Sep
30
Today, at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), President Obama announced that the Administration has released nearly half ($5 billion) of the funding provided the NIH in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). To date, the University of Washington has drawn roughly $40 million in ARRA NIH awards.
President Obama stated that the more than 12,000 grants awarded at NIH would “support cutting-edge medical research in every state across America.” He added, “We know that this kind of investment will also lead to new jobs: tens of thousands of jobs conducting research, manufacturing and supplying medical equipment, and building and modernizing laboratories and research facilities.”
September 30, 2009 at 2:36 pm
Sep
30
Washington, DC – U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced today that up to $12.5 million in funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will be awarded in early 2010 to support at least 80 graduate fellowships to U.S. students pursuing advanced degrees in science, mathematics, and engineering through the newly created Department of Energy Office of Science Graduate Fellowship program. The goal of the fellowship program is to encourage outstanding students to pursue graduate degrees in physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, engineering, and environmental and computer sciences – fields that will prepare students for careers that can make significant contributions in discovery driven science and science for national needs in energy and the environment.
“Training the next generation of U.S. scientists and engineers is critical to our future energy security and economic competitiveness,” said Secretary Chu. “This Fellowship is part of the Administration’s effort to encourage students to direct their talents towards careers in science and our nation’s next technology revolution.”
To be eligible for the Fellowship, applicants must be U.S. citizens and currently a first or second year graduate student enrolled at a U.S. academic institution, or an undergraduate senior who will be enrolled as a first year graduate student by the fall of 2010. Applicants must be pursuing graduate study and research in the physical, biological, engineering and computational sciences. Interested students can apply online at: http://www.scied.science.doe.gov/SCGF.html
Each fellowship award will be $50,500 per year for three years to provide support for tuition, living expenses, research materials and travel to research conferences. Fellowships will be awarded on the basis of peer review. Applicants may begin submitting applications on September 30, 2009. Completed applications are due November 30, 2009.
September 30, 2009 at 12:00 pm
Sep
29
Congress continues to push through appropriations bills as fiscal 2009 ends on Wednesday.
In the Senate:
- considers HR 3326, 2010 Defense Spending;
- HR 2918, Legislative Branch and stopgap spending;
- Finance Committee consinues marking up its health care overhaul bill;
- HR 3548 (tentative), Unemployment aid extension.
In The House:
- Considers a bill to expand non-military aid to Pakistan;
- Considers HR 3183, the Energy-Water spending Conference Report;
- Energy & Commerce Committee marks up HR 2221, consumer data security, HR 1319, file sharing data disclosure, & HR 2190, mercury pollution reduction;
- Science and Technology Subcommittee on Energy and Environment marks up HR 3585, solar technology, HR 3598, energy and water research integration, & HR 3650, algal bloom research.
- Financial Services Committee hold a hearing on financial regulatory overhaul with Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke.
Source: CQ Today Print Edition
Sep
28
The congressional agenda this week will sound familiar to those who have been following the action: Both chambers will focus on appropriations measures as the fiscal year winds down on September 30th, and Senate and House committees will continue to resolve differences on health care reform proposals.
Appropriations
Congress has until Wednesday night to pass a continuing resolution (CR) to keep the government running when FY10 starts on Thursday. The CR being discussed in the Senate would give lawmakers in that chamber 30 days to finish work on the FY10 spending bills. But the healthcare measure is also expected to come to the floor within a few weeks so many believe an additional extension will likely be needed.
The CR is needed to give lawmakers additional time after the end of the fiscal year Wednesday to complete the 12 annual appropriations bills. The House has finished work on all 12, while the Senate has completed only five. It is close to wrapping up work on the FY10 Interior-Environment Appropriations bill. Under the CR, most government programs will be funded at FY09 levels, with a few exceptions such as veterans’ health care and the Census Bureau.
Meanwhile, the House will take up conference reports on a handful of spending bills this week if House and Senate differences over earmarks can be resolved. The controversy rests with earmarks designated for private, for-profit entities. In response to complaints that earmarks are a source of corruption, House appropriators added provisions to their appropriations bills requiring that earmarks to for-profit entities undergo a competitive bidding process. The Senate, however, did not agree with this move. Late last week, House and Senate leaders reached an agreement: House earmarks designated for private, for-profit entities will be competitively bid, Senate earmarks will not, and those earmarks that are listed in both bills will not be competitively bid this year but will in future years. One thing is certain, the earmark process will continue to morph as congress injects more and more transparency into the process.
Overall, Democrats plan to spend $75 billion, or 7 percent, more in fiscal 2010 than they did in fiscal 2009 on the 12 annual spending bills, not including emergency spending.
The Office of Federal Relations continues to monitor the earmarks that we have secured in the House bills. The next hurdle is to protect those earmarks as they move through the conference negotiations.
Health Reform
The health care debate will continue to take center stage in both chambers as lawmakers continue to look for a path forward. Senate leaders continue to say that a health bill could be on the floor by the end of the week. While that timetable appears unlikely, it is clear Democrats want to move the bill as soon as possible, with one of the unknowns being how long it will take congressional budget office to score a bill once versions crafted by the two committees – Finance and Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) – are merged.
The House continues to push toward having a single bill crafted from the work of three committees, which they hope to have finalized by the end of the week and ready for floor action the following week.
The Office of Federal Relations is working closely with the health sciences schools (medicine, dentistry, nursing, public health, etc.) to protect graduate medical education funding and ensure that programs and grants being proposed through health reform have a positive impact on those entering the health professions.
