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House Updates HEROES Act

House Democrats have released an updated, smaller, “HEROES Act 2.0”, totaling approximately $2.2 trillion. This COVID relief bill would provide support for small businesses, airline workers, childcare, food security, the Census, education, local governments, and healthcare. Specifically, $39 billion would go to colleges and universities, $3 billion would go to research relief for NIH, and $2.9 billion would go to research relief for NSF. Research relief for other agencies is not included.

A one-pager is available here.

A vote is expected in the coming days. The Senate is not expected to take action, however negotiations between House Democrats, Senate Republicans, and the Administration continue.

House Hearing on COVID Impacts to University Research

On Wednesday, September 9th, 2020 the US House Committee on Science, Space and Technology, Subcommittee on Research and Technology, will host a hearing on COVID impacts to University Research.

  • Title: The Impact of the COVID-19 Crisis on University Research
  • Date: Wednesday, September 9th, 2020
  • Time: 8:00 am PT/11:00 am ET

Witnesses:

Dr. Joseph Walsh, Interim Vice President for Economic Development and Innovation, University of Illinois System

Dr. David Stone, Vice President for Research, Oakland University

Dr. Theresa Mayer, Executive Vice President for Research and Partnerships, Purdue University

Mr. Ryan Muzzio, Physics Ph.D. Student, Carnegie Mellon University

The link to watch the hearing is here.

 

 

White House Reveals FY22 R&D Priorities

The White House has published a memorandum outlining the FY22 Research and Development priorities for federal agencies. AI and QIS remain a top priority, however due to COVID-19, significant focus has been placed on public health concerns including vaccine development and infectious disease research. Other areas of interest include energy, space, and security.

Read the full memo here.

NSF Updates FAQ for Grant Recipients Impacted by COVID-19

In response to inquiries from the community, the National Science Foundation (NSF) has updated FAQs related to NSF’s implementation of OMB Memorandum M-20-26, “Extension of Administrative Relief for Recipients and Applicants of Federal Financial Assistance Directly Impacted by the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) due to Loss of Operations,” dated June 18, 2020.

The updated FAQ is available here.

 

NSF Issues Updated Guidance for Grant Recipients Impacted by COVID-19

The National Science Foundation has issued guidance in accordance with OMB Memorandum M-20-26, “Extension of Administrative Relief for Recipients and Applicants of Federal Financial Assistance Directly Impacted by the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) due to Loss of Operations”.  The guidance extends two of the short-term administrative relief related to salaries and other project activities, and single audit submissions. Recipients are reminded to maintain appropriate documentation of all charges.

The full updated guidance can be found here.