Revisions #1 - 125397_washington update

A staple since COSSAā€™s 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.Ā 

Americaā€™s Children: Key National Indicators of Well-Being, 2015

The Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics, a working group of 23 Federal agencies, recently released its annual compendium of indicators, Americaā€™s Children: Key National Indicators of Well-being, 2015. The 17th report in an ongoing series includes 41 key indicators ā€œon important aspect of childrenā€™s livesā€ culled from the ā€œmost reliable Federal statistics.ā€ The easily understood statistics in the report are ā€œobjectively based on substantial research.ā€ The report also reveals trends over time that are ā€œrepresentative of large segments of the populationā€ and include indicators seven domains: ā€œfamily and social environment, economic circumstances, health care, physical environment and…

Events Calendar

Society for Personality and Social Psychology Annual Convention, San Diego, CA, January 28-30, 2016 American Psychosomatic Society Annual Scientific Meeting, Denver, CO, March 9-12, 2016 COSSA Annual Meeting & Social and Behavioral Science Advocacy Day, Washington, DC, March 15-16, 2016 Southwestern Social Science Association Annual Meeting, Las Vegas, NV, March 22-27, 2016 Midwest Sociological Society Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL, March 23-26, 2016 Association of American Geographers Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA, March 28-April 2, 2016 Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences Annual Meeting, Denver, CO, March 29-April 2, 2016 Society of Behavioral Medicine Annual Meeting,Ā Washington, DC, March 20-April 2, 2016 Population…

Funding Opportunity Announcements

DOD: Minerva Research Initiative (WHS-AD-FOA-16-01) Department of Education, Office of International and Foreign Language Education (IFLE): Fulbright-Hays Group Programs Abroad, Short Term/Long Term (January) Fulbright-Hays, Doctoral Dissertation Research AbroadĀ (January) Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language (April) American Overseas Research Centers (May) NIH Opportunities: NCI:Ā  Feasibility Studies to Build Collaborative Partnerships in Cancer Research (P20) (PAR-16-084) NIA: NIA Clinical Research Project Planning Grant Program (R34), (PAR-16-085) NIH: Education and Health: New Frontiers (R21) (PAR-16-078), (R03) (PAR-16-079), (R01) (PAR-16-080), Ā [OBSSR, NCI, NIA, NICHD, NIDA] NIH: International Research Ethics Education and Curriculum Development Award (R25) (PAR-16-081), [FIC, NHGRI, NIAID] NIH: International Bioethics Research…

Senate HELP Committee Begins Consideration of Companion Legislation to the House 21st Century Cures Act

Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN), Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, recently announced that the committee will hold the first of three executive sessions to consider legislation to address biomedical innovation. The legislation affects the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The bills would serve as the companion legislation to the 21st Century Cures Act passed by the House last summer (see Update, July 14, 2015). The executive sessions are planned for February 9, March 9, and April 6. Alexander stressed that the Committee worked throughout 2015 to produce the…

National Advisory Dental and Craniofacial Research Council Approves Concept Clearances

The National Advisory Dental and Craniofacial Research Council (NADCRC), the advisory body to the National Institute on Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), held an abbreviated session of its first quarter congressionally-mandated advisory council meeting to accommodate the East coast blizzard. The shortened session included a discussion of proposed research concept clearances to allow the Instituteā€™s program staff to move forward to develop funding opportunity announcements (FOAs) around creation of a mentored translation program and an implementation science and oral health program.

COSSA Washington Update, Volume 35 Issue 1

Featured News Second Session of 114th Congress Gavels In, Funding Debates Quick out the Gate COSSA in Action COSSA and Members Comment on Proposed Revisions to the Common Rule Registration now OPEN for 2016 COSSA Annual Meeting & Advocacy Day Federal Agency & Administration News OBSSR Responds to Concerns about NIH Guidance on the Funding of Health Economics Research White House SBS Team Seeks Fellows NIA Director Expresses Appreciation for NIH and NIA FY 2016 Budgets NIH Discusses the Science of Self-Management Documenting Endangered Languages Webinar ā€“ January 19 BTS Releases 2016 Pocket Guide to Transportation President Obama Proclaims January…

