Labor, HHS, Education FY 2013 Spending Bill Emerges from Senate Appropriations Panel

On June 14, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved the FY 2013 Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS), and Education and Related Agencies Appropriation bill. For FY 2013, the spending bill provides $30.7 billion for the National Institutes of Health. It is an increase of $100 million over FY 2012 and the President's request. This sum includes $8.2 million in transfers available under section 241 of Public Health Services Act (PHS).

In the report accompanying the bill the Committee noted that the net amount for NIH in the budget request would have actually been a cut of more than $200 million below the FY 2012 level if the administration's proposal to increase the program evaluation tap on PHS agencies from 2.5 percent to 3.2 percent was accepted. The Committee "rejects that proposed increase and maintains the tap at 2.5 percent."

The report indicated that the funding levels for the Institutes and Center appropriations for FY 2012 reflect the transfers announced by the HHS to increase funding for Alzheimer's disease research.

The Committee provided $544.9 million for the NIH Common Fund, the same amount as the budget request and the FY 2012 funding level. The Committee expressed its support for Alzheimer's research but "strongly disagrees with the President's budget request to allocate $80 million of the Prevention and Public Health (PPH) Fund for Alzheimer's disease research at NIH. NIH research is not an appropriate use of the PPH Fund." Additionally, the Committee declared that it would set a dangerous precedent to provide specific amounts of NIH funding for individual diseases. This is a similar position the Committee took in FY 2010 when the administration proposed allocating specific levels of funding for cancer and autism research. The Committee further noted that "NIH has flexibility to prioritize funding for individual diseases when scientific opportunities and the number of high-quality applications warrant an increase."

NCS - The Committee noted that it is "troubled" that after appropriating nearly $1 billion for the National Children's Study since FY 2000, only a few thousand children have been enrolled and fundamental questions about the project's implementation still remain, particularly regarding the methods that will be used to recruit participants. "The Committee hopes that the budget request, a 15 percent reduction below the FY 2012 funding level, represents a positive sign that NIH intends to bring the costs of the NCS under control and spend its appropriation more efficiently."

The Committee expressed its hope that the "NIH's recently announced plan to switch to a provider-based rather than a household-based recruitment strategy will help achieve some of the necessary savings and may offer scientific benefits as well. At the same time, special efforts must be made to ensure that the new strategy will not leave out disadvantaged or underrepresented groups that are most negatively affected by health disparities." Conversely, the Committee also noted that "most important, it remains unclear whether a provider-based approach can accommodate the original goal of constructing a national probability sample that can be generalized to the entire U.S. population. The Committee believes that NIH should make every possible effort to fulfill that goal within a sustainable long-term budget."  

The Committee directed the Secretary to enter into an agreement within 90 days of enactment of this act with the National Academy of Sciences to review the sampling strategy. It also acknowledged that it is aware "of the confusion and disruption caused by NIH's decision to let the Vanguard Study contracts expire - a decision that caught many academic institutions by surprise. The Committee strongly urges NIH to "improve its level of communication with the research community about any future changes to the project."

OBSSR - New mobile and wireless health technologies, known as mHealth, are likely to have profound impact on biomedical research and the delivery of healthcare. The Committee applauds OBSSR for leading efforts to systematically evaluate the impact of new technologies. The Committee is pleased that virtually all of the NIH Institutes and the National Science Foundation are collaborating in this area.

The Committee also commends OBSSR for its work to establish a comprehensive and cohesive process to track the efforts of government, universities, private foundations, and associations to enhance minority participation in the sciences.

NCI - The National Cancer Institute is urged to fund basic, translational, and clinical research on cancer disparities in regions of the country that have a high predominance of economically disadvantaged African Americans. Areas of research cited by the Committee include cancer areas relevant to smoking and obesity. The Committee expresses its concern at the disproportionately high rate at which minority populations suffer from virtually every form of cancer. The Committee requested that NCI and the National Institute of Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD) "prepare a joint report on efforts to end this disparity and effective ways to communicate with minorities on this important issue."

The Committee also encouraged NCI's collaboration with the Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSRO to study shared medical decision-making and to identify ways to improve communications between healthcare providers and their patients.

NHLBI - The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute is encouraged to speed the translation of basic research results in the behavioral and social sciences to clinical or other applications.

