In Brief
BPS Webinar: Exploring Careers in Science Policy
For many scientists, exploring a career transition to science policy can seem like entering a totally different universe. So where does one begin in order to understand the various roles and players involved? The BPS Congressional Fellowship is a good training ground to see how Congress and policy operate from the inside; it will also show you just how expansive a career in science policy can be. Learn from current and former members of the PAC and scientists from other fields who have pursued a science policy career pathway.
Join us on Monday, September 13 from 1:30 pm to 3:00 pm Eastern for an open discussion on science policy careers, opportunities, experiences, and the best ways to get started on a policy track.
Register now to learn more about careers in science policy!
Join our distinguished panelists:
Steven Moss, Program Officer, Board on Life Sciences, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM), and member of the BPS Public Affairs Committee (PAC);
Adriana Bankston, Principal Legislative Analyst at the University of California Office of Federal Governmental Relations in Washington, DC; and
Yasmeen Hussain, Program Officer at Washington State Academy of Sciences, and former BPS Congressional Fellow (2017-2018).
The session will be moderated by BPS PAC members:
Bridget Milorey, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Rutgers University and
Michael Rudokas, Postdoctoral Associate, Yale University.
Science Coalition Urges Administration to Provide Visa Assistance to Afghan Scientists, Engineers
The Biophysical Society has joined with a group of 30 professional societies and academic organizations in writing to the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) asking the Administration to provide visa assistance to Afghan scientists, engineers, and technical professionals seeking to leave Afghanistan.
“As the United States continues to evacuate vulnerable populations from Afghanistan, we ask that you extend assistance to engineers, scientists, and other educated professionals in the country, especially those who, despite all odds, have joined global technical communities,” the groups wrote. “We specifically ask that you assist women in STEM in their exodus of Afghanistan. Women and girls, along with their STEM mentors, are currently being targeted by the Taliban.”
Specifically, the letter requests P-2 Priority designation visas for volunteers and members of global professional societies to facilitate their evacuation from Afghanistan.
Woodcock Out of the Running for FDA
White House sources say that Acting Commissioner of the FDA, Janet Woodcock has been ruled out as a nominee for the permanent job, after she faced criticism from legislators and health advocates over several drug approval decisions during her long tenure at the agency. Moderate Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) wrote to President Joe Biden in June opposing Woodcock’s nomination, and multiple congressional committees are scrutinizing the FDA’s expedited approval of Biogen’s experimental Alzheimer’s drug Aduhelm. Woodcock is eligible to serve as Acting Commissioner until November 15, unless President Biden offers another nomination to the Senate before then, in which case she can remain in charge of the agency while that nomination proceeds. The process of selecting a nominee has dragged on for months, frustrating FDA onlookers at a time when regulators are playing a crucial role in vaccination decisions.
House Adopts Trillion Dollar Budget Resolution
The House voted 220-212 on August 24 to adopt the $3.5 trillion budget resolution. This followed hours of negotiation between Democrats, including a group of ten moderates led by Representative Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), who demanded a floor vote on the bipartisan infrastructure bill before proceeding to Democratic leadership’s $3.5 trillion budget resolution. The group struck a deal with Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) on the timing of both votes in the form of a new rule to tweak language to clarify that the House is planning to bring up the Senate's bipartisan infrastructure bill on September 27. The Rules Committee has released the corresponding report on the rule as well as the resolution. Pelosi has committed to "rallying House Democratic support" for passing the infrastructure bill in September. However, as we know, Congress has other pressing issues they must address in the fall as well, including government funding and the debt limit. In the meantime, the House's reconciliation process can begin, in which committees will work out the details of the budget framework to be considered this fall.
Senators Sinema and Manchin Remain Skeptical on Budget
Following the House passage of the $3.5 trillion budget resolution, Senator Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) reiterated her firm opposition to the $3.5 trillion top line backed by Democratic leadership, even as the $550 billion bipartisan infrastructure deal she co-authored has become a bargaining chip for similarly skeptical moderates in the House. While Sinema and Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) voted to pass a budget resolution with reconciliation instructions that would clear the way for Democrats to pass a $3.5 trillion package with no Republican votes, a Sinema spokesperson said that the bipartisan bill should be considered on its own merits. Manchin tweeted a similar statement expressing agreement with the demands of House moderates to decouple the partisan package from the infrastructure bill. The road to a reconciliation package will have speed bumps.