Guest Post by Dr. Adriana Bankston, 2024-2025 AAAS-ASGCT Congressional Policy Fellow*
This has not been a typical year for science in America. Going beyond the headlines is important to understand what policymakers, scientists, and scientific institutions have built over generations. America is a scientific powerhouse, with federal funding fueling research breakthroughs that can maintain our global leadership. Congress plays an important role, whether by creating new federal science institutions, setting standards for scientific advancement, or allocating funding to science agencies. As a AAAS/ASGCT Congressional Policy Fellow in the House of Representatives, I witnessed much of this action up close.
How Congress Supports Science: Mechanisms for Funding and More
Congress has set the standards for scientific advancement through its constitutional power to promote science, including through Article I, Section 8 which grants it power “to promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries”. Congress influences these standards through allocating funding, writing and passing legislation, and establishing science funding agencies among other mechanisms.
The U.S. government supports a broad range of scientific and engineering research and development (R&D), which includes developing a strong science and engineering workforce and enhancing American competitiveness in the global economy. Congress makes decisions that directly affect researchers through allocating funding to federal agencies and setting guidelines for its use, which we refer to as “policy for science.” The majority of R&D funding is concentrated in a subset of federal agencies driving American innovation and economic growth.
Congress determines the budget for federal science agencies including NIH, NSF, NASA and others, and writes legislation which establishes federal science and technology programs and agencies, thereby influencing the direction of U.S. scientific research. Additionally, Congress supports research infrastructure at national laboratories, which is required for cutting edge research to continue in these settings. Finally, Congress utilizes expertise and knowledge gained through science and technology to develop effective policies addressing critical challenges in our society.
The federal government is America’s top source of basic research support, providing 40 percent of total U.S. spending on research within its exploratory phases. Congressional investment in science and technology has fueled research findings that are vital for advancing medicine and health, in addition to building a strong and robust workforce. Funding for science has fluctuated across Presidential administrations, which can dramatically impact the research performed and types of training provided to the next generation. In the current administration, large amounts of grant funding at major science agencies including NIH and NSF have been terminated or frozen in several research areas. The NIH saw about $2.3 billion in unspent funds across nearly 2,500 grants frozen or terminated, while NSF had over 1,300 grants totaling about $700 million in unspent funds cut.
Congress may choose to act on revenue legislation pursuant to the proposals in the President’s budget, which may ultimately dictate R&D federal expenditures. As an example, the 109th the Congress included proposals to increase incentives for industrial R&D which passed in both chambers. In general, allocations for R&D spending by Congress are shaped by various political environments (e.g. a Republican-controlled House of Representatives may be less likely to support climate change research). They are also shaped via influential levers of power at any given time (e.g. Investigations and Oversight Subcommittee Hearing from the House Science, Space and Technology Committee on Assessing the Threat to U.S. Funded Research examined the current threat to the U.S. research enterprise posed by malign foreign actors).
One important recent law is the massive bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act, which provided for programs and policies in manufacturing and science, established AI and biotechnology standards, elevated federal R&D for basic and applied research, and supported training a strong STEM workforce. The legislation directs $280 billion over the next ten years, including $200 billion for scientific R&D and commercialization; some $52.7 billion for semiconductor manufacturing, R&D, and workforce development; $24 billion in tax credits for chip production; and $3 billion for programs aimed at leading-edge technology and wireless supply chains. At the two-year mark, during the Biden administration, several programs had been implemented showing advancements in semiconductor manufacturing, job creation, regional economic development, national security and innovation across the country.
A History of the U.S. Government Supporting Science
The partnership between the federal government and universities for the past 75 years has enabled much of this innovative research to take place in laboratories nationwide. Before World War II, science was rarely in effective contact with policymaking and the political process. The U.S. government played a relatively minor role in supporting American colleges and universities, which relied heavily on philanthropic endowments and private funding. This changed with Vannevar Bush, at the time Director of the Office of Scientific Research and Development, a federal agency formed in 1941 to mobilize science during the war. Bush’s 1945 text Science the Endless Frontier was commissioned by President Franklin Roosevelt, in response to his requests for recommendations on a national policy for science.
