017 Moynihan Lecture
On May 18, the American Academy of Political and Social Science (AAPSS), a COSSA member, will formally award the 2017 Daniel Patrick Moynihan Prize to Alan B. Kreuger, Bendheim Professor of Economics & Public Policy at Princeton University. The award recognizes âsocial scientists, public officials, and civic leaders who champion the use of informed judgment to advance the public good.â Kreuger, whose work focuses on analyzing the economic and policy implications of the growing âgigâ economy, will deliver a lecture on Capitol Hill entitled âIndependent Workers: What Role for Public Policy?â Information on the lecture, including how to attend, is…
NIH Announces Major Policy Shift: Agency to Impose Cap on R01s Held by Grantees
On May 2, National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Francis Collins announced that the agency would be initiating a new approach to grant funding designed to âoptimize stewardship of tax payersâ dollars.â Essentially, the new policy would limit the number of investigator-initiated (R01) grants held by grantees to three. According to NIH, this change would affect approximately 6 percent of current investigators but would free up resources to support nearly 1,600 additional grants. Announcing the policy change, Collins stressed that the new policy would ensure that the funds given by NIH âare producing the best results from our remarkable scientific…
Events Calendar
Investments in Scientific and Educational Research: Fueling American Innovation â CNSF Exhibition and Reception, May 16, 2017, Washington, DC American Association for Public Opinion Research Annual Conference, May 18-21, 2017, New Orleans, LA 2017 Daniel Patrick Moynihan Lecture on Social Science and Public Policy, May 18, 2017, Washington, DC American Evaluation Association Summer Institute: Finding Your Pathway in Evaluation, June 4-7, 2017, Atlanta, GA Graduate Training in the Social and Behavioral Sciences: A Public Workshop, June 8-9, 2017, Washington, DC Law and Society Association Annual Meeting, June 20-23, 2017, Mexico City, Mexico Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues…
COSSA Washington Update, Volume 36 Issue 9
Featured News Congress Reaches Agreement on FY 2017 Funding COSSA in Action National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities Answers âWhy Social Science?â Video from COSSA Briefing with Nobel Laureate Al Roth Now Available COSSA Testimony Calls for Increased Funding for NSF, NIJ, Census, and Other Agencies Federal Agency & Administration News OBSSR Holds 10th Matilda White Riley Behavioral and Social Sciences Honors; Mark Hayward Delivers 2017 Lecture NSB Releases Policy Brief on Career Path of Science, Engineering, and Health PhDs Preventive Services Task Force Accepting Nominations Publications & Community Events Thousands Participate in March for Science National Academies…