The Committee applauded NIH's Sleep disorders Research Plan, published by the National Center on Sleep Disorders Research. The Committee urged NHLBI to work with other Institutes and Centers to implement the plan's recommendations for improving sleep research and training, and for advancing multi-Institute collaborations.

NIDDK - The Committee requested that the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) update its report on the burden of digestive diseases in the United States to provide more accurate information on the current economic and health impacts of these conditions.

The Committee commended NIDDK for its continued efforts to build on the successes of the Diabetes Prevention Program and encouraged the use of additional resources to improve prevention and treatment of diabetes.

NIGMS - The Committee provided $276.5 million to continue increased support for the IDeA program. The Committee recognizes the importance of the Centers of Biomedical Research Excellence (COBRE and the IDeA Networks of Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE) programs.) The Committee expressed its belief that the IDeA program has made a significant contribution to biomedical research and creating a skilled workforce. Accordingly, the Committee continued the $45.9 million increase from FY 2012 and recommends that one-half the increase go toward new COBRE awards. The increase should be paid for by a reduction in funding across NIH institutes and centers.

The Committee encouraged the NIH Director to expand the program to support co-funding IDeA projects across NIH institutes and centers to foster the development of efforts in IDeA State programs. The Committee noted that many institutions in the Office of Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research [EPSCoR]-qualifying States are ineligible for funding and directed the IDeA Director to expand IDeA eligibility to all National Science Foundation EPSCoR-eligible States.

NICHD - The Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development is commended for supporting research on the impact of deployment of a parent on nearly 2 million children who live in military families and 700,000 children who have been affected by a recent or current deployment of a parent. The Committee noted that studies are needed to examine the unique developmental challenges of children when the mother or female head of household is deployed to a combat zone, the process of adjustment when military personnel return home, and the long-term consequences of separation and reintegration on children's development.

The Committee commended NICHD for supporting large-scale databases, such as the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, the Child Development Supplement of Panel Study of Income Dynamics, and the Fragile Families and Child Well-Being Study, and demographic research activities, such as the Population Research Infrastructure Program. It noted that these investments have generated key scientific findings, illuminating in particular the relationship between socioeconomic status and individuals' health and well-being. As NICHD implements its ambitious reorganization and scientific visioning process in FY 2013, the Committee urged the Institute to continue its commitment to supporting demography and population science.

NIA - In order to build upon the strong body of work already being done in NIH-funded Alzheimer's Disease Research Centers, the Committee recommended that the National Institute on Aging to take advantage of existing well-characterized, longitudinal, population-based cohort studies, and the existing research infrastructure these large-scale cohort studies have already established, to provide new insights into risk factors and protective factors related to cognitive decline and dementia. The Committee emphasized that it "feels strongly that additional research is needed in minority populations that are particularly high risk for cognitive decline and dementia."

The Institute is encouraged to continue support of studies to identify environmental, behavioral, and social factors that could protect against age-related cognitive decline as well as randomized studies to test the efficacy of behavioral and social interventions to slow or reverse age-related cognitive decline.

NIA is recognized by the Committee for supporting research on the demographic, economic and social consequences of an aging population in the U.S. and world-wide. The Health and Retirement study, a longitudinal survey of more than 26,000 Americans that is now being replicated in more than 30 countries is cited by the Committee as a "premier example of this research."

The Institute is also commended for working with the Economic and Social Research Council in Great Britain to develop subjective measures of well-being as a complement to objective health measures and traditional economic indicators of progress. The Committee encouraged the continued development of these metrics and their incorporation into national surveys.

NIAAA - The Committee applauded the release of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism's new youth alcohol screening guide and encourages the Institute to continue to promote alcohol screening of children and adolescents. The Institute is urged to pursue its plans to evaluate the guide both for detecting risk of alcohol problems and as an initial screen for other risky behaviors.   NIAAA is also commended for its efforts to develop a matrix of interventions for addressing alcohol problems on college and university campuses and in the surrounding communities. The Committee recognized the critical role of psychological research in understanding and addressing underage drinking.

NIDA - The National Institute on Drug Abuse is recognized by the Committee for its educational efforts to inform the public of the deleterious effects of abused substances and the life-threatening dangers of drug addiction. The Committee cited adolescents and returning veterans and their families as being at high risk for drug abuse and noted that these should be areas of focus.   Additionally, NIDA is commended for its efforts to coordinate and support research with the Department of Veterans Affairs and other NIH institutes on substances abuse and associated problems among U.S. military personnel, veterans, and their families. NIDA is encouraged to continue work in this area.

