Senate Appropriations Committee releases proposed FY23 spending bills
On July 28, the Senate Appropriations Committee majority released all 12 of the long-awaited FY23 appropriations bills. Congress will likely pass a funding extension – or a continuing resolution – to keep the federal government open and funded under FY22 levels through mid-December. UNC Federal Affairs has prepared a chart outlining the FY22 final funding levels and House and Senate FY23 proposed funding levels for key agencies and programs.
Congress passes the CHIPS and Science Act
On July 28, Congress passed a slimmed down innovation and competitiveness bill, titled the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022. President Biden has signed the bill into law. The final CHIPS and Science Act provides billions of dollars in financial assistance for the semiconductor industry and authorizes billions of dollars for research at federal agencies. The legislation does not provide funding for the federal agencies. Congress will still need to pass appropriations to fund these agencies and programs at authorized levels.
The Senate Commerce Committee has made available a section-by-section summary of the legislation and a chart comparing the final NSF-related text with previous versions of bill text.
Bipartisan NC delegation effort to locate ARPA-H in North Carolina
On July 14, members of North Carolina’s congressional delegation sent a bipartisan letter to Xavier Beccerra, secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, expressing their strong support for locating the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) headquarters in North Carolina.
UNC-Chapel Hill is a founding member of a coalition to coordinate and advance this effort.
White House sends its annual research priorities memo to federal agencies for FY24
On July 22, the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and Office of Science and Technology Policy released their annual memo to federal agencies outlining research and development priorities for FY24. The memo describes in detail areas that federal agencies should prioritize in formulating their FY24 budget submissions to OMB.
House lawmakers launch bipartisan caucus on graduate student research
On July 13, a bipartisan group of House lawmakers launched a congressional caucus to represent the interests of graduate student researchers. The GRAD Caucus states that it “will provide briefings on programs and policies important to graduate researchers, educate members of Congress on the work and impact of graduate researchers, and provide a forum for members to advance policy solutions needed to support these researchers.”
Democrats and President Biden close in on reconciliation bill passage
On August 7, the Senate passed the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 along party lines using the reconciliation process, which allows bills to pass with a simple majority. The bill now goes to the House, where it is expected to narrowly pass when lawmakers return from recess for a vote on August 12. The legislation addresses corporate tax reform, prescription drug pricing, energy security, carbon emissions, and funding for research, including, but not limited to:
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
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- $2.6 billion for contracts, grants, cooperative agreements, or technical assistance for conservation, restoration, and protection of coastal and marine habitats and resources to allow communities to prepare for climate change conditions
- $50 million to fund competitive grants on climate research
- Department of Transportation
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- $297 million for a competitive grant program for advances in aviation fuel and low-emission aviation technologies