Bush’s proposals led to the creation of the National Science Foundation (NSF) in 1950 (P.L. 81-507). To this day, NSF supports critical science discoveries moving this country forward. Additionally, World War II saw unprecedented levels of government support for scientific research, with federal dollars making up over 80 percent of all R&D spending in America by war’s end. Today, federal investments in research still provide a vital source of basic science support.
Congress also established the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) through the “National Science and Technology Policy, Organization, and Priorities Act of 1976” (P.L. 94-282). OSTP’s goal was to provide the President with scientific and technological advice at the highest level of government. Today, the OSTP Director is the President’s main “science advisor” and co-chairs the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) among other functions. An interview by Arati Prabhakar, former Science and Technology Advisor to President Biden, highlights the Cancer Moonshot as an example, with the goal to halve the cancer death rate by 2047 and change the experience of those going through cancer. This is a concrete goal that can be acted upon via OSTP guidance on an important national issue for this country.
What We’ve Built: An American Scientific Powerhouse, Powered by Taxpayers
The U.S. is a global leader in science and innovation, supported by strong historic investments in basic science. These investments have helped garner our nation’s researchers the most Nobel prizes of any country. Additionally, U.S. scientists publish more research, receive more citations and earn more patents than any other nation, with significant contributions from immigrant inventors.
Private industry and philanthropy contribute important research support, particularly when funding cuts to science have been significant. However, these mechanisms can’t replace the steady support traditionally provided by the federal government for science that is essential for our global competitiveness. Incentives for research support and approaches to solving problems differ between federal government funding and philanthropy or industry, although there may be some overlap. Additionally, funding levels for scientific research in universities and non-profits through these sources are variable. In 2023, $58.6 billion came from the federal government, with $24.2 billion from philanthropy.
Where We Are Now: Challenges and Some Brights Spots
As a AAAS/ASGCT Congressional Policy Fellow with Rep. Bill Foster in the House of Representatives this past year, I witnessed and participated in congressional support of science up close, including through introducing bipartisan legislation focused on STEM immigration and the research pipeline. This work has been critical particularly given the Trump administration’s research funding cuts, and there is a strong need for Congress to act to restore funding. And while such legislation may not pass in the 119th Congress, its introduction can still help show congressional support for promoting American science and enabling the next generation of scientists to pursue research careers.
Although the U.S. has long been a leader in science and innovation, recent funding cuts have threatened this leadership and sent ripple effects through the scientific enterprise. Termination of funding has led to layoffs at federal agencies, impairing our nation’s ability to drive research forward, and negatively impacting research projects across our nation’s leading universities and national laboratories. The downstream effects of such cuts can lead to an entire generation of talent on the brink of being lost while other countries are attracting American scientists through support for research funding, relocation services, and access to state-of-the-art labs.
Despite federal research funding cuts, Congress continues to support scientific research on both sides of the aisle. In the legislative branch, funding for science has received bipartisan support for multiple federal agencies, including through the Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriations bill, which funds NSF, NASA, NOAA and NIST. Congress has also stepped up to defend NIH in both the House and Senate.
Individual Members of Congress are working to support scientific research and the next generation of scientists through legislation, letters, speeches, and other activities. Examples of some of our bipartisan work in Foster’s office this past year include the Keep STEM Talent Act which would make certain advanced STEM degree holders eligible for permanent resident status. Another example is introducing the CRISIS Act, which would make certain vetted Russian nationals with advanced STEM degrees eligible for permanent resident status. While often these kinds of efforts can take multiple Congresses to gather sufficient bipartisan support and require the right political environment to advance and pass, they send a strong message that Congress is supporting science and scientists in this country.
Conclusion
Congress is essential to advancing U.S. research and innovation, and maintaining our nation’s leadership in science and technology on the global stage. Although the research enterprise is currently undergoing a challenging time, Congress continues to support scientific research on both sides of the aisle both in terms of funding, facilities, and STEM workforce development. Now is the time for those invested in the future of science to engage with their Members of Congress to ensure continued progress. As a scientist who has worked in Congress, I was consistently amazed at the hard work taking place behind the scenes to further science in America. This is not the time for experts to disengage; we need you.
*This article was written post-fellowship.