The Committee supported NIDA's continued efforts to understand how genetics, age, environment, and other factors affect the use of experimental drugs and the development of addiction.

NIMH - The Committee declared that with recent scientific advances demonstrating the promise of biomedical HIV prevention interventions, behavioral research is needed more than ever to bolster medication, adherence and treatment uptake, document real-world decision-making processes associated with biomedical interventions, and better understand potential unintended and/or undesired consequences of biomedical interventions. The National Institute of Mental Health is urged by the Committee to support a robust HIV/AIDS behavioral prevention research agenda that examines these factors and includes operation research to optimize combination HIV prevention.

The Institute is encouraged to fund research efforts to find innovative ways to address mental health disparities in underserved populations. The Committee noted that greater rates of poverty among some ethnic and minority groups and rural populations, relationships between low socioeconomic status and some mental disorders, and greater risk of poverty among people with certain mental illnesses can create a vicious cycle.

NIMHD - The Committee recognizes that more research and education are needed on the disparate effects of diabetes on minority populations. The Committee urged NIMHD to expand its research on pre-diabetes and diabetes, particularly type-2 diabetes in minority populations. This research should identify clinical, socio-economic, geographical, cultural, and organizational factors that contribute to diabetes in such populations. Specifically, the Committee encouraged NIMHD to analyze behavior and obesity.

It is noted by the Committee that the Strategic Plan for NIH Obesity Research emphasizes the need for a transdisciplinary, multifaceted approach to address the complex factors that have resulted in the growing obesity problem in the U.S. The Committee supported NIH's actions to date and the findings of the task force, but remains concerned that while the essential plan and direction may be in place, a better mechanism is needed to coordinate a trans-NIH, multidisciplinary efforts to address the complicated nature of the obesity problem. The Committee urged NIH to intensify its investment in obesity research, in particular in populations that are most affected - racial and ethnic minorities, low-income populations, and rural populations. The Committee again strongly recommended that NIH review the benefits of establishing a Comprehensive Center of Excellence for Obesity Research and Prevention within NIMHD to better coordinate efforts within NIH and with other Federal agencies.

NCATS - The Committee is encouraged by the direction of the new Center. It encourages NCATS to continue the focus of the Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSAs) program on the full spectrum of translational research.

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality - The Senate Committee provided $364.1 million in funding for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) through transfers available under section 241 of the Public Health Services (PHS) Act. The Committee recommended transferring $12 million to AHRQ from the PPH Fun. The total program level assumed in the bill for AHRQ is $376.1 million.

The Committee noted that AHRQ's research portfolio focuses predominantly on patient safety and healthcare quality. It urged AHRQ to develop a more balanced research agenda, supporting all aspects of healthcare research outlined in its statutory mission, including: the cost and utilization of, and access to, healthcare; and the ways in which healthcare services are organized, delivered, and financed.  

Education

The Senate panel provided $75.7 million for international education and foreign language programs in FY 2013. Although this is a $1.7 million increase over FY 2012 as recommended by the Administration, the figure remains considerably below the FY 2010 appropriation of $125.9 million. The domestic programs of Title VI of the Higher Education Act would receive $68.3 million, up from $66.6 million in FY 2012. The Committee directed that the Department should use the increase "to support new awards in the Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language program." The Fulbright-Hays Act overseas programs would receive $7.5 million, the same as in FY 2012.

The Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE) received $43.5 million from the Senate panel for FY 2013. This is a considerable increase from FY 2012's level of $3.5 million. The Committee provided $39 million of the requested $55 million for the Administration's "First in the World" initiative. The program, according to the Administration, would help ensure institutions of higher education have access to and implement innovative strategies and practices that have been shown to be effective in improving educational outcomes and making college more affordable for students and families. The Committee recommended that up to $14 million of these funds go to minority-serving institutions to improve their students' persistence and completion rates while keeping costs under control.

