ACS endorses NSF for the Future Act

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May 4, 2021

Dear Chairwoman Johnson and Ranking Member Lucas:

On behalf of the American Chemical Society (ACS), I am pleased to endorse H.R. 2225, The National Science Foundation (NSF) for the Future Act. We applaud your bipartisan, collaborative, and transparent stakeholder process in creating this transformative legislation.

The NSF for the Future Act is a forward thinking vision for assuring America’s global competitiveness in the 21st century. By sustainably growing NSF resources, it will ensure our innovation engine is primed to boost economic growth. The creation of the Directorate for Science and Engineering Solutions recognizes the need to catalyze NSF’s existing science into translational research to address existing gaps in America’s innovation infrastructure. These proposals will build collaborative relationships with other federal science agencies, as well as industry and academia.

Moreover, H.R. 2225 recognizes the critical need to broaden access to research opportunities, particularly in underserved and rural communities. Prioritizing safe, secure, and equitable research environments will help to enable a diverse and inclusive workforce to meet the demands of emerging technologies and innovation leadership on a global scale. The ACS looks forward to continued collaboration with the Committee to prioritize research funding for underserved and underrepresented communities, as well as efforts to maintain the security of our research enterprise. ACS hopes that the following bipartisan legislative efforts will be incorporated into the NSF authorization process:

• H.R. 204, The STEM Opportunities Act, to create grants for groups historically underrepresented in STEM at institutions of higher education and federal science agencies.
• H.R. 2027, The MSI STEM Achievement Act, increases support for minority-serving institutions, including by requiring the NSF to award grants for building the capacity to increase the number and success of their students in the STEM workforce.
• H.R. 210, The Rural STEM Education Research Act, researching the challenges of teaching and learning STEM in rural communities and developing programming to expand access to STEM.
• H.R. 2695, The Combating Sexual Harassment in Science Act, researching causes and consequences of sexual harassment at federal agencies and across the research community.

Meeting the economic and scientific challenges of the next several decades requires broad, bi-partisan support for America’s scientific enterprise. By employing a comprehensive stakeholder process in developing this legislation, you have ensured all voices are part of the discussion and created a real, successful vision for the NSF in the 21st Century.

Again, we thank and applaud your hard work on this legislation and look forward to joining forces with all members of the research and development community to guarantee America retains its scientific leadership.  Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to me or Lauren Posey.

Sincerely,

Anthony Pitagno

CC:
The Honorable Nancy Pelosi
The Honorable Kevin McCarthy
The Honorable Haley Stevens
The Honorable Michael Waltz