News

DOE Science; NIH Changes; McMahon

BU IN DC

Kevin Outterson of CARB-X met with Congressional offices to discuss antimicrobial resistance on May 11th.

Brian Walsh of the College of Engineering talked with Congressional staff about federal investment in space weather research as part of the Heliophysics Coalition's Capitol Hill fly-in on May 12th.

John Connor of the National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories discussed federal support for National Biocontainment Labs with Congressional offices on May 13th and 14th.

BUZZ BITS...

• The House Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee released a draft spending bill yesterday that would increase the Department of Energy Office of Science budget by 1.5% and decrease the Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E) budget by 10% in fiscal year 2027. The measure will be considered by the House Appropriations Committee next week. The Senate has not yet released a proposed energy spending bill.
• On Tuesday, Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) led a letter from 25 Senators requesting that President Donald J. Trump and Acting Director of the National Science Foundation (NSF) Brian Stone answer questions about the dismissal of the National Science Board. The letter highlights the challenges NSF faces without a governing board, permanent director, and deputy director, and with a significantly reduced number of staff.
• The House Science, Space, and Technology Committee and the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee have each passed a version of the National Quantum Initiative Reauthorization Act, which would continue the National Quantum Initiative until 2032. A compromise bill will need to be approved by both chambers of Congress before the bill can be signed into law.

GRANT NEWS YOU CAN USE

Advisory councils across the National Institutes of Health (NIH) convened earlier this year for their first round of meetings to discuss agency-wide issues and Institute- and Center-specific priorities. Several of the Councils covered similar themes, including NIH’s Unified Funding Strategy, the effects of the fall 2025 government shutdown, changes to peer review, and efforts to streamline administrative processes. Councils also weighed in on the NIH's scientific priorities, such as scientific rigor and reproducibility, artificial intelligence, and human-based research models. Notable concept clearances that were approved can be found here

Read an overview

LAWMAKERS QUESTION MCMAHON ON GRADUATE LOANS

Secretary of Education Linda McMahon testified before the House Education and Workforce Committee on Thursday regarding the President's Budget Request, which recommends a 2.9% reduction in the Department of Education's (ED) budget. Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle criticized ED's decision to subject graduate students in nursing, teacher preparation, and social work programs to lower federal loan limits starting in July 2026. They also expressed bipartisan support for TRIO college preparatory programs, which the Trump Administration has proposed to eliminate. Committee members did demonstrate partisan differences: Republicans praised ED's efforts to detect student aid fraud by expanding identification requirements, while Democrats criticized staffing reductions at ED's Office of Civil Rights.

Watch the hearing

TRIO; NSF and NASA; Graduate Student Loans

BU IN DC

President Melissa Gilliam attended the Association of American Universities Spring Meeting from April 26 to April 29th.

School of Public Health Dean Adnan Hyder hosted a panel discussion on "The Future of Public Health in the United States" on April 29th, followed by an alumni reception. Erica Augustine, Jackie Bowes, and Luciano Ramos joined him.

Jack Beermann of the School of Law and students from his Supreme Court Decisionmaking course attended oral arguments at the Supreme Court on April 20th.

LAWMAKERS QUESTION EDUCATION SECRETARY ABOUT TRIO, CIVIL RIGHTS

On Tuesday, Secretary of Education Linda McMahon testified before a subcommittee of the Senate Appropriations Committee on the Trump Administration's budget request. Senators from both sides of the aisle questioned the Administration's proposed cuts to the TRIO college preparatory programs and criticized the Department's plan to shift the focus of the program away from college preparation to workforce training. Democrats questioned the Secretary about the reduction in staff at the Office of Civil Rights and the absence of civil rights enforcement related to sexual and racial harassment. McMahon said the Department is rehiring previously fired lawyers to resolve civil rights cases.

Watch the hearing

HOUSE COMMITTEE RECOMMENDS NSF, NASA CUTS

The House Appropriations Committee approved a fiscal year 2027 spending bill on Thursday that would reduce funding for the National Science Foundation (NSF) by 20% and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Science Mission Directorate by 17.2%. Earlier this year, the President’s Budget Request proposed a 54% cut to NSF and 46% cut to NASA Science. The Senate Appropriations Committee is expected to release its version of the science spending bill this summer; last year, the Senate recommended more robust NSF and NASA funding than both the House and the President.

Read the bill

BUZZ BITS...