In FY 2012 the Administration recommended and the Congress accepted the proposal to subsume the Javits Fellowship program into the Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need (GAANN) program. For FY 2013, the Senate Committee proposed funding GAANN at $30.9 million, the same as FY 2012.   Aware that the GAANN program has not considered the social sciences, arts, and humanities, whose graduate students were funded by the Javits program, as areas of national need, the Senate panel urged the Department to make these disciplines "eligible fields for new and continuing grant competitions" under the consolidated program. The Committee requested that the Department provide a plan for the implementation of the consolidation within 30 days of the enactment of this act.

The Senate Committee commended the Institute of Education Sciences' (IES) "attempts to improve the rigor, relevance, and utilization of education research that leads to enhanced education policy and classroom practices." It provided $189.8 million, the same as the FY 2012 and $12.5 million below the President's request for education research, development, and national dissemination activities.   The Committee also directed IES to "support a National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented and to ensure that gifted and talented education is reported in national reports produced by IES."

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) received $114.7 million, an increase of slightly less than $6 million above FY 2012 and the same as the request, to "allow NCES to provide partial support to States that would like to benchmark their student performance against countries that participate in the Program for International Student Assessment."

The Committee recommended $53.1 million, a $15 million increase from FY 2012 and the same as the request, for Statewide Data Systems. IES' assessment activities received $132.6 million, the same as the budget request and $6 million below FY 2012.

Under the Department of Education management account, the Senate Committee report includes language expressing concern "with deficiencies in geography education at the elementary and secondary education levels and geographic education research in the United States." The Committee therefore directs the Government Accountability Office "to conduct a study on the status of geographic education and the ability of U.S. graduates to fill and retain skilled jobs, particularly in geospatial technologies."

Bureau of Labor Statistics

The Senate Committee recommended $619 million for the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) in FY 2013. This is almost a $10 million increase over FY 2012 and a little less than $1 million above the President's request. Of these funds, $67.2 million will come from the unemployment trust fund.

In the report, the Committee commended the BLS "for its roughly 4-decade commitment to gather, extrapolate, and disseminate critical information about the experiences of youth, women, and men in the labor market through the National Longitudinal Surveys [NLS]." The report also noted that "these longitudinal surveys serve as an essential national data source for long-term and ongoing analysis of the economic health of America and are an invaluable resource for Congress, as well as the public and private sectors, especially during times of economic uncertainty." The Committee concluded that BLS should continue to support the NLS and recommended that "the frequency of NLS data collection should not be less than biennially."

The Committee report directed the Secretary of Labor to commission a study, either by the National Academy of Public Administration or the National Academy of Sciences' Committee on National Statistics. The study would report "on a comprehensive assessment of the proper purpose, structure, methods, and operations of the Federal-State cooperative statistics system, particularly regarding the appropriate roles and responsibilities of the BLS, the ETA (Employment and Training Administration), the State labor market information agencies, and the system's relationship with the Census Bureau, the NCES (National Center for Education Statistics), State workforce agencies, State education agencies, and private vendors." The Committee also asked that whoever does the study should issue an interim report that would contain a rigorous assessment of the Current Employment Statistics Program.

Furthermore, the report indicated that BLS should "initiate a pilot input price index that would track price changes as establishments shift from domestic to foreign sources," and "prioritize work on the Contingent Work Supplement to the Current Population Survey."

House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee Holds NIH Oversight Hearing to Discuss Reauthorization and Sequestration

On June 21, the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health held an oversight hearing, "The National Institutes of Health - A Review of Its Reforms, Priorities, and Progress," to review the implementation of the 2006 NIH Reform Act, the progress of the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS), and the determination of NIH funding and research priorities.

Subcommittee Chair, Rep. Joseph Pitts (R-PA), welcomed NIH director Francis Collins, the hearing's only witness and provided a short overview of the history of the agency's creation in 1887 "when it operated as a one room laboratory." Pitts noted that "faced with so many good causes," he would like to know how NIH identifies the highest priorities in biomedical research and then uses the review process to fund the best research.

In his opening statement submitted for the record, Full Committee Chair, Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI) noted that "many members, including myself, are curious to hear how NIH determines its research priorities and why some diseases receive significant attention and funding while others don't seem to be on the NIH's radar. Or, how, NIH selects topics in behavioral research and whether these topics reflect the best science and common values."

Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee, echoing most of the others, noted that the "NIH is a driving force behind biomedical research that has advanced, and continues to improve, the health of Americans and strengthened the U.S. economy...declining or stagnant federal funding for research and development has an impact on all sectors of our workforce." He noted that while these "are difficult economic times...our counterparts in Europe and Asia are steadily increasing their investments for biomedical research despite limited resources because of long-term impacts on their citizens, health and economy."

Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX), the author of the NIH Reform Act of 2006, thanked Chairman Pitts and Ranking Member Pallone, Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA) and Chairman Upton and noted that the hearing was called at his behest. Barton reminded the Subcommittee that it was back in 2006, when he was chairman, the Congress passed the NIH Reauthorization Bill - the agency's first major reauthorization in more than 13 years.

He also noted the doubling of the NIH's budget, which ocurred between 1998 and 2003, and lamented that "in the last few years, we have not been able to give NIH those sorts of additional resources." He further noted that the NIH Reauthorization bill provided the agency with "extra flexibility, created the Common Fund, and helped reorganize the NIH." He shared his belief that the Act had been implemented "in a fairly effective fashion." The hearing, Barton explained, was designed to hear from Collins how that reauthorization is proceeding and "also get his input on the things that perhaps need to be done and need to be done legislatively that haven't been done." The Subcommittee wants to make sure that the NIH is productive, effective and "to the extent that we can increase funding we want to provide transparency so ...that the public knows how their money is being spent," Barton continued.

Barton further noted that the Subcommittee also "want to increase the communication and collaboration within the NIH and to as large an extent possible to eliminate duplicity and redundancy."

He pointed out the NIH's reauthorization had expired and he hopes that the "hearing will lay the foundation to perhaps in this Congress and if not in this congress, perhaps in the next Congress to do another Reauthorization Bill of the NIH."

Collins reported to the Subcommittee that the agency is using new structures and mechanisms to enable and expedite trans-NIH research managed by the Division of Program Coordination, Planning, and Strategic Initiatives (DPCPSI) and funded by the Common Fund. The agency has increased transparency with online research inventories and portfolio databases. The NIH has also worked closely with the Scientific Management Review Board (SMRB), instituted by the NIH Reform Act. The SMRB has proven an effective advisor for providing expert advice about NIH's organization, management, and performance, Collins noted in his written testimony.

Impact of Sequestration?

How does operating on continuing resolutions and the threat of the sequestration affect your ability to maintain constant funding to the best brightest scientists and adequately address the numerous health burdens represented in the NIH research portfolio, asked Pallone.

Collins responded that "it does make it challenging when science really is best sustained by having stability so that investigators out there in all the states of our nation and some outside our nation are able to pursue research with the confidence that there is going to be some support that will not just become somewhat questionable the next year or the next month." He related that the NIH budget has to be decided upon every year and it rarely has been decided by October 1, the beginning of the fiscal year, which makes it challenging to manage the agency. Collins explained that most scientific projects have a cycle time of three or four years. The expectation is to assure that investigator that the NIH is going to provide support for that three or four years, "otherwise, the initial money may go to waste." But when the agency doesn't know from year to year exactly what its resources will be makes it very tough, remarked the NIH director.

Waxman continued the line of questioning, empathizing with Collins regarding the difficulty associated with going "year by year without knowing what your budget is going to be. It could lead to a lot of instability but you're facing something as are other parts of our government much more dramatic at the end of this year. The sequestration or what it really means is the across-the-board cuts that were called for in last year's budget agreement and that will go into effect in January [2013] unless the Congress changes things," said Waxman. By the Congressional Budget Office's estimate this would mean an approximately eight percent reduction in NIH's budget or roughly $2.4 billion less available funding, taking NIH back to its 2004 funding levels, he explained.

He pointed out that if this funding went into effect, at least 2,300 fewer grants would be awarded. "I assume this is on your mind and it's on the minds of a lot of people. .. And I know as a government leader you have to make plans for your sequestration. How would NIH absorb this $2.4 billion in lost funding? What cuts would you make? Would you make it across the board? Would you pick and choose which institutes and centers get hit by how much and if you made a decision not just across the board, what criteria would you use to pick and choose?"