Second Session of 114th Congress Gavels In, Funding Debates Quick out the Gate

The House and Senate have returned to Washington for the start of the second session of the 114th Congress. As previously reported, Congress was able to come up with a final agreement on fiscal year (FY) 2016 spending before leaving for the holiday break in December. Funding for agencies and programs important to the social and behavioral science research community was largely protected in the final bill, a positive outcome given the proposals that were floated earlier in the year. Now attention turns to FY 2017. The President will unveil his final budget request on February 9, which will officially…

COSSA and Members Comment on Proposed Revisions to the Common Rule

COSSA, in conjunction withĀ the American Educational Research Association (AERA)Ā (a COSSAĀ governing association)Ā and the Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research, submitted comments on the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for the Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects or the ā€œCommon Ruleā€ (click hereĀ for context on the NPRM). Overall, the comments are supportive of the proposed changes affecting the social and behavioral sciencesĀ and urge that “major and substantial improvements… not be delayed or deferred even if it is determined thatĀ some issues require further analysis before some rule changes can be made.” The comments also points out severalĀ sections where additional clarification…

OBSSR Responds to Concerns about NIH Guidance on the Funding of Health Economics Research

In November 2015, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) issued guidance Clarifying NIHā€™s Priorities in Health Economics. The notice was accompanied by blog post from Carrie Wolinetz, NIH Associate Director for Science Policy (see Update, December 1, 2015). In a recent blog post, NIH Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) director William Riley responded to questions the office has received from the social and behavioral science community regarding the impetus for the NIH notice. Riley highlighted his participation in the guidanceā€™s development and his desire to convey and assure the research community that ā€œhealth economics research is alive…

White House SBS Team Seeks Fellows

The White House Social and Behavioral Sciences Team (SBST), which uses insights from the social and behavioral sciences to improve federal programs,Ā is accepting applications forĀ new members to serve on the team as Fellows or Associate Fellows. The one-year fellowship begins in October 2016 and is open to PhD or Masters level scientists with expertise in one or more field in theĀ social andĀ behavioral sciences. The deadline for applications is January 24, 2016. More information on the fellowship is available here. Back to this issueā€™s table of contents.

NIA Director Expresses Appreciation for NIH and NIA FY 2016 Budgets

National Institute on Aging (NIA) director Richard Hodes acknowledged ā€œexciting newsā€ reflected in the FY 2016 budget for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and specifically for NIA in a January 6 blog post. Noting the $2 billion (6.6 percent) increase for the NIH for FY 2016, Hodes underscored that the increase provided a boost of approximately 33 percent for NIA, including the $350 million in funding allocated for research on Alzheimerā€™s disease (see COSSAā€™s omnibus analysis). Notwithstanding the resources dedicated to Alzheimerā€™s research, NIAā€™s FY 2016 budget provides a 4.2 percent increase to the institute, ā€œthe largest increase to…

NIH Discusses the Science of Self-Management

In 2015, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) and the NIH Basic Behavioral and Social Sciences Opportunity Network (OppNet) jointly convened a panel of ten experts to ā€œdiscuss basic psychosocial mechanism and processes involved with self-managementā€ of disease and other related conditions. The science of self-management has grown exponentially over the last several decades. During this time, the NIH has provided support for clinical- and community-based interventions and programs related to the management of acute and chronic illnesses, including asthma, arthritis, diabetes, heart failure, and HIV/AIDS. In particular, the National Institute of…

Documenting Endangered Languages Webinar ā€“ January 19

The National Science Foundation (NSF) and National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) will hold a free webinar in January 19 to provide details on the joint NSF/NEH Documenting Endangered Languages (DEL) program. The webinar is intended for researchers who are considering submitting a proposal to the program; the next deadline for DEL proposals is September 15, 2016. Registration is required for participation. Back to this issueā€™s table of contents.

BTS Releases 2016 Pocket Guide to Transportation

The Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) has published its 19th annual Pocket Guide to Transportation. The 2016 Pocket Guide provides quick reference information on the transportation system and covers topics such as infrastructure, moving people and goods, performance, economy, safety, and environment. Back to this issueā€™s table of contents.