As always, please let us know if you have questions or would like to discuss how to engage the congressional delegation with your issues and concerns.
Best,
Christy Gullion, Director
September 28, 2009 at 6:12 am
Sep
25
Today, the University of Washington Office of Federal Relations released its call for proposals for inclusion in the official FY11 University of Washington Federal Agenda. The agenda will serve as the basis for advocacy efforts during the congressional appropriations process that begins early next year. Guidelines can be found by clicking the Federal Agenda Submission link on the left side of this website. Submissions are due by October 26th, and questions can be directed to the Office of Federal Relations.
Sep
23
With FY09 set to come to a close on Wednesday September 30th and no FY10 appropriations bills completely through the legislative process and signed by the president, leaders in Congress are preparing a 30 day stop-gap continuing resolution (CR) that will keep the government running. A CR funds government operations (usually on a temporary basis) at the previous fiscal year’s level.
The House of Representatives has passed all of its 12 FY10 spending bills. However, progress in the Senate has been slow, largely due to negotiations over health care reform and consideration of judicial nominations. The Senate has only passed 5 spending bills, none of which have officially gone to House-Senate conference. Additionally, some reports have stated that the House of Representatives will not go to conference until the Senate acquiesces on a request to convert all earmarks targeted towards for-profit entities into competitive opportunities.
September 23, 2009 at 2:13 pm
Sep
22
On Monday (9/21), President Obama announced his American Innovation Strategy. The strategy includes doubling the research and development budgets of three key science agencies: the National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy’s Office of Science, and the National Institutes of Standards and Technology. The President also proposed an investment of more than 3% of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in public and private research and development.
The President’s plan has three primary parts:
1. Invest in the Building Blocks of American Innovation: We must first ensure that our economy is given all the necessary tools for successful innovation, from investments in research and development to the human, physical, and technological capital needed to perform that research and transfer those innovations.
2. Promote Competitive Markets that Spur Productive Entrepreneurship: It is imperative to create a national environment ripe for entrepreneurship and risk taking that allows U.S. companies to be internationally competitive in a global exchange of ideas and innovation. Through competitive markets, innovations diffuse and scale appropriately across industries and globally.
3. Catalyze Breakthroughs for National Priorities: There are certain sectors of exceptional national importance where the market is unlikely to produce the desirable outcomes on its own. These include developing alternative energy sources, reducing costs and improving lives with health IT, and manufacturing advanced vehicles. In these industries where markets may fail on their own, government can be part of the solution.
The President’s plan provides no timeline for implementation. However, we are hopeful that these investments will be proposed and adopted as funds provided by ARRA run out, so that we can see sustained funding in the referenced agencies.
American Innovation Strategy Fact Sheets and White Papers
Sep
21
In the Senate:
The Senate will debte amendments to the fiscal 2010 Interior-Environment Spending Bill, with votes expected on Tuesday. A vote on pasage is likely by the end of the week. The Senate is then likely to consider either the fiscal 2010 Defense Spending Bill or the Military Construction-VA Spending Bill.
The Senate Finance Committee marks up its health care overhaul bill this week beginning on Tuesday and continuing the rest of the week.
In the House:
The House votes on a number of measures under suspendion of the rules on Tuesday, including an extension of unemployment aid. Later in the week, they are scheduled to take up a defense production reauthorization bill, as well as a number of bills to extend certain authorizations — including for small business programs, the Federal Aviation Administration and surface transportation programs. The House is also expected to vote on a continuing resolution to make stopgap appropriations into fiscal 2010.
Source: CQ Today Print Edition
Sep
17
Today, the full House of Representatives passed the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2009 (HR 3221) by a 253-171 vote. The bill utilizes savings from the elimination of the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP) in favor of 100% college/university participation in the Direct Loan program. The legislation would index future Pell increases to the Consumer Price Index plus 1%. Financial institutions that provide student loans have fought the elimination of FFELP, as it essentially removes them from the federal student aid market. Funding recouped from the elimination of FFELP will also fund much of President Obama’s college access and persistence plan, as well as a number of additional initiatives.
The University of Washington’s Office of Student Financial Aid, and Office of Federal Relations have been active in providing members of the Washington Congressional delegation with feedback on HR 3221. There remains room to make improvements on the House bill, particularly in its provision of a College Access and Completion Fund, where funding provided to states could result in increased regulatory control by states over institutions of higher education. The legislation is now being worked on the Senate, and is expected to receive full consideration later this fall or early in 2010.
Sep
14
Monday, September 14
Floor Action:
- The Senate will resume consideration of the fiscal 2010 Transportation-HUD Appropriations bill (HR 3288). Roll call votes are possible after 5:30 p.m.
- The House is expected to take up several measures under suspension of the rules. Votes expected at 6:30 p.m.
Tuesday, September 15
Both the House and the Senate will be in session.
Committee Meetings:
- Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources will hold a full committee hearing on the Impact of Greenhouse Gas Trading Program
Wednesday, September 16
Both the House and the Senate will be in session
- The House is expected to take up a fuel efficiency technology measure (HR 3246).
- The House Committee on Natural Resources will hold a full committee hearing on Land, Energy and Aquatic Resources
Thursday, September 17
The House is expected to take up the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2009 (HR 3221).
Committee Hearings:
- Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources will hold a full committee hearing on the Economic Effects of Climate Change Legislation
- The House Committee on Natural Resources will continue its full committee hearing on Land, Energy and Aquatic Resources
Friday, September 18
The House is not in session.
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