Collins replied that sequestration is "certainly" on his mind. "If there is something that I'm most concerned about in terms of an event that could really disrupt and do serious damage to the progress that we now see in medical research, this is it," Collins stated. The loss of 2,300 grants which would come already three months into the fiscal year would represent about a quarter of the total grants the NIH would give for that entire year. He explained that exactly how that would be distributed would depend upon scientific priorities but it would clearly stretch all areas: cancer, diabetes, heart disease, common diseases, rare diseases, basic science and training.   The agency would "basically spread the pain" but would not do it in a completely blind fashion.

The NIH director noted that the agency is already at the lowest rates in history for success in getting your grant funded, about 17 percent. Traditionally, the success rate has been at 30 percent. To drop that even further which would clearly happen dramatically were sequestration to occur "might deal a blow to many investigators that they simply would not be able to sustain."

Rep. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) questioned Collins regarding the NIH's level of support for HIV/AIDS research as compared to its support for "ischemic heart disease even though ischemic heart disease is the leading cause of death. And obesity which you mentioned in your written testimony as being so important affecting 30 percent of our population is, I think, 40th in terms of the ranking of your priority as you have enlisted."

Collins responded by cautioning Cassidy regarding "this kind of analysis based on DALYs (Disability Adjusted Life Years) in which decisions are made about research opportunity. He explained that in addition to public health needs there are circumstances where science provides lots of opportunities for things to go quickly and others where you're simply throwing the money at the problem. There's no great new idea. In his written testimony, Collins explained that "frustratingly, not all disease or scientific problems are equally ripe for new advances, nor do such advances come at the same rate across the portfolio, no matter how pressing they might be the public's health. He also emphasizes that the NIH "simply cannot predict the next scientific revelation or anticipate the next opportunity."

Continuing this line of questioning, Cassidy asked "how often do your councils actually redirect funding?" Collins answered that it is the job of the advisory councils to decide what new requests for applications to approve.

House Science Panel Hears from President's Science Adviser

On June 20, the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee, chaired by Rep. Ralph Hall (R-TX), held an oversight hearing on the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) to examine the "Priorities and Effectiveness of the Nation's Science Policies." The sole witness was John Holdren, OSTP director and President Obama's Science Adviser.

In his opening statement, the Chairman acknowledged that: "We may not always agree with the advice the Director provides to the President, but science and technology have played a vital role in the making of this Nation and will continue to fulfill that role in the future." At the same time, he expressed his concern "about a number of this Administration's science and technology policy issues, ranging from an unprecedented emphasis on clean energy at the expense of other priorities to a larger focus on applied research at the expense of basic scientific research to the lack of a clearly defined and compelling long-term mission for human space flight."

Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX), the Ranking member on the Science Panel, noted: "As Americans we should celebrate the fact that a highly respected scientist such as Dr. Holdren has the ear of the President and is truly part of his inner circle of advisors on matters of science and technology."

Holdren's testimony included a history of the federal government's role in supporting science and the establishment of the science advisory structure within the Executive Office of the President.   He also was grateful for the increase provided by the House and Senate Appropriations Committee for OSTP's budget in the FY 2013 Commerce, Justice, Science appropriations bill following a significant cut in FY 2012 due to a dispute over the office's contacts with the Chinese government.

The Science Adviser stressed the President's priorities such as advanced manufacturing, clean energy, global change research, space, in which he defended the decisions regarding NASA's human spaceflight program, scientific integrity, STEM education, big data (see Update, April 12, 2012), public access to federally funded research, and cybersecurity. He also mentioned the Neuroscience Initiative that Congress helped promulgate into a cross-agency activity led by Philip Rubin (see other story). Holdren also reported on the multiple public-private partnerships the Administration has created to advance science, technology, and innovation, as well as science education.

The questions from the Committee members ranged from local issues, e.g. from newly-elected Rep. Suzanne Bonamici's (D-OR) concern about the impact of the Japanese tsunami on the Oregon Coast, Rep. Randy Hultgrens' (R-IL) distress about the decline of U.S. world class facilities in particle physics (Fermilab is in his district), and Rep. Steven Palazzo's (R-MS) worries about the NASA Center in his state, to the hostile, e.g. Rep. Dana Rohrbacher (R-CA) rehashing the OSTP-China problem using an outdated Government Accountability Office report, Rep. Mo Brooks (R-AL) questioning the Administration's "Green Jobs" claims, and Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD) ranting over the EPA regulatory process and the defending the process of fracking to extract natural gas.