• President Donald J. Trump reportedly dismissed the members of the National Science Board on Friday. The Board oversees the operations of the National Science Foundation; its members serve staggered six-year terms and one-third of them are replaced every two years. The White House has not announced plans to replenish the Board, an entity required by law.
• On Thursday, the Department of Education issued a final rule eliminating Graduate PLUS loans. Under the new rule, graduate students in 11 fields of study designated as "professional" will be limited to $50,000 in loans annually. Academic programs impacted by the loan limits are expected to file a lawsuit seeking to block the new rule, which is scheduled to go into effect on July 1st.
• The House Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Development held a hearing titled "Speech or Silence? The Future of the First Amendment in Higher Education" on Wednesday. Republicans on the Subcommittee shared reports of students self-censoring their views in the classroom, while Subcommittee Democrats drew attention to the Trump Administration’s conditioning of federal funding upon grantees' alignment with the Administration’s ideologies.

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Budget Hearings; SBIR; Foundation Funding

BU IN DC

Yannis Paschalidis, Darren Roblyer, Shannon Stott, and Joyce Wong of the College of Engineering and Laisheng Chou from the Goldman School of Dental Medicine participated in the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) Annual Event from April 11th to 13th.

Lawrence Were of Sargent College of Health & Rehabilitation Sciences spoke at the Consortium of Universities for Global Health 17th Annual Conference on April 12th.

Kevin Gallagher and members of the Global Development Policy Center engaged with policymakers in conjunction with the 2026 Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group between April 13th and 18th.

Jessica Simes of the College of Arts & Sciences (CAS) addressed a Congressional briefing about housing rights on April 17th.

Doctoral students Ben Krewson and Leeza Moldavchuk of CAS, Erin Cullinane of the Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine, and Molly Hoffman of the School of Public Health attended the American Association for the Advancement of Science Catalyzing Advocacy in Science and Engineering (CASE) workshop and discussed science policy with Congressional offices between April 12th and 15th. 

LAWMAKERS QUESTION TRUMP OFFICIALS ON PROPOSED RESEARCH CUTS

Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle criticized the Trump Administration's proposed cuts to scientific research as members of the President's Cabinet testified before Congress this week about the President's Budget Request for fiscal year 2027.

• In appearances before the House and Senate Appropriations Committees, Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. faced questions about the Administration's proposal to cut the National Institutes of Health budget by 12% and the decline in grant awards devoted to women's health. Kennedy asserted that the Administration was eliminating wasteful grants, but Members of Congress repeatedly voiced objections to the proposed cuts.
• House Science, Space, and Technology Committee Chairman Brian Babin (R-TX) told National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Administrator Jared Isaacman, "I simply do not believe that this budget proposal is capable of supporting what President Trump himself has directed [NASA] to accomplish over the course of his two terms, nor what Congress... has directed by law."
• Department of Energy Secretary Chris Wright discussed a "nuclear power renaissance" and the importance of the agency's Genesis Mission in an appearance before the Senate Appropriations Committee. Senator Mike Rounds (R-SD) emphasized the importance of investing in basic science and Senators Patty Murray (D-WA) and Chris Coons (D-DE) expressed concerns about proposed cuts to the Office of Science and Advanced Research Projects Agency–Energy.

BUZZ BITS...

• President Donald J. Trump signed the Small Business Innovation and Economic Security Act into law on April 13th, reauthorizing the Small Business Innovation Research and the Small Business Technology Transfer programs.
• On Wednesday, William English was appointed the acting chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). English is a business professor at Georgetown University. President Trump nominated Michael McDonald to serve as the permanent NEH Chairman in February; he is awaiting Senate confirmation.
• The Investigations and Oversight Subcommittee of the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee held a hearing on "The State of Scientific Publishing: Assessing Trends, Emerging Issues, and Policy Considerations" on April 15th. Lawmakers and witnesses discussed scientific integrity, paper mills, publishing fees, and open access to scientific research funded by the federal government.

EVENT NEWS YOU CAN USE

Join Foundation Relations and the Office of Research for "Meet the Funded: Building Authentic Relationships with Foundations" on April 27th at 12 p.m. This virtual webinar will outline ways faculty can identify relevant program officers, reach out for meetings, prepare for conversations, and develop meaningful partnerships with foundations. The session will provide an overview of BU resources to support faculty engagement with foundations, and will feature a panel discussion with principal investigators who have successful multi-year partnerships with foundations, including: Barr, ClimateWorks, Ford, Hewlett, Open Society, Walmart, Bob Woodruff, and many others.

Reserve your space