In Brief
No Deal Yet on Debt Ceiling
Discussions continue around the debt ceiling with House Republicans continuing to seek unity on their negotiating position for the debt. Last Friday, Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) avoided discussing a potential debt limit negotiation offer sheet, contradicting comments made by House Budget Committee Chair Jodey Arrington (R-TX), who had said Republicans were close to putting out a written set of terms for GOP priorities in a debt limit deal. As House and Senate panels hold hearings on the president's budget proposal this week, Rep. Arrington has also said he would work on a budget resolution separate from a House Republican offer on the debt limit. However, he has declined to set a timeline for his budget resolution to be introduced.
House Appropriators Preview Priorities for DOE Budget
At a hearing last week with Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, Republican members of the appropriations subcommittee for the Department of Energy criticized the Biden administration’s priorities in its fiscal year 2024 request for the department. For instance, Subcommittee Chair Chuck Fleischmann (R-TN) contrasted the more than 30% increase requested for the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy with the 9% increase sought for the Office of Science, which he described as “near and dear” to his heart. Rep. Mike Simpson (R-ID) further questioned DOE’s proposal to begin planning a new national lab at a minority-serving institution, suggesting the existing labs could address goals such as diversifying the energy R&D workforce. Subcommittee Ranking Member Marcy Kaptur (D-OH) asked Granholm about the consequences of reducing DOE’s budget to its fiscal year 2022 level. Committee Democrats issued a cross-agency request for information on the subject in January to criticize prospective Republican spending proposals. Citing DOE’s response, Granholm estimated it would result in the loss of about 5,200 scientists, students, and technical staff at national labs and universities.
DeLauro Shares Agency Responses on Proposed Discretionary Spending Cuts
House Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) called upon agency heads to illustrate how the House Republican Leadership’s reported proposal to cut fiscal year (FY) 2024 discretionary spending back to FY22 enacted levels would impact the American people. DeLauro shared that the cuts would cause “irreparable damage to our communities by gutting the programs that every single American relies on.” The response from Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra noted, “A 22% reduction in funding would force the National Institutes of Health to support an estimated 5,000 fewer grants, which will slow discoveries to cure disease and save lives.” The Biophysical Society continues to advocate against the proposed cuts to discretionary funding and support sustained, predictable, long-term scientific research funding.
NIH Seeks Input on Postdoctoral Research Training and Career Progression
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has issued a new Request for Information (RFI), seeking input from the extramural research community on the current state of postdoctoral training within the biomedical research enterprise.
The RFI, Re-envisioning U.S. Postdoctoral Research Training and Career Progression within the Biomedical Research Enterprise, invites input on factors influencing postdoctoral training, including fundamental issues and challenges that inhibit recruitment, retention, and overall quality of life of postdoctoral trainees in academic research. NIH is particularly interested in understanding the perspective and experience of recent and current postdoctoral trainees, postdoctoral office leaders, as well as graduate students considering becoming postdocs.
Comments received will guide the development of recommendations by the NIH Advisory Committee to the Director, an advisory group that provides advice on matters pertinent to NIH mission responsibilities. Comments are due April 14, 2023 and can be submitted here.