The Science Director suggested that OSTP would release the long-awaited strategic plan for STEM education sometime this fall. He also concluded that the current budgetary climate makes it more difficult for the Administration to achieve all its goals in science, technology, and innovation.

For more on the hearing, including Holdren's testimony, go to:

http://science.house.gov/hearing/full-committee-hearing-examining-priorities-and-effectiveness-nation%E2%80%99s-science-policies.

Philip Rubin Moves Up at OSTP

House Appropriations Committee Marks Up Agriculture and Rural Development Spending Bill

On June 19, the House Appropriations Committee approved its version of the FY 2013 Agriculture and Rural Development Appropriations bill. The Subcommittee on Agriculture and Rural Development, chaired by Rep. Jack Kingston (R-GA), had marked up its version on June 6 (see Update, June 12, 2012). The legislation includes $19.4 billion in discretionary funding - a cut of $365 million below last year's level and $1.7 billion below the President's budget request. The bill was approved by full committee with a voice vote. Several amendments were also approved, for a comprehensive list of those please look here. The Senate Appropriations Committee passed its Agriculture bill back in April (see Update, April 30, 2012.)

The Committee provided the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) $691 million for FY 2013 for its research and education activities. This number includes $231.6 million for the Hatch Act, the major formula funding mechanism which funds research conducted by the State Agricultural Experiment Stations. This number is roughly $3.5 million below the President's requested $235 million. The Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI), USDA's primary competitive research grants program supporting investigator-initiated research, received $276.5 million in the bill. This falls far short of the President's proposed $325 million, but is above the $264.5 million enacted in FY 2012. It is also less generous than the Senate's recommended $298 million.

The Economic Research Service (ERS) received $75 million in the House bill, $2 million below the President's request and $2.7 million below last year. The panel provided the National Agriculture Statistics Service (NASS) with $175 million, of which $61.3 million is for the Census of Agriculture. This is an increase of roughly $16.6 million above the 2012 funding level.

The Committee has included a major cut for the Regional Rural Development Centers, allocating them a mere $568 thousand, down from the Centers' usual $1 million budget. President Obama proposed consistent funding for the Centers, as did the Senate, so this represents a stark contrast from the Republican-controlled House.

The bill is expected to reach the House floor for a vote during the week of June 25. President Obama has threatened to veto the bill at its current levels, taking specific issue with funding levels for a financial regulatory agency, a domestic nutrition program and international food aid. The Administration also objects that the overall House discretionary spending level is below the number set by last year's debt agreement. The full text of the Agriculture and Rural Development legislation is available here. The Committee Report can be found here.

Senate Passes Reauthorization of the Farm Bill

The Senate, after a seemingly never-ending series of amendment considerations, passed the five-year Farm Bill on June 21-a feat many thought impossible. The measure passed 64-35. Under an agreement worked out to bring the bill up for consideration, 60 votes were needed for passage of the legislation and for adoption of any of the extraneous amendments.

The underlying five-year bill would authorize agricultural and food assistance programs, which the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects would cost roughly $969 billion if implemented over the next ten years - $23.6 billion less than the CBO projects would be spent if those programs were continued under current law. The legislation would provide direct spending authority for most of the programs from crop year 2013 through crop year 2017. The bill would terminate $5 billion in annual direct payments to grain and cotton growers and replace it with a revenue- protection plan that would offer "shallow loss" coverage for farmers who experience price and crop losses. The bill also authorizes appropriations for agricultural and food policy research centers and reauthorizes agricultural research activities at 1862, 1890 and 1994 land-grant institutions. The bill does not offer policy changes to The Agriculture and Food Research Initiative.

Included in the amended bill are directions to Secretary Tom Vilsack to establish a Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research, a non-profit, non-governmental entity to foster public private partnerships within the research community including the Department of Agriculture, other agencies, non-governmental organizations, academia, corporations, private foundations, and wealthy donors. The directed purpose of the Foundation will be to advance the research mission of the Department by supporting agriculture research activities focused on addressing key problems of national and international significance. In the months leading up to this bill, COSSA joined with other concerned groups to fight for the inclusion of agriculture economics and rural communities in this new Foundation-these vital areas of research made it through in the Senate's passed version of the bill.

The House Agriculture Committee is expected to mark up its version of the bill July 11.

Making Prison Reform Work Subject of Keynote Address at NIJ Conference