President Obama Proclaims January 2016 National Mentoring Month

On December 31, President Obama issued a proclamation declaring January 2016 ā€œNational Mentoring Monthā€ to honor ā€œall those who continuously strive to provide young people with the resources and support they need and deserve.ā€ The proclamation announced the Administrationā€™s recommitment to ā€œbuilding a society in which all mentors and mentees can thrive in mutual learning relationships.ā€ To read the entire proclamation, go here. Back to this issueā€™s table of contents.

Albert Bandura to be Awarded National Medal of Science

In December, President Obama announced the recipients of the 2013 and 2014 National Medal of Science and National Medal of Technology and Innovation, the nationā€™s highest honors for discoveries and advancements in science and technology. Among the 2014 recipients is Albert Bandura of Stanford University, who will receive the National Medal of Science in Behavioral and Social Science. Bandura is a social cognitive psychologist, known best for the ā€œBobo doll experiments,ā€ and whose work pioneered ā€œsocial learning theory,ā€ which stresses observation, imitation and modeling as central components of learning. Bandura and the other honorees will be receive their medals at…

Events Calendar

Society for Social Work and Research Annual Conference, Washington, DC, January 13-17, 2016 Webinar on Documenting Endangered Languages Program, January 19, 2016 Society for Personality and Social Psychology Annual Convention, San Diego, CA, January 28-30, 2016 American Psychosomatic Society Annual Scientific Meeting, Denver, CO, March 9-12, 2016 COSSA Annual Meeting & Social and Behavioral Science Advocacy Day, Washington, DC, March 15-16, 2016 Southwestern Social Science Association Annual Meeting, Las Vegas, NV, March 22-27, 2016 Midwest Sociological Society Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL, March 23-26, 2016 Association of American Geographers Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA, March 28-April 2, 2016 Academy of Criminal…

Funding Opportunity Announcements

AHRQ: Notice of Intent to Publish a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) for Child Health Quality Measurement Implementation and Development (NOT-HS-16-002) IES: Low-Cost, Short Duration Evaluation of Education Interventions (CFDA 84.305L) NIH Opportunities: NIDA, NIAAA, OBSSR: Behavioral and Integrative Treatment Development Program (R01) (PA-16-072), R34 (PA-16-073), R03 (PA-16-074) NIDA: Behavioral Science Track Award for Rapid Transition (B/Start)(R03) (PAR-16-071) NIH: Notice of Frequently Asked Questions Posted to the Precision Medicine Initiative Cohort Program Website (NOT-PM-16-003) NIH: NIH Pathway to Independence Award (Parent K99/R00) (PA-16-077) [NCCIH, NCI, NEI, NHGRI, NHLBI, NIA, NIAAA, NIAID, NBIBI, NICHD, NIDA, NIDCD, NIDCR, NIDDK, NIEHS, NIGMS, NIMH, NIMHD,…

Registration now OPEN for 2016 COSSA Annual Meeting & Advocacy Day

Registration is now open for the 2016 COSSA Annual Meeting and 2nd Annual Social and Behavioral Science Advocacy Day scheduled for March 15-16, 2016.Ā Click hereĀ to register today! Registration fees will increase in February. Individuals who work for COSSA member organizations may be eligible for a members-only registration rate. Email jmilton@cossa.org for details. Visit theĀ COSSAĀ Annual MeetingĀ pageĀ for full details, including discounted hotel rates for those traveling to the meeting (reservations must be made by February 15!). ABOUT THE COSSA MEETING The COSSA Annual Meeting brings together representatives from throughout the social and behavioral science community for a day of discussion on federal…

Analysis of the FY 2016 Omnibus Appropriations Bill and Implications for Social and Behavioral Science Research

On December 15, House and Senate negotiators unveiled their final fiscal year (FY) 2016 omnibus appropriations bill, theĀ Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2016 (H.R. 2029), which includes all 12 of the individual appropriations bills and totals $1.15 trillion. Congress passed another short term continuing resolution (CR) on Wednesday to allow enough time for the House and Senate to pass the massive spending bill and for the President to sign it, which he has indicated he would. Policymakers now have until December 22 to achieve final passage. Assuming the House can pass the bill on Friday-which will require the support